Scenes From A Storm...

 We finally got a summer lightning storm. 

And it seems everyone saw it.

Everyone around here, anyway.

I've seen pictures and videos of the storms everywhere since it hit two nights ago. 

I like to say we live at the top of the great Salt Lake Basin. North of us...mountains. Mountains to the east and west as well, but south, you can see for over a hundred miles. It opens like a huge carpet flowing to the Great Salt Lake. And when these summer lightning storms roll in, it can be breathtaking. This last storm did not disappoint. 

The pictures are not stellar. Since I'm not good at snapping lightning when it strikes, I set my phone to record and just stand there, hoping to catch some of the brilliance that we get to experience. I then scroll through the video stopping on the bright flashes and take a screen shot. I got a few good pics. 

Hopefully, we'll get a few more storms. And if that happens, hopefully, I'll get a few more shots.

What Is It About A Summer Storm...?

 What is it about a summer storm that makes you not only want to see it, but need to experience it? Maybe it's because where we live in the west, rain storms are the exception, not the standard. I'm sure that has something to do with it. We received a storm earlier in the week, a wonderful glorious storm that gave us some much needed rain.

And we went outside, sat on the porch, and smelled in the wonderful aroma of rain.

There was an added bonus...lightning.

I tried catching a photo of it. The only way I can do this is to take several videos and hope I get a strike in the frame. When I caught the lightning, I then take a screen shot of the strike. I saw many photos posted on social media of lightning strikes from the recent storms. So many amazing shots--some literally breathtaking. Mine...well, it's a photo of lightning.

Lightning is beautiful, but it can be deadly, as evidenced by a recent lightning strike that killed three people at the White House yesterday. So sad. And, I suppose we accepted a degree of risk sitting on our porch watching the rain fall, hearing the water hit the ground, taking in the cleansed air.

Yes, the storms are few and far between, so we enjoy them when they hit. We're supposed to have a wet day tomorrow. And if it does reach us, if we can, we'll be outside--hopefully safe--enjoying the summer storm. 

Checking Out The Fireworks...

 One interesting thing about social media is that you can see what is happening to people all over the globe, and the more people you follow or friends you have that live close to you, a quick search through social media sites can give you a different perspective on the very thing you're looking at from your front porch.

Case in point, this past weekend's storms.

This summer in our neck of the woods has been a dry one. Lawns are yellowing and people are shaming each other so we can save water. We do live in a desert, after all. So, when huge storms come knocking, people take notice. To be honest, the skies were so amazing...just looking up was like experiencing the world's biggest canvas and on that canvas were amazing clouds. I saw so many pictures of clouds and rain from my friends on social media--it was great.

Then, it got dark and the real fireworks began. Some of my friends snapped pictures of actual lightning bolts and they looked so cool (the pictures, not necessarily the friends...). My wife and I ventured out on the front porch to experience the weather. We love doing this whenever possible. I tried getting photos of lightning bolts, but unfortunately I was unsuccessful. I did catch the entire valley lighting up. On my video I did a screen shot of the valley as it was dark, then the next second, then entire valley was bathed in a ghostly white light.

So amazing.

We're still new to the area and getting used to the weather here. Even though the storms haven't been many, we're enjoying the ones we've seen...at least, so far.

Tonight's Wild Sky...

Tonight I opened the back door to our deck. It smelled like rain. It's a smell we haven't had for a long time. We could see filtering clouds descending, but we felt no rain...maybe it's too warm for the rain to reach the ground.

I hope that changes.

But, rain or no rain, the sky opened up and went wild.

I tried capturing what I saw as best I could, but it's a poor representation at best.

Such is life.

The past month, we've had some amazing sunsets, mostly due to wild fires burning in the west. Still, I believe clouds help to make the best sunsets. Tonight, we had them.

I'm just going to post what I took and include a video, or maybe two (you might catch some thunder and lightning in the videos, too...). It's something we haven't seen in a while--thought I'd share.

Sunset...Sunrise

Yesterday, I had the rare (as of late...) opportunity to see beautiful skies not only in the evening, but also in the morning.

The skies were incredible--my little phone camera can barely do it justice.

Back when I commuted to and from work, there as a time during the year when I'd see sunrises when I either climbed into my car or while I was driving to work or was on the bus. Then, another colorful sky met me as I journeyed home. Ever since I began working from home, I've missed almost every cool sunrise. I'm sad about that, but not enough to return working in an office.

I snapped another picture as well, one of the house with an incredible sunset behind. I've taken maybe hundreds of photos of our house over the years. It's something I never tire of doing (even though many may be tired of seeing it...).

I got lucky yesterday to see the sky as it rose and as it set. It's something I don't get to see very often nowadays.

The Past Couple Of Nights...Looking West

I thought I'd share a few of pictures I took of the sky the past couple of nights. They're not great shots, but they show some interesting colors and meteorological events.

The first was just before sunset when I actually caught the sun hovering just above the trees. Plus, all the haze from fires and such set the sky ablaze.

The next picture was one I used as my "Pic Of The Day." I remember it being more colorful when I took it, but sometimes what I see doesn't communicate well in the picture. Still, it's subtle and I like it.

Yesterday, storm clouds filled the sky most of the day and as the sun set in the west, shards of light filtered through the clouds illuminating sections of the valley below. Several years ago a co-worker talked of his love of photography. He showed us some of his personal favorites. He showed us one landscape picture and he pointed out the clouds. He said he loved photographing clouds, because without clouds, you have just a blue sky.

Summer skies can be interesting. Many times, there's no change--not a lot of rain here in the summer. But, every once in a while, the skies open up and give you a show. I've had a front-row seat the past couple of nights.

Waiting For Lightning...

Storms rarely roll across the valley in the summer, so when we heard thunder echo off the mountains one afternoon a few weeks back, a tingle rippled through each member of the family.

Finally, rain!

From where our house sits, we can usually tell how bad a storm's going to be. From the west, clouds approach. If they're bringing rain the bottom of the clouds disappear like cotton being pulled from below. But when we can't see Antelope Island, it means it's big and we'd better make sure things that are prone to being blown away in storms are secured. 

We live surrounded by mountains. Thunder, like the sounds from celebratory fireworks, bounce off the Rocky Mountains until the sound disappears into space. In the summer rain's a luxury. When we heard the thunder, we stopped what we were doing and opened up the front door. Was the storm to the south, the north, the west? We weren't sure, but we knew it drew close.

Rain in summer means relief, and not just for the fauna . It means relief from the heat, from the dry dry air, from the sun that beats down on our house, our roads, and our heads when outside. In the sky the sun proves it's power from millions of miles away. It give and takes away life--it rules us and we bend to its will.

And yet, it can be tamed, if only momentarily, by the condensation of evaporated water that solidifies in the chilled air above and wanders by the wind's will until the weight of the liquid proves too heavy and it releases its load.

And sometimes, there's lightning.

And when there's lightning, we wait.

And watch.