Freak of Nature

Isn't that what horrific, devastating storms are called?  Freaks of nature?  I think so.  I think I may have heard that one or a thousand times.  And I didn't hear it in my classroom when my students talk about an entire unit in our science book dedicated to it.  And I didn't hear it in my classroom when our reading book dedicated an entire theme to it.  No...I've heard it out of my seven year old's mouth...time and time again.  He is my Freak of Nature.

Who wants to be a storm chaser?  Who wants to willingly get in a car and chase something that can turn on a dime at any moment and kill you?  Who wants to risk his life so that the camcorder that strapped to his head captures a tornado in real time?  My son, that's who.

Who sits in my room day after day watching the weather channel and periodically comes out and gives us a severe storm weather update every half hour?  Who came running in my room yesterday saying that he needed to call his Aunt Noelle because West Virginia was going to have severe storms for most of the day?  My son, that's who.

Last month was ridiculous.  We had the WEIRDEST weather in the history of weird weather.  For a state that normally doesn't get tornadoes...they were popping up everywhere and some were in Sacramento.  And this is the worst part....he actually knows how far away Sacramento is so there was no trying to tell him that they weren't close or that it couldn't happen here.   The craziest part...he wasn't afraid. He was excited. He was watching the weather channel in hopes of getting a timeline that if we got in the car at a certain time, it would be the best possible time to catch a funnel cloud touching down.  HE WANTED TO GO AND CHASE THEM!!!!!!!!!!!!


He camped out in my room and for three to four days straight watch the weather channel, tivoing everything that had "tornadoes" in the title.  I ALMOST gave in and said...."Okay, you win!!!  Go watch iCarly!!!!  Go watch all the inappropriate shows for your age that I told you never watch again....go now and watch them!!!  Just STOP with the weather channel!!!!  It's not normal!!!" 

This is the book he wanted to buy at Barnes and Noble the other day.  It was $17.99 and it would have been all the money in his wallet and some of mine.  We talked him into waiting, maybe seeing if he liked something else.  No...never happened.  I just ordered it for him off Amazon.  He is delighted to get mail soon.  What a little freak!  :)