Wow, so what's the 8-year-old's trick? If the wind is blowing from the storm toward you, it's coming your way? I think that's how it works. Yesterday we had three lines of thunderstorms moving through here at what looked like 50 mph on the radar. We just caught the edge of one shower, but at that speed you'd only get a quarter inch out of a downpour. Northern Alabama is the epicenter of the southern drought-- hope you get relief soon.

Around here no matter how dark and threatening the clouds look you know they'll pass on by if they are high.Rain comes from the low, scudding ones.I get a kick out getting the visitors over at the pool to think I am a wise old sage.They see the angry looking high flyers and start to worry.I will gaze up at them and pretend to study the situation.Then I will say not to worry it won't rain.If I can see the low ones under them I'll predict it will be raining within twenty minutes or so and it does.They think I am a genius.I just smile and look deep.

Michael, I thought it was the cutest thing I had heard in quite sometime. He is just a normal kid whose grandfather owns a farm but his only crop is horses, I believe. I am sure he must have heard this from his grandfather. I am not sure the techie dad would know or care about the wind, but perhaps the lawyerly mom sniffs out lawsuits instead of chasing ambulances. :)

LOL, Patricia... my little neighbor tries to sound like this and usually goofs it up ;) He's eight, too. Oooh, I won't tell you what he said about the South - seems he was asleep during the part where the Civil War was not the war we are in now. Oh my. He didn't know that we live in "The South" bwahaha.

On the weather front [ha] I was at a Pow-wow in another city and my Mom and I felt that indescribable thunderstorm feeling [like when you and I met, actually] and we said "Oooh, think it's going to storm?" These wonderful full-'Indian' ladies said "Hmm, I didn't catch the weather on the news..."

Mom and I chuckled about that [we're Muscogee/Cherokee so I'm not making fun of anybody, y'all] and scratched that one off our myth list. We used to live outside of Memphis where the thunderstorms rolled in nearly every summer afternoon, so I guess Mom and I just had more practice at it.

I'm still trying to get over the 8 year-old calling his neighbor "Miss Pat, " the little dear.

Miss Pat, are you near Huntsville-Decatur? I was there just a few weeks ago. People were talking about the drought there.

Gardeners are so attuned to nature, especially the movement of moisture-rich weather systems. I bet you knew the system was going to be a bust.

Interestingly enough, TV weather personalities seem to be most immune to drought. Things could be bone-dry for weeks. Deep cracks can zig-zag through a droughty field, and all they'll say when the storm line dances away from you is "Boy we lucked out -- we had another nice weekend!" I should do the weather report.

Miss Pat, sounds right in these parts.

I totally believe local knowledge since Johnny (now passed) warned me that if a storm is comin' down the river, it's going to be nasty.
I saw one comin' down the river, insisted a friend move her car out from under the trees in back, and five minutes later we had a tornado come in from the river, go towards Blaine and then double back over us. (A tree limb 12"diameter landed where her car had been.)
OTOH, the regional wooly worm wisdom doesn't hold up to scientific study (too much variability in wooly worms here) and the folks on the Plateau who use the number of "Valley Filling Fogs in Fall" to predict how many major snow storms will happen that winter totally missed it this year.

Amen John W. in Minn! It drives me crazy when our local female news anchors say that we luckily missed a rain. Our weather forecasters seem to understand but the ditzy female lead anchors on both of our 2 local channels always comment mindlessly about wanting "bluebird weather". We have been in a dry period but for the last 2 evenings, those low, dense, dark clouds on the horizon have gathered to produce a rainy thunderstorm. Of course, I watered ALL DAY FRIDAY!
Also, most of our friends grown children still call us "Miss Buff and Mr. Mike". It's a charming, IMO, southern custom showing affection and respect. Buff

It is charming. A similar thing is done in South America where I'm la señora Cassandra and where young people line up to dispense air kisses to their elders.

Miss Pat---I remember as young girl---we always used to say "it is going to rain because the leaves are turning backwards"---I think thr threes were Poplars---because I don't see the Maple leaves turning backward.

You brought back a nice memory.

Florence

Oh, JohnW, I am about 150-175 miles from Decatur, I think. Sounds right. Please let me know if you are ever going to be in our area again, and I will try to have lunch with you. We have some very dear friends in Decatur, relocated from Maine to Decatur, who were guests in our home not too many weekends ago and we need to visit the Decatur area, also. I think Ann has er uh, some property there, at least a boat that I know of. Perhaps we could find a time to visit in that area, all of us.

John, I live between Birmingham and Montgomery, if that makes sense. You were so far up in Alabama you were near those yankees in Tennessee.

yup, lots of kids locally still use the Miss this and Mr. that honorifics. I grew up with them and use them myself on people older then me...

Miss Patricia, your stories are heartwarming and sweet. I hope your young neighbor integrates this old knowledge into his psyche, because it will be of use some day.

I think handmedown knowledge is so important. I remember you telling about how your mother or grandmother or both fertilized the garden with kitchen leftovers. I think and hope that your family appreciates your wisdon, I do.

Carol

Miss Pat,

Methinks you have a budding Hedge Wizard living next door.

The little boy next door (4yo) calls me 'Mister John' and my wife, 'Miss Nisi.' i think it's a good compromise. I really dislike it when children call me by my first name. It's not the way I was brought up, which was to be respectful of the adults.

Pat, that's a long distance for a lunch. I get there may twice a year. No plans for the next time. I was surprised at how wide the Tennessee river is there. I'll send you a heads up next time.

I drove through Birmingham years ago. Stayed there for night, even. I recall dense trees and deep green hills.

John, by all means, give me a heads-up and I can make a visit with our friends and relatives. My DH's brother is an aerospace engineer at Redstone Arsenal, so in effect, I could kill three birds with one stone.

Patricia, that is so cute! We can learn the best things from the strangest sources if we just listen.
Are you sure you don't live in my neighborhood? We get the clouds and the wind but absolutely no rain. I've been doing a lot of soul searching trying to figure out what I've done to warrant this punishment.
Hamp in Mississippi (not Texas) LOL.

LOL, Hamp. I think we vote to see if Randy should change his name back to Archduke Charles or whether I should be examined for Alzheimer's. LOLOL.

When my nephew was visiting here at age 4 he followed me all around the garden as I deadheaded and asked me questions non-stop. "What's this? What's that?" I told him all the botanical names, Limonium perezii, Artemisia schmidtiana, Convolvulus maritimia, on and on and so forth. Four year old kids sure can talk.

A year later they come back again for their visit, and on the way home from picking them up at the airport my nephew now age 5 says, "So, how's your Limonium perezii?"

Out of the mouths of babes. Hoov, that is a great story and a thoughtful youngster.