Thursday, June 28, 2007

Out of the CLEAR BLUE SKY!

I went out for my usual afternoon break this afternoon and caught movement out of the corner of my eye...talk about a DOUBLE-TAKE!

I have lived down here for almost 20 years, and have NEVER seen a dust devil the size of the one I witnessed across the street. I really wish I would have had my cameraphone on me. (Didn't I vow to always carry that thing?)

Anyway, I managed to find a photo online REALLY similar to what I saw:

These were actually taken in the northwest valley! The one I saw was a lot darker brown than this one, but just as big. If it would have been a real tornado I probably would have freaked, run inside, gotten my camera and taken a picture just before I got swept up and carried off to Oz. My Grandmother used to warn us when we came down to visit when I was little that that's what would happen if we didn't stay away from dust devils. There was another Indian name she used to call them, but for the life of me I can't remember it. I think I believe her story after seeing that monstrosity today.

I HAVE had them blow across the road a few times, strong enough to rock my car. These things are pretty common this time of year, but they never last very long, so I just stood there, mezmorized, hoping it wouldn't switch directions and cover me with dust and small debris.

It really made my day. Now I'm on a quest to get a picture of my own, but like I said, I've NEVER seen one this damn big the whole time I've lived down here. Really tall, but not nearly as wide as it was. It was quite a sight. Almost makes the 115-degree heat worth living in the desert.

I said ALMOST.

Have a great weekend!
Treble Tornado

17 comments:

Brad the Gorilla said...

I'm not impressed! You are threatening to take down my Christmas ornament, and that will not be tolerated. Hah! I've posted just for you, thereby taking precious time away from my inventions and experiments.

Anonymous said...

WOW
I wish I had seen something like that when I was driving out there!
Pretty cool, but if you are going to be chasing tornadoes, my little helen hunt, do I have to come be Bill Paxton?
I just don't know if I am up for that!

Anonymous said...

Incidentally,
When I was driving across Arizona I drove along a very long stretch of rode that had signs that say "Don't pick up hitchhikers. State Prison nearby"
That is one of the funniest and scariest things I have ever had to be warned about.

Lady K said...

Brad ~ I KNEW I could lure you out! Now...do those inventions have anything to do with bananas< I wonder??

birdman ~ honey, you ARE my Bill Paxton. ;-)

Remind me to get a picture of that sign for you. It IS quite hilarious!

captain corky said...

Pretty soon you're going to start chasing twisters in your pickup truck K. LOL!

Have a great weekend sister. You know where we'll be Saturday night. ;)

Dan said...

I saw these all over India when we visited. They're probably common in all deserts, yes?

Big Pissy said...

Wow! That's really cool! and scary!

I can SO see you as Helen Hunt! ;-)

Lady K said...

cork ~ you must have me confused with one of the toothless wonders in Apache Junction. LOL! I'm actually considering something in an SUV type of vehicle.

I'm putting a note on my computer as we speak so I don't forget about Saturday.

Lady K said...

dan ~ yes, they are common in all the deserts. I've heard they're pretty spectacular in India, too. Remind me to look for some of those pictures.

BP ~ They ARE really cool. And it's funny that you & birdman mentioned Helen Hunt ~ I've had people tell me I resemble her in one way or another. Guess I better start growing my hair out again. LOL

Callie said...

Helen Hunt's completely adorable. Bill Paxton, on the other hand, has no talent and looks like a complete goober. Cannot stand the man.

And NOTHING would ever make living in the desert worth it. Ever. Blech.

(But I DO love your pictures!)

Liz said...

Leave it to Smiley Central to have just the right smiley for the situation!

I think it would be cool to see a dust devil, up hear any kind of funnel shaped object is bad news. Though I've never seen a tornado personally. I mean other than those monstrous queefs you're always letting out!

limpy99 said...

That's no dust devil. Don't you watch cartoons!? That's the Tasmanian Devil roaring across the desert.

I can't believe you didn't get his autograph.

Lady K said...

callie ~ yeah, I'm a big fan of hers, too. I would have to agree with you about Bill, too.

SKEEZ ~ not as scary as the ones that come out of YOUR grand canyon.

Lady K said...

limpy ~ LMAO what the hell was I thinking?

Pink said...

they're amazing aren't they?

come on, its only 115 at 5 pm.

before that its 124 degrees!

I just came back from the desert. I've only been to Arizona in the summer. I hear the desert is pretty lovely in the winter tho'!

For a bit of perspective - I live in wet London where every county around me is flooding in this cold and wet weather!
xx
pinks

Lady K said...

pink ~ yes, they ARE quite amazing. I saw a BUNCH of them while driving around today, but none nearly as massive as the one the other day.

As far as the weather goes, uh...kiss my crumpet! It's almost 8pm and still over 105. LOL I'd give just about anything for some cool, wet weather right now... ;-)

Unknown said...

We get small devils but nothing like that! Now I'm waiting to see YOUR picture......