I know the title sounds a little strange, but it really is relevant – especially in the crazy land of tornado alley.

In Oklahoma, we have had several storms the past few days that have spawned some ferocious tornadoes. The thing is, we have tornadoes so often that some of us (me) have become slightly blase’ about them. The experts tell us to make sure we have a safe place to go in case of a tornado. If we don’t have a fraidy hole (tornado shelter), then a good place to go is somewhere in the center of the house – especially a bathroom.

Usually, though, I don’t go to all the trouble of getting things into the bathroom unless I see that a tornado is headed directly for my part of town. It’s a real hassle! It’s like making a small move: my laptop, purse, a raincoat, important papers, pictures, extra set of clothes, pillows and blankets to cover me, my ukulele, etc. Plus, I have to make sure I am dressed and ready with socks, sturdy shoes, etc. in case the house does fall down around me.

Friday night, when I went to bed, there were reports all over the television about tornado storms heading northeast toward us. But I finally went to bed with the idea that I didn’t want to spend all night in the bathroom and didn’t want to go through the hassle of getting everything in the bathroom.

Then at about 2:30 AM the tornado sirens starting going off in town. These are not quiet little sirens like a police car or fire engine siren. The tornado sirens are loud, and piercing, and long. The point of them, after all, is to get peoples’ attention. And they do!

There was no way I was going to be able to go back to sleep with the sirens wailing. And if the sirens were going off, then it probably meant there was a tornado headed right for us. So I got dressed and got everything in the bathroom. Since I have two cats, this includes the two cat carriers – just in case. Well, I don’t have a really big bathroom. And all that stuff takes up what room there is. So the cat carriers go in the bathtub. Do you see where I’m going with this?

Things finally calmed down. The “all clear” siren wailed. I got back in my pj’s and went to bed. I got some sleep (not much) before it was time to get up.

Time to take a shower. Of course, I had to get everything out of the bathroom before I could take a shower, so that took some time. I was tired from so little sleep, and I was trying to get on to other things. (That’s my excuse, anyway.) I reached in behind the shower curtain and turned on the water for my shower. When the water got hot, I reached in again behind the shower curtain, set the temperature, and turned the faucet to shower. I pulled back the shower curtain to get in.

Ooops! There was no room for me because the cat carriers were still in the bathtub. And they were soaking wet. Aaaggghhh! What a mess!

My shower actually came a little later than I had planned. Just because I forgot about the cat carriers.

So – here’s my advice for today. Before you take a shower, remove the cat carriers from the tub. It will make your life a whole lot easier.

If you have had an incident with the tub or shower, let me know. Please keep it clean, though. Hah! Clean! Get it? I crack myself up!!