It was at work Tuesday afternoon around 4:00 p.m. when a coworker came over to my office cubicle to tell me that a Tornado Watch had been issued for Winnipeg. I hurriedly packed up my gear, hopped into my car, and drive home just as the skies turned dark grey and the first fat raindrops splashed on my windshield.
That evening, I experienced the worst storm I have lived through in my entire life (and I am 62-1/2 years old now). My cellphone kept going off with multiple Tornado Warning alerts (I lost count after 30). After a too-close-for-comfort, LOUD lightning strike nearby, I grabbed some pillows and blankets and headed for my bathroom, where I sat in my bathtub, following a storm-tracker livestreamer on YouTube which was posted to the r/Winnipeg subreddit on my iPad, and keeping my iPhone handy, which was still blaring alerts on regular intervals, sometimes minutes apart.
I was lucky. While parts of Winnipeg received baseball-sized hailstones, and many streets, underpasses, and home basements were flooded, my car, my apartment, and my neighbourhood escaped relatively unscathed. No hail damage to my car. However, I got zero sleep that night, and the stress exacerbated my pre-existing neck and shoulder pain, so I landed up taking a sick day on Wednesday, and spent almost all of it asleep in bed.
I’m dealing with a lot right now: a family member in rapidly deteriorating health, which might necessitate an emergency trip back to Alberta on short notice; my continuing neck and shoulder pain; and trying desperately to tie up loose ends and pass on information to the two librarians who are taking over my duties when I start my Research and Study leave on July 1st, 2026. I am stressed out and EXHAUSTED.
So, again, if you don’t hear from me for a while, that’s why. There’s just too much going on in my life right now to write blogposts. Thank you for understanding.
