Why don't they listen??

Yesterday hubby and friend headed out the door to cycle early in the morning. We have had thunderstorms every day since last Friday and Monday was no exception. I was checking weather.com when I heard a rumble in the distance and saw that a thunderstorm was about to hit the area they were cycling in. They were out in the middle of nowhere and were basically lightning rods on wheels. :eek: I grabbed the keys, jumped in the car and headed to where they were. I spotted them just as the storm was moving in the area and I rolled the window down and asked if they wanted a ride. No thanks, we'll just keep riding. :rolleyes: So I drove past them 3 miles or so and saw a bolt of lightning not far from them. I turned around, headed back to them, stopped the car and jumped out. I explained there was a strong storm but they wanted to ride the remaining 3 miles back to their cars. :mad: I followed them and then saw it--a wall of rain not even a quarter of a mile from them. It started pouring buckets and hubby finally relented and jumped in the car. The other one sped up and was absolutely drenched by the time he got to the car.

This morning I checked weather.com and there is an 80% chance of rain/thunderstorms and hubby wanted to ride his motorcycle to work. :rolleyes: Why don't men listen?? :mad: :(

Back when my husband was 18ish and still living with his folks he was riding his motorbike on the highway, trying to get home, when a storm rolled in. He was completely out in the open with nowhere safe to stop so tried to get through it. Lightning hit the ground right by him. Bike tires don't insulate from ground strikes. He was instantly knocked unconscious at highway speed. He has no idea how long he was out of. He woke up on the road and found his bike a fair ways down the road, in the ditch on the other side. No one was around and there was no where to go for help. This was before the days of cell phones. Fortunately his bike had a kick start instead of an electronic ignition so it started back up and he made it home. He says the bike always blew a lot of fuses after that, even after he replaced all of the wiring.

Honestly if it weren't for his story I wouldn't think about lightning much. It always seems farther away. Your guys were probably thinking about the rain but not the lightning.

Men are just stubborn and think they're so tough!

At least my BF seems to think that sometimes.

I don't like to take thunderstorms lightly since I've experienced a lightning strike first hand. :eek: We've had several kids in our community killed by lightning because of being out in the open and not being aware of how far lightning can travel. One kid was on the track at the high school. He and his grandfather were enjoying quality time together when the boy was hit by lightning. Another boy was with his youth group from the church and was out floating on the river. A thunderstorm brewed and the kids got out of the water, but the boy was struck while huddled under a tree. The father, who was the minister, was with him when it happened.

I watched the Discovery Channel when they aired a program about people who were hit by lightning. One was a cyclist from CO that was hit by lightning and initially survived, but later died from complications. The scary thing was there were no storms predicted or clouds in his area when he was hit. :(

Some things you just don't mess around with.

Lucky for me, i live in a place where thunderstorms are rare.

Having been hit by lightning through the phone (yes, it can travel through phone lines and water, hence no showers during a storm!), I don't mess around. Sort of. Try to get inside if possible, but I'm not against trying to snap a few pictures. And really, what are the odds I'll get struck again?:rolleyes:

As for guys being stubborn, is that really all that surprising?:p

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by sundial

Why don't men listen??

---

Ahh, the eternal question.
Tell him they don't call her Mother Nature for nuthin'...

YOU DON'T MESS WITH MOTHER NATURE!

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by sundial

there is an 80% chance of rain/thunderstorms and hubby wanted to ride his motorcycle to work. :rolleyes: Why don't men listen?? :mad: :(

---

Because we're all firmly convinced that we're going to live to be 120 and finally shuffle off this mortal coil by being shot by someone's jealous husband. :D

Considering, this is from somebody who rode to work this morning in the same 80% prediction so he could try out the fenders on the new commuter bike...

Tom

There's something about having "outdoor plumbing" that messes with your mind...

YEsterday, while waiting out the storm under a church driveway canopy, we saw not one, but two kites flying during the thunderstorm. Nice long tails on them.

DH was the one who suggested shelter, though I had been watching the sides of the road for likely spots for a couple of miles already by the time he did.

Today, more rain is predicted, but he rode his bike to work anyway. I think this is a worse situation than yesterday -- he'll be riding through drive-time traffic, and does not have his screaming yellow jacket with him. His shirt today is a kind of muted green...

I have been watching the progression of the rain areas on weather.com and called him a bit ago to let him know that if he wants me to meet him, I'll be more than happy to. I don't think he enjoyed the rainy ride home (after the lightning stopped) as much as I did!

Karen in Boise

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by sundial

It started pouring buckets and hubby finally relented and jumped in the car. The other one sped up and was absolutely drenched by the time he got to the car.

---

Hmmm...sounds like they listened...just took them a while to comprehend:rolleyes:

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by NoNo

Having been hit by lightning through the phone (yes, it can travel through phone lines and water, hence no showers during a storm!), I don't mess around. Sort of. Try to get inside if possible, but I'm not against trying to snap a few pictures. And really, what are the odds I'll get struck again?:rolleyes:

As for guys being stubborn, is that really all that surprising?:p

---

I've heard somewhere (or maybe I made it up) that the chances of being hit by lightning go up when you have been hit before.

I've had two very near hits. I call them that since neither was a direct, knock out hit. both of my hits were to the house that I was in and the charge traveling through the house to me. people usually move away from me in storms.

Men can be stubborn, period.

I LOVE thunder/lightning storms. I grew up back east where the storms were awesome! I miss them out here in Western Washington, very rare. I remember sitting out on my parent's back porch with my sisters and brother and watching the sky light up and then counting until we heard the thunder to see how far away the strom was! The smell of the air during a big lightning storm is something I miss too!

Yes, I do love them but I do respect them too!

Sundial, your hubby should be thankful for having you! Driving all the way out there to pick him up and save him from beng drenched and hit by lightning. He is a stubborn hubby! Waiting to the very last minute to finally jump into the car!

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Susan126

I LOVE thunder/lightning storms.

---

Oh, me too! They're so soothing to me. I think it goes back to when I was really small and my mom and I would sit on the porch and watch the storms.

Funny, I'm normally careful about not talking on a wired phone or taking a shower during a thunderstorm, but it doesn't bother me to be outside in one :rolleyes:

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Susan126

Sundial, your hubby should be thankful for having you! Driving all the way out there to pick him up and save him from beng drenched and hit by lightning. He is a stubborn hubby! Waiting to the very last minute to finally jump into the car!

---

Sundial, I would have done exactly what you did:). But frankly, I think that Silver might have been upset if I did this for her- depending on how bad the conditions were.:confused:

First, she wouldn't have done something like this...but if she had, absent her calling me and asking for help, she might have felt "parented" and "over protected" by my initiative. Silver, would you agree?

I don't think hubby was necessarily stubborn, but maybe he and buddy wanted to press the limit to learn the limit:)...if they survived, they would have made a "big fish" story that would have become a hurricane survival guide at the next club ride.;)

Is this stubborn or persistence? Persistence is an attribute...excess persistence is something bad we call stubbornness...it can be a fine line between the attribute and the excess.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Mr. Silver

...excess persistence is something bad we call stubbornness...

---

or in the case of lightning strikes, stupidity :rolleyes:

My dad has always told me, if you get hit by lightning and survive, go out and buy a lottery ticket. Lol.

My friend in Edmonton lived in Creston for a while & knows a dude that's been hit by lightning 5 times :eek:

I'm not pullin yer leg!

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by zencentury

or in the case of lightning strikes, stupidity :rolleyes:

---

Granted...but some might argue that climbing Mt. Everest is pretty dumb to, but we are inspired by those who do it...stupidity is not a uniquely male characteristic;)

I think you should have let them learn their lesson & get drenched.

But this is lightning we're talking about, right? Lightning is downright dangerous, but rain is just rain. I'd be pretty darn p*ssed off if my dh came to fetch me just cos he saw rain coming in.

Nah, I wouldn't be, but I probably wouldn't get in the car :rolleyes:

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by silver

I've heard somewhere (or maybe I made it up) that the chances of being hit by lightning go up when you have been hit before.

I've had two very near hits. I call them that since neither was a direct, knock out hit. both of my hits were to the house that I was in and the charge traveling through the house to me. people usually move away from me in storms.

---

Damn! I thought lightning doesn't strike twice:p Oh well, I've dodged so many bullets in my short life (lightning, 2 hurricanes at sea, tornado, etc) that I've just learned to accept the risk and carry on. One of these days they'll get me, but I'm going to live it up till then!:D

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by lph

But this is lightning we're talking about, right?

---

Yes, it was a similar storm that hit us the night before--with lots of lightning. If it was just rain, I would have left them alone. But lightning out in the open farmlands--yikes! :eek:

Lightning does seem to follow me. It hit our house 2 years ago. It blew out the light fixture above my head as well as the coffee maker next to where I was standing. The gas logs started smelling funny (according to my gsd) and I called the fire department to come out and check things over.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by sundial

The gas logs started smelling funny (according to my gsd)

---

Good dog!

I remembered this thread two nights ago when lightning struck VERY close while we were eating dinner. So close that we could smell the electrical burning smell, very strongly. Amazingly, it didn't hit our antenna tower and fry the brand new TV or the satellite receiver, but whatever it did hit was too close for comfort! Yes I WILL be more careful about going outside where there's lightning!

when I was a child, my little brother and I were watching a storm from the front screen door. Lightning bounced off our cement steps and hit a tree across the street from us. The branches of the tree were on the roof of the house it stood by. I remember the loud noise it made and seeing all the shingles on my neighbor's house curled and My neighbor's dad running in circles with an apron. Mom told us that the house got a perm. It took her years to convince me and my brother that lightning is NOT funny.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by littlegrasshopp

Mom told us that the house got a perm.

---

LOL! That is so funny! :D

When I was a child, lightning hit an old oak tree just outside my bedroom window, blew a 4 ft x 4 ft hole in the bedroom, traveled through the wall, knocked sheetrock across the room over our heads and smashed it into the closet doors, bashing it to smithereens. The lightning traveled around my bedframe and zapped me. My mother walked into our bedroom with a flashlight and I could barely see the beam because of the dust. That was my first encounter with lightning. I thought it was pretty cool! My brother, on the other hand, was terrified of that room for months because it smelled like dynamite. We had to vacate the home for 3 months while repairs were being made. Needless to say we made the news.

When my youngest was about 10 months old, lightning hit the roof above his head while he was sleeping in his crib at 5 a.m. We heard it and I ran upstairs, and he was still asleep. The older boys woke up and I grabbed the baby and put him in bed with the eldest while hubby ran outside to check. He came back in all panicked thinking the baby must have been hurt.

It blew a hole in the roof about the size of a basketball, scorched the wiring, blew most of the siding off the side of the house, and burnt up every piece of electronics that was hooked up anywhere. (Our computers, the dictation equipment owned by the podiatrist I worked for, the TVs--everything.)

The sound was so loud that three of the neighbor's burglar alarms went off, and we could hear them all wailing away. It's a sound I will never forget, I'll tell you that. Strangely, we never lost power.

We called 911 because of the burning smell--luckily we lived not 2 blocks away from the fire station. There was no fire. Every fireman that came through said it was a good thing we called because there was a well-publisized fire the week before where people died, and it was because they didn't call 911 as soon as the lightning struck.

Baby Will slept through it ALL. Just like his mother slept through a tornado when she was 4. :)

Karen

A few weeks ago I saw an article online, on MSN I think, that discussed how when a woman is speaking to a man the man usually only hears about 1/4 of what she's saying. It referred to lots of different situations - long story, but interesting. I brought it up with DH once: DH: "What? What did you say? I know you were saying something negative about men -- " No, he really didn't hear what I said. He insists he listens better than that, but he couldn't begin to prove it with specific discussions we've had.

Anyway, I saw this thread and it reminded me of the article. Guess I can kind of picture:

What's said:

"Are you sure you want to don't want a ride back? There's a big storm on the way. Looks bad on radar, and you'll be out in the open with lightning all around.--"

What's heard:

"Are you sure you don't want a ride?" . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

That's about 1/4, isn't it?

I know there are exceptions, but I don't totally disagree with the article.

Deb

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Deborajen

....when a woman is speaking to a man the man usually only hears about 1/4 of what she's saying

---

LOL! I have always known they have selective hearing. Their attention is garnered by the following:

"You're hotter than a summer in July." :D