Guthrie, OK
This morning in Topeka was rough.
I ended up getting into a drunken argument with Erin last night. The alcohol, the late nights, the lack of nutrition, and the lack of privacy eventually started taking its toll. I love Greg and Chris, but the frat house party vibe of this tour is beginning to wear me down. Storm chasing is definitely not a "vacation" in the traditional sense. This hobby/passion sometimes involves more stress and requires more resilience than in my day to day life. Even though being in confined spaces with strangers in high intensity, sometimes life or death situations can make for strained group dynamics... the best of friendships can also be tested. At one point, I was sitting alone by the hotel pool in a daze, playing this song over and over on my little Bluetooth speaker.
After a morning of awkward silences and sitting in separate vehicles, we had a tearful heart to heart in the warm, dust filled low-level wind as we waited for initiation in a Braum's parking lot.
Today called for another PDS.
We chased all along eastern Kansas and Oklahoma. Didn't see much since it was a lot of rain-wrapped circulation and bad road networks.
I later found my tripod plate on my other camera. Ha! Oops.
Saw some nice structure at times though.
At one point Johnny (John Hallen, who was tagging along with us) needed to be pulled out of a ditch by Storm Wagon. I have no idea how he managed to end up in there, but it was a little nerve wracking waiting for him to be pulled out while in a tornado warned storm.
At one point I thought I had lost my tripod plate -right when we had stopped to shoot some lightning. I was disheartened. I felt so frazzled, disorganized and off kilter. I wasn't on my chaser A-game.
I improvised by stabilizing my camera on the hood of Flash.
Tomorrow is our last chase day. I am beyond exhausted.
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