Thunderstorms, love them or hate them?

I've been awake and up for an hour and a half already. A thunderstorm got me out of bed.

When I was younger I was home alone while my parents were at work and we had a horrible thunderstorm. The lightning hit an electrical transformer on a pole not very far away and we lost power and the pole caught on fire. Ever since that I don't like thunderstorms.

My husband on the other hand loves thunderstorms and anything weather related. We have an anemometer on the roof and a rain gauge and a few other instruments around the yard.

So, do you love thunderstorms or hate them?

My mother told me that even as a tiny baby, I would wake up during thunderstorms screaming and crying. To this day, I am still scared of them, especially at night. Although, over the years I started to sort of enjoy them during the day and I will venture outside on the step to watch occasionally, while still having that "fear" rush over me. However, if the storm shows any sign of becoming severe, I get really anxious and move back indoors.

Sadly, I have become one of those sky watchers. I pay close attention to cloud formation and check the forecast/radar several times a day. In fact, today will be a "radar day" as I call it. Since they are calling for potential storms this afternoon and into this evening. Thankfully, here in Nova Scotia,we don't often get storms that call for watches or warnings...but we had two pretty intense storms last year, both of which lasted 5-8 hours, with non-stop cloud to ground lightning. One of the storms gave the sky that ominous green hue that people generally associate with tornadoes. Just a few weeks ago, we had a big hail storm. (I posted pictures here). Creepy!

People always say "If you want to get over your fear, learn about storms and start watching them". I spent a few years learning all about weather as I wanted to be a meteorologist at one point...and I've learned to watch them during the day and I have seen more than I ever wanted to of storms at night...but I still haven't even remotely began to get over that fear.

Well that turned into a longer rant than I anticipated. But yeah, you are definitely not in this boat alone. 

I absolutely LOVE thunderstorms.... I always have.  Weather watching is a hobby of mine.... BOTH of my cats, however.... absolutely HATE thunderstorms.  

I could do without the lightning strikes, but the thunder doesn't bother me.

Hate them. I handle property claims for a living and all I can think about is all the lightning and wet basement claims I will be getting the next day. Not to mention worrying about my own home!

All bad weather means I will be busy at work so it's not good for me.

I love them. I always have. Luckily none of my cats are scared of them, I did grow up with a German Shepard who was terrified of them though.

I love them except when they wake me up in the middle of the night and I can't get back to sleep.

I love them. It means water in my sandfilter.  I have been indirectly struck by lightning, but still love them.

They are very rare where I currently live.

When I lived in Iowa, they occurred suddenly, were accompanied by torrential rain and were often followed up by a tornado. I did not like them when I was out in my car, or they trapped me in the local Walmart.

Personally I love a good thunderstorm as long as it's not a *really* bad one.  I do NOT like them because they make one of my dogs crazy   We're talking serious anxiety here.  So... with that in mind, I have a love/hate relationship with thunderstorms 

we don't get them very often but i love them

I dislike them. They're so LOUD and unexpected!

One of my all-time favorite LP's is "One Stormy Night."





http://grooveshark.com/#!/search/song?q=Mystic+Moods+Orchestra+Local+Freight

The last link is my favorite track, which is "Local Freight."  The sounds of a steam train in the distance in the storm.

This album is still available on used sites.
 

Another good storm record is Wendy (walter) Carlos'  "Sonic Seasonings" , which is his Moog remake of Vivaldi's "The Four Seasons"  There is a thunderstorm that will make people go check the car windows to make sure they are up

I love thunderstorms but they don't happen very often here. I probably wouldn't enjoy them if they were a common thing. I enjoy all sorts of weather except for strong winds.
 

Love them, unless there is the risk of a tornado involved..... But A good, loud thunderstorm with heavy rain.... heavenly!

Had one yesterday afternoon.  Needed the rain.  Got wet.  Not much more to say!
 

Let me put it this way..... I personally love thunderstorms... BUT I can never really love them because I have a dog with a major, major anxiety problem with storms and even any bit of rain. I also have one cat, Wendall, who is terrified of storms. SO I am always in the closet with Henry, my dog, and Wendall trying to make them calm. SO I guess right now at this point in my life, I hate thunderstorms for that reason only.

I love them as long as they aren't the severe kind.

One of my friends had her house grazed by lighting a few weeks ago.  They lost a lot of electronics.