Tornado warning

Tornado: Violent, low-pressure storm, relatively small in diameter but with very rapidly rotating winds and an intense updraft near the centre.

The relatively low pressure at the centre of a tornado's funnel-like vortex causes cooling and condensation, making the storm visible as a revolving column of cloud, called the funnel. Tornadoes normally travel at 30–40 mph (50–65 kph). The winds around the vortex average nearly 300 mph (500 kph) and have been known to reach 500 mph (800 kph). Tornadoes often occur in groups. (Encyclopaedia Britannica Concise)

I don't know anything about tornadoes from experience, just stories that I keep hearing from others. I hear that the sky turns greenish, the air gets sort of thick, and as one librarian keeps telling me (in a very dramatic voice), "You can just feel something coming."

Thursday night I was working at the library and a tornado watch was in effect. The weather radio under the desk kept on going off, warning people in several Illinois and Indiana counties (including Champaign County) that a tornado may be coming our way. At about 6:45 the watch became a warning and we evacuated all library users to the "tunnel" -- an underground passage from the main library to the undergraduate library. It was crowded and hot down there, so I was glad that the warning expired after about twenty minutes and we were able to go about our business.

In other news, the Primary program today went really well. The kids performed their songs and spoken parts even better than I had hoped they would -- and all fourteen of them were there! I was so proud of them. They were adorable and earnest and very, very sweet. I'm trying to think of a favorite moment to share, but I'm afraid I can't. I just loved the whole program too much to pick a moment that stood out.