One day last weekend, a large storm system was approaching. We’ve been in Georgia for three years now and Spring is always the most interesting season. Tornadoes! We have a system down now.

When we start getting weather alerts that say “there is a potential for severe weather today,” we each pack a small suitcase of clothes and toiletries. I used to lug our important papers downstairs and up before and after each storm. I just leave those in the basement now.

In the basement, there is an “apartment” that Max sleeps in when he comes here every weekend. It has a small kitchenette, a half bath, a queen size bed, and a lumpy fold-out bed that (barely) sleeps two people. We also have two cots with memory foam mattresses that we can unfold and use when we need to.

On this night in particular, Max was here. The bad stuff was supposed to hit around 6:00 the next morning. Brian opted to sleep upstairs with the weather radio since he gets up very early anyway. Mason and I packed our computers up, grabbed our suitcases, and lugged everything downstairs. Max was in the queen bed, Mason set up a cot, and I laid down on the extremely uncomfortable fold-out bed. I knew from experience that I wasn’t going to get much sleep. Mason was already snoring. LOUDLY!

We also had all of the pets down there. Our dogs, Moon and Tank, our cat, Rocky, and Max’s cat, Rambo. Rocky and Rambo don’t get along very well. As soon as Max and I were about to go to sleep, the meowing and hissing began. Mason kept snoring.

That finally stopped and I was just started to drift off when Moon decided to put her wet, cold nose against my cheek. The bed is low enough to the ground that she could easily reach me. I yelped. Moon got excited. She thought I was getting up to play with her. I sternly told her to go to sleep. Mason kept snoring.

I turned over, and then realized there was a lump in the mattress under my ribs. I turned left and right over and over again until I couldn’t feel it anymore. Then there was another hiss and another meow. I knew the cats were battling it out under Max’s bed. Tank decided he wanted to referee the fight so he started barking.

Max was swearing. Mason kept snoring.

I pulled out my phone to check the weather again, and to read some news. I did eventually fall asleep at some point but I kept repeatedly waking up. The storm arrived just before 7:00 a.m. and it was a doozy! When it hit, Brian came down to the basement as well. He laid down next to me and he did the flippy floppy thing, too, because that bed is so uncomfortable. Max’s cat somehow got locked in the bathroom (I think Rocky made that happen), and started meowing. I had to get up to let him out. Mason was still snoring.

About an hour later, the bad red stuff had passed and Brian and I went back upstairs to our own bed. A couple of hours later, Mason came upstairs grumbling, and said, “Man! I didn’t sleep at ALL last night!!”

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