January 6. Day 6. The Weatherman

The view from my back deck at 4pm and after the rain had cleared at 5.30pm

From early this morning it was on and everyone knew it, the only question was when. Actually even that was not a question - not in my mind at least. All you needed to do was apply the patented Susan Storm System which accurately predicts exactly when a thunder storm will arrive. It is a complex formula that requires you to do the following. Add the expected maximum temperature to the relative humidity. Subtract the actual temperature at 10.06am and then forget all that. The storm will arrive exactly 15 minutes before you are due to do the school pick up. It's a rule. This is the time of maximum inconvenience. Fifteen minutes is too long to be sitting outside the school in hail waiting, but you don't want to drive through the storm, but you don't want to leave the child waiting ... and so it goes.

But it's school holidays, I hear you say. This is true but today I had to pick up Drama Teen from a musical theatre workshop being held at a school - thus the rule totally applies. Scheduled pick up time 4.15pm. Time of heavens opening at my place 4pm. Proof positive. Now it MIGHT be true that there have been storms that break outside the school pick up times but like a gambler who only ever remembers when the numbers come up I have selective memory loss. So there you have it. You are welcome to use this tried and tested formula but please credit me when it proves right. When the formula fails tell someone who cares*. (*ie not me)