Behold, my cool idea on how to describe my first typhoon experience (bear with me as I try out a new writing style):
June 13 - just hours before midnight - a wind picks up, breathing through the apartment and lifting the muggy air. It's silent, as if not wanting to catch attention, yet blows with a ominous intensity.
Typhoon Man-Yi is coming.
I go to bed, grinning. I can't wait for the next day, hoping for more. I'm not disappointed. The howl of the wind wakes me bright and early; rain pounds the streets. I open my window wide, enjoying the rush of the wind. Work is within an hour, though, so I sadly retreat and get ready for the day. But I get to ride my bike to work (only 5 minutes this time) and that thought hurries my morning activities.
My roommate leaves in our pathetically tiny car (she works on the other side of town today), hoping it will have enough weight to keep her on the ground. I, on the other hand, eagerly grab my umbrella and race for my bike outside. Once on the bike, I begin to pedal through the narrow streets, slightly disappointed that I'm having no trouble biking. Then I hit the main, wide street by my home and nearly fall over. The wind is racing down the street, pushing me back as if it was sucking me away. I laugh and plow onward, holding my umbrella close as the rain attacks it.
A few minutes later and I arrive at my school. Many kids are noticeably absent and the manager keeps a close watch on the news, wanting to know the instant the typhoon warning is raised in the area.
I get straight to work, managing the kids and keeping them focused while the storm rages outside. Halfway through, the rain stops. I'm disappointed, but at least the wind is still going. I keep a watch on the trees, wanting to snap that perfect moment when they're leaning almost halfway over. The kids keep me too busy, though, and I forget, for a moment, that a typhoon is coming.
4:30pm - Work is over; I'm free at last. I give away the customary parting phrases. The manager continues to warn me to be safe and to stay inside. I assure her I will and then I get back on my bike. It's raining again, but not as hard as in the morning. The wind is still going, though. and I laugh as it blows against my umbrella, seeming to want to tear it from my hands.
I arrive home and immediately check up on the news. The typhoon has slowed; it should arrive in my area around midnight now. My boss calls, making sure we (my roommate and I) are alright and that we have plenty of water and food in case the utilities go out. I had stocked up the day before so we assure her we're fine. We then keep ourselves busy, doing little projects that require no leaving of the home.
The rain continues to come on and off and the wind starts to copy it, both slowly tapering down. By 8pm, they seem to have given up entirely. We go out onto our balcony, wondering at the eerie silence. Up above, the clouds are rolling, moving incredibly fast. But wait, there is something strange with these clouds. They aren't sailing right past us, but seem to be turning. Yes, look at the cloud. It started on my left and now it's on my right. Could it be?
The clouds are circling, round and round they go.
We stare at the clouds, fascinated by the phenomenon. Then a new wind picks up; roaring down our back alley in random gusts. We retreat back inside, but keep the windows open. The wind continues to come in waves, breathing in big gusts before tapering to a whisper and then starting back up again. I smile as I stare at the dark outside. Only a few more hours now. A pity it is too dark to get good pictures. I pull myself away, going back to my computer to keep myself busy.
Then the screaming begins.
It's our bathroom window. The wind howls across it just right to produce high pitch screams, like a child lost in a terrifying, dark wood. A grin splits my face. Things couldn't have been better. The wind starts to rattle our open windows and my roommate, in fear, hurries to close them. I'm saddened, but don't raise a fuss. Instead, I wait; wait for the real rain and wind to begin.
And I wait...and wait...and wait...and soon it is morning. I had fallen asleep on the couch. A quick glance at my computer screen brings the terrible news. The typhoon had steered to the east; it had blown out to sea.
~end of dramatic retelling~
Ah, man, isn't that depressing?? And I hope you're going "What? That's it? After all that dramatic hype?" cause then you'll understand exactly how I felt staring at the screen. I had really hoped for more and had gotten nothing. Well, the swirling clouds was a really cool sight to see and riding in that hard wind was cool, too. Still, I never did get a good shot of trees bending over. Sadness.
But all is not lost. This was only an early typhoon. The real typhoon season is still to come! And I hope we get much more interesting types of typhoons...
^_^
For those interested, the typhoon lost a lot of steam after hitting Okinawa. It dropped to a level 2 by the time it hit the island Kyushu and slowed down even more. By the time it hit my area, it was barely a level one and was steadily turning more eastward, away from Japan. By the next morning, it was just a rather active tropical storm, making its way over the open sea.
P.S. Did anyone like the dramatic style I used? It was kind of fun experimenting with it. Let me know if I fell flat on my face or if it was fun to read :) Thanks!
