Tornados in January?!

I witnessed all but 45 minutes of KSPR's 12 hour wall-to-wall severe weather coverage. I know you're thinking 12 hours is a bit excessive, but trust me, if you were in the Ozarks yesterday and this morning you'd think otherwise.

The storms were filled with wave after wave of severe weather... all of which produced several funnel clouds, hail, strong winds, and tornadoes. Apparently there were at least 62 tornado warnings during the 12 hour period just in the Ozarks. I find that amazing. Last night, not so much, but right now, most definitely. The repetitiveness of each wave and its path is crazy. You can see a great preliminary photo of each tornado's path at the KSPR Weather Blog here.

(A viewer sent this photo to the newsroom.
I never knew hail could look like that!)

I spent most of the time during the severe weather in the newsroom answering phone call after phone call. I figured it out to be 7 hours straight of picking up that ringing phone... needless to say my ear hurt last night.

I'd say about 90% of the phone calls were people asking what to expect in their city. With so many phone calls I was unable to watch the weather, so I was of little help to these people. I usually told them if they're watching, they already knew more than me. I did what I could to help them since it's a serious situation, but it always came down to two things: 1. if they're not saying your city, then that's a good thing, and 2. it's better to be safe than sorry, so just take shelter and keep listening. The other 10% of calls came from people reporting damage, hail, funnels, etc., and if not that they were complaining about the coverage. These people get on my bad side extremely fast. I absolutely cannot fathom why people find JEOPARDY! or Who Wants to be a Millionaire? more important than keeping viewers safe. If you're tired of the coverage then change the channel! Don't curse or yell at me or accuse our meteorologists of over-doing severe weather coverage... all of which I dealt with last night. It may not be you affected this time around, but one day it will be and you'll be so thankful for that "long-winded" coverage.

After a 15 hour day I went home around midnight for some sleep, which didn't really happen. I knew another round or two was on its way so there was no way I was going to sleep. At one point it seemed like things were calming down, so I started to snuggle up in my blankets. Then, all of a sudden there were Tornado Warnings all around Springfield.

At about 2:45 a.m. the tornado sirens started blaring and the meteorologists started urging Springfield residents to take cover. So that I did, but not without the TV cranked. The winds started to pick up and then cable went out. That's the point when a tornado touched down a couple blocks away from the station... right smack dab in the middle of Springfield. THANK GOODNESS the electricity stayed on. I probably would have lost it if that went out, too. That minute when the cable was out and the winds were howling was seriously the most terrifying minute of my life. I've never been so close to a tornado before. I was so relieved to hear Josh, Kevin, and Natalie's voices come back on air. It was a very fast moving system so I didn't have to spend too much time huddled in the bathtub and eventually went to sleep sometime around 4:00 a.m.

Even after a long day and a lot of phone calls, both good and bad, I still feel lucky and proud to do the job I do. I get to help keep people informed and safe. Granted I'm not in front of the wall interpreting radar, but I think I helped some people last night. It's a great feeling to think you helped someone in such a severe situation. I can only imagine how meteorologists feel after a night like last night.

I'm not sure if it was the caffeine or adrenaline that's kept me going, but never at one point have I felt exhausted or tired today, even with only 3 hours of sleep. Actually I felt better today than I did in the middle of answer phones at 10:00 last night. However right now I'm starting to really feel my body tell me to get some sleep. I'm gonna do just that.

Cotton Bowl Champs!

Okay, I'll admit it. I was a little, teeny bit worried about Arkansas and McFadden. As it turns out, neither one showed up to play in the Cotton Bowl so all my worries were in vain. I'm still trying to wrap my head around the fact Mizzou got into such a huge bowl game (should have been a BCS bowl, but that's a whole other post), much less the fact we destroyed the Razorbacks in that bowl. It was a great time, possibly once in a lifetime, and something I'll never forget... especially since I was sober. It was just too damn cold to hold a beer.

The atmosphere in Dallas was pretty good. It really seemed like Tiger and Razorback fans took over the city, especially downtown. Everywhere you go there would be someone wearing their team's gear or driving with a ridiculous amount of team stuff on their cars. It was cool. However, one thing that wasn't cool was Arkansas' chant. It's one of the most annoying things I've ever heard. The school has a pretty cool mascot... it's original, and those wild hogs can be pretty damn scary (ever seen hogzilla?). Instead of calling themselves Razorbacks they chant "Pig Sooey." I just don't get it. Why would you degrade yourself like that?

Anyway, I had so much fun at the 4 hour long game, even though I was without a voice (I sounded like the Godfather) and it was freezing (my fingers were purple and white). I'm so glad I got to go and stay in Dallas with people I know. We saw a lot more of the city and visited places we otherwise wouldn't have known about (Thanks Blaine and Trevor!).

Tony Temple was on his game... Chase, not so much. But it all worked out in the end. Throughout all the controversy and bowl invitation disappointment I am still amazed with our season. Like Jason has said, if someone would have told me back in August Mizzou would go 11-1 in the regular season, spend a week in the #1 spot, and win the Cotton Bowl, I would have said that's kooky talk. Thank you Tigers for an incredible season. With that said, I can't wait for next year!

M-I-Z... Z-O-U!

I'm not afraid to say it

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!

I hope everyone had a great holiday. I just got back in Springfield a little bit ago after a 4 day weekend in St. Louis. It was oh so wonderful, and, of course, went way too quick. I got to do a little of everything in my time off... went out with friends, relaxed at home, and spent lots of time with my family and Jason's. The ride home was rough though. The weather was clear, the roads weren't too busy, and the ride went by fairly fast... I'm just such a home-body sometimes, so it makes me sad to leave.

What's also sad is it takes times like the holidays to make many people realize all there is to be thankful for. I'd like to take this time and space to express how much I appreciate everything in my life. My Mommy is amazing; Unfortunately, I don't think she knows that, but she is. For endless reasons I am thankful for her, her thoughtlessness, and her strength. My family is much more to me than their titles of "aunt", "cousin", etc. They've helped me grow and offered so much support and encouragement along my journey to adulthood. And my friends, even though I don't get to see them as much anymore, are great. I've always thought I couldn't ask for better friends in the world. As far as Jason goes, he's just perfect for me. He's tolerant and understanding, and, to put it simply, I can't ask for a better boyfriend. Besides these people, I'm just plain grateful for everything in my life... my health, my job, and all the love that's in it.

In the midst of presents, traffic, and finances I hope everyone can take some time to reflect on the good things in life. Happy Holidays.

Too much reality?

Since when did I become such a reality TV junkie? How did this happen? I just realized the other day the bulk of TV I take in is reality-based. It's hard to avoid, and in the next coming months, with the writers' strike and all, it will only get worse.

So, how bad is it now? Let's go through the list starting with my TiVo "Season Passes"...
- Real Housewives of Orange County (guilty pleasure #1; I don't like that new girl they just brought on)
- Ghost Hunters (these are my top 2 right now... opposite ends of the spectrum, but they keep me entertained)
- Man vs. Wild
- Bridezillas (guilty pleasure #2)
- Paranormal State (not nearly as good as Ghost Hunters)

And some recent favorites...
- Rock of Love with Bret Michaels
- The Pick Up Artist

Not to mention my absolute favorite show that's (kinda) on TV right now, The Office, is scripted, but meant to look like a reality show.

It wouldn't be a balanced entry if I didn't go through the non-reality shows I watch. It's a pretty short list... Seinfeld, My Name is Earl, Conan (that doesn't count as a reality, right?), and that's about it.

I've always viewed reality TV shows as too easy for networks; it's kinda hard to explain, but basically I disappointed myself when I realized all the reality I'm watching.

Come on, writers!

I am officially annoyed by the Writers' strike. I want my Office back. I'm just now realizing there will be absolutely no holiday episodes. Those are always the best ones. One of my favorite all-time Office moments happened in Season 2's Christmas Party episode. You can see it below. I did a little research and it appears there are no episodes in the can. Nothing. Production shut down a month ago; the last original episode aired a couple weeks ago. I also read if nothing gets resolved by the end of the year there will be no new episodes for the rest of the season. Only 8 episodes in Season 4?! What a tease! Especially since the last episode was okay at best. I'm frustrated.


A little scenario for this scene: It's Secret Santa time in the office and Jim gets his gift from Creed.

Look-A-Likes: Huckabee/Spacey

One of my weird little quirks is I think just about everyone looks like someone else. People usually think I'm crazy. This is something I've been meaning to do on here for at least a year now and never really got around to it. Well, my friends, tonight's the night. Prepare yourself for the 1st edition of "Look-A-Like." Today's is in honor of a new ABC/Washington Post presidential candidate poll released today.


On the left: Former AR Governor/Republican Presidential Candidate, Mike Huckabee
On the right: Actor, Kevin Spacey

I really don't think I'm crazy with this one... how could someone not think they look alike?! It's something in their eyes, they have those droopy eyes or something.
Actually, Spacey even kinda looks like Norm McDonald in that picture. Oh, it never ends.

Also, in case you haven't seen it yet, you need to watch the Chuck Norris endorsed Huckabee ad. I was never really big on that huge Chuck Norris phase, but this is pretty good.

It feels like years since it's been here

I miss the sun.



That's all for now.

Christmas Time in the City

There's no doubt the holiday season is upon us. And this past weekend while in St. Louis I got to see my favorite thing during the holiday season... lights! In particular-- Kiener Plaza. This is the third year in a row Jason and I have visited the light display. It's pretty much the same every year, but it still makes me happy. So I'd like to share one of my favorite things with everyone with some pictures I took. The night was a little chilly and there was a full moon. I got a good vibe down there. A lot of people were walking around looking at the lights and no homeless people harassed us (Jason) for money or to buy flowers.

They added two new identical Christmas trees down by the entertainment/seating area... They were pretty and I enjoyed them. Here's a pic of one of them with the full moon up in the sky.


Kiener Plaza is right in the heart of Downtown and has a great view of the Arch and Old Court House. This is "the tree" Mayor Slay lights every year. It's the centerpiece of the Downtown lighting big to-do. The tree's pretty, but boring at the same time. It's the same every year from what I remember.
This is my favorite picture. Maybe it's just because it reminds me of the first time I went to see the lights a couple years ago. The picture on the left is from 2005. The picture on the right is from this year.
While I'm on the topic of Christmas trees I feel the need to share my quaint (or pathetic, however you want to look at it) tree in my apartment. It's a 3-footer! I'm pretty sure I wandered the aisles of Target for about an hour trying to pick out the ornaments and exactly what color scheme I would go with. I tried to make it pretty, but personal at the same time... it has decorative ornaments and ones that actually mean something to me.I have two ornaments that look like my two cats that are alive, and a third one that looks like my cat that just died. It has angel wings and a halo.

The ornament Jason's grandmother gave me on our first Christmas is also on the tree (you can see a corner of it in the picture on the left). And I have a little souvenir from one of the new trees in Kiener plaza. I really liked one of the sparkly ornaments on the tree, so I thought I'd bring a little bit of the Lou to Springfield for my tree. :) And yes, those are Cardinal ornaments in the tree, and under, and on top. I didn't really see any tree toppers I liked so I figured I would just continue with the Cardinal/red theme and put that Cardinal beeny baby thing on the top. To me, the tree says, "Dori". It works for me.

Mizzou is #1

Unbelievable. That's the best way I can describe the latest BCS standings. Mizzou is #1 in the country! I can't say that I ever thought I would see this happen.

The scenario couldn't have been any more perfect. Number 2 undefeated Kansas playing arch rival #4 Missouri, all in a neutral site. So much more than pride on the line... Big 12 North title, a spot in the Big 12 Championship, from there a shot at the national title. That's a storyline made for the big screen, well at least your big screen TV. I was really glad ABC picked up on the heated rivalry and explosive atmosphere at MU-kU games.

About 2% of me thought Mizzou would lose. I don't even know why I was that worried. I've known since summer kU had the one of the easiest schedules in NCAA football, let alone the Big 12. I said all along their team was overrated. The way we dominated Saturday solidified that fact.

36-28. A very deceptive score if you ask me. There were only two times in the entire game when I thought, "Hey, this is kinda starting to be a game." The jayhawks were never really in it. I'm glad kU finally got to play a real team.

The jayhawks' last play of the game? Let me just say there couldn't have been a more perfect ending. I'll let the video do the rest of the talking.



There are few things better in this world for a Mizzou fan than beating the jayhawks. This year not only did we beat them, but we bitch-slapped them off their overrated pedestal. Ahh, all I can do is smile.

Now it's on to San Antonio where the Tigers will play #9 Oklahoma in the Big 12 Championship game. If Mizzou wins it's on to New Orleans for the Bowl Championship Series National Title game. I can't even imagine how exciting that will be. Taking it game-by-game seems to work for Pinkel, so I think I'll take the same approach right now.

I honestly don't really know how to feel about Saturday's game. I know we're going to bring an even better game to the turf than we did in Norman a month ago. We kept that game close. Right now the Sooners are favored by 3. I'm gonna take this number with a big grain of salt. kU was favored by 2 points last weekend. Numbers that low only tell me it's going to be more of a toss-up than anything. The only thing I know right now is this year's Big 12 Championship game is going to be an exciting one. And man, I can't tell you how excited I am about Saturday. M-I-Z... Z-O-U!!!

Farewell Fall

It seems as though Fall is gone for good. We had the first reports of snow in the area this afternoon and tomorrow's temps will barely reach the 40s. So as an ode to Fall here are a couple pictures I took in my neighborhood back in St. Louis.

Everyone talks about how Fall colors are so beautiful in the Ozarks. On my way home two weekends ago I would argue the colors got prettier the further away I got from the Ozarks. I especially noticed more variety of color in the Eureka/Pacific area. I know it wasn't optimal Fall weather this year though, so I'm looking forward to next year.