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A Sulphur Sky
17 August 2020
Two nights ago, after an oven-hot day, we saw a rare summer sunset and grabbed a camera to capture the moment. We didn't know it at the time, but we were about to be hit just seven hours by an electrical storm that would last until the middle of the next day.
Sulphur Sky. Photographed with an Olympus E-PL1 and 14-42mm II R lens at 41mm and f5.6, 1/80 second and ISO 320. Processed in Adobe Camera Raw. The tall communication tower functions as a barometer as well with lights running up, down or flashing in the same position to indicate rising, falling or stable air pressure.
Talk about rare weather events. At least around here.
It had been so hot that we left the big sun umbrella out on the patio overnight, expecting the heat wave to last until Wednesday (no such luck). And when we went to bed, we left the window open so the cool air off the Pacific could air condition the bedroom.
But with the window open, we were awakened at two in the morning by the soft conversion of our neighbors in their hot tub. Very amusing.
And, actually, timely. When they finally called it a night and went to bed half an hour later, our sleepless eyes noticed flashes in the sky.
Who could be taking photos with a flash at this hour? we wondered.
And then it occurred to us it might be lightning, even though we heard no thunder.
The umbrella! we remembered and jumped into our firefighter costume, ran down the stairs and into the patio to pull the umbrella from its stand and get it into the house as the wind picked up.
A few minutes later it began to rain. Hard.
Umbrellas, as everyone knows, were not designed for the rain.