Green Options

Thunderstorms and tornados have been pounding the southeast USA over the past 12 hours. I woke this morning and found my aunt fretting over her television. She told me that my hometown was ducking for cover because a rotating storm cell was coming in fast; the Weather Channel mentioned Chattanooga by name. At 7am, I knew that most of my family was still asleep. I called home and gave them a heads-up.

Growing up in the southeast we were very familiar with summer thunderheads and tornado drills. At school we practiced ducking for cover in cinderblock hallways and were vaguely aware of the language of dangerous weather. Tornado warnings meant nothing at all; tornado watches were almost as distracting at school; air raid sirens were rare but frightening. Almost everyone had a distant “cousin” who had seen a real tornado.

You’d think in January, Sweden would be cold, blanketed with snow and ice, but not this year.

According to The Local, a hobby gardener in southern Sweden has already harvested the first potatoes of the New Year, with a garnish of strawberries and daisies.