Thursday 14 April 2016

"Lightning never strikes the same place twice" & Other Weather Myths

Artist extraordinaire James Grasdal is putting the finishing touches on the 13th book in the Superman Duffy comic series—MYTHCONCEPTIONS. Which, you may have guessed has a little something to do with common “myths.” I love myths! So for this year’s A to Z Blogging Challenge, I’m going to “bust” as many of them as I can—every day (except Sundays) on the blog, throughout April.

Not familiar with the A to Z Challenge? Get the details here, and then hang on, because I’m about to blow your mind with my myth-inspired posts. (P.S. Comment on the blogs throughout the month for a chance to WIN a complete set of the Superman Duffy comics, including lucky #13, MYTHCONCEPTIONS.)
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MYTH: Lightning never strikes the same place twice.

Definitely a myth. Just last year, for example, Gordon “Lightning” Smith beat me TWICE in a track and field race—same track. Oh…uh…you’re probably thinking of a different kind of lightning, right?

Well, that’s a myth too. You don’t need to conduct a scientific study of lightning to know that it can—and has—struck the same place twice—everything from the Empire State Building (which is struck 100 times a year!) to several reported cases of people being struck twice. Terrible odds, yes, but not impossible as we’ve been led to believe.

But if debunking that myth zaps your curiosity, you’ll be shocked by some of the other “odd” weather myths I’ve dug up.

Obviously weather is really important to agriculture producers. My grandpa’s canola farm, for instance, has been affected by drought and flood. There are things producers can do to minimize the effects of unfavourable conditions, but not even my grandpa’s Farmers’ Almanacs can accurately predict the weather. That hasn’t stopped people—including me—from believing everything from the slightly silly to the downright outrageous.

Here are some of my farm-inspired favourites.

MYTH: If a rooster crows at night, there will be rain by morning.
Actually, even the idea that roosters crow only in the morning is a myth. Roosters crow whenever they want—day or night.

MYTH: When dogs eat grass, there will be rain by morning.
Absolute myth. Almost all dogs will eat a little grass from time to time, especially when they have an upset tummy. Vets believe that the texture of grass helps to induce vomiting when a dog feels nauseated. Of course, none of this has anything to do with the weather.

MYTH: Pigs gather leaves and straw before a storm.
Hogwash! Like many animals, pigs like to nest. Gathering leaves, straw and other soft materials is an extension of that instinct—but has nothing to do with predicting the weather.

MYTH: Birds on a telephone wire predict the coming of rain.
Not exactly. If you live in an area with enough wires and birds, “odds” are you’ll see birds roosting—any time of day. That said, birds will “stop over” in an area to wait out a storm in their path, so if you suddenly see a lot of birds in your area, you might want to grab an umbrella.

Tomorrow officially marks the half-way point of the #AtoZChallenge. How many blogs have you visited? Gotta jet! I hope to see you back here tomorrow for my “M” myth post.

~ Chase Superman Duffy


P.S. Comment on this post, or share it on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram for a chance to WIN a complete set of the Superman Duffy comics. A winner will be chosen at random on May 1.

37 comments:

  1. Oh my word ... I had heard the myth about lightning, but none of the others! Thanks so much for sharing (and debunking) :)
    Molly @MyCozyBookNook
    My Cozy Book Nook
    Revising Life after 50

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    1. Researching for these posts has been so much fun—and I'm learning so much. Glad you liked the post and thank you for stopping by!

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  2. I used to work with a woman who had been struck twice by lightning! It can definitely strike people...or places...more than once!

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    1. Oh my, how terrifying for her! Thanks for stopping by and commenting.

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    2. Hi Megan. I wanted to thank you for commenting / supporting my A to Z Challenge this year by sending you a set of the Chase books—but I can't find your contact info to direct email you. Could you please email your address to me at chase.superman.duff@gmail.com? Thank you!

      Delete
  3. Hi!! We're mobbing you :) I think Jim Caviezel from Passion of Christ was struck twice, no? Craziness.


    Joy @ The Joyous Living

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    1. Hi Joy—thanks for...mobbing...me :-) I'm going to look that up!

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  4. Ive only heard of one of these myths. funny how most of them have to do with farm animals. Hey guess what? Youve been FLASH MOBBED #azchat says HELLO!!

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    1. Yes! I was surprised by that as well.
      Thanks for flash mobbing me—what a cool thing to wake up to so many comments! Happy AtoZ!

      Delete
    2. Hi Pam,
      I wanted to thank you for commenting / supporting my A to Z Challenge this year by sending you a set of the Chase books—but I can't find your contact info to direct email you. Could you please email your address to me at chase.superman.duff@gmail.com? Thank you!

      Delete
  5. You've been mobbed :)
    I've heard about lightning. Also that the same person can't get struck twice, but we know that isn't true..
    Happy AtoZ!
    AJ Lauer
    an A-Z co-host
    @ayjaylauer

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    1. Thanks for the flash mob!
      I'm always amazed when I'm researching how many different things people believe—busting myths is kind of fun!

      Delete
    2. Hi AJ,
      I wanted to thank you for commenting / supporting my A to Z Challenge this year by sending you a set of the Chase books—but I can't find your contact info to direct email you. Could you please email your address to me at chase.superman.duff@gmail.com? Thank you!

      Delete
  6. There sure are a lot of myths about rain!
    You've been mobbed! #azchat

    Sarah Foster
    Stormy’s Sidekick!
    The Faux Fountain Pen
    @Sarah_A_Foster

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    1. There definitely are! Must be because "water" is such an important resource and in times of drought, people will try anything to promote rain!

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  7. Mob attack from the A to Z Twitter people! Growing up in the country, we had lightning strike the transformer and our well twice. It's annoying going without power and water at the same time.

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    1. Wow! Thanks for "mobbing" me—what a cool idea!
      I can't imagine being without water AND power. That must have been a little scary as well.

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  8. You've been mobbed! Maybe lighting DOES strike twice... when it's A to Z Challengers? ;D

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    1. Ha! You could be right! Thanks for the "mob" :-)

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    2. Hi Laura,
      I wanted to thank you for commenting / supporting my A to Z Challenge this year by sending you a set of the Chase books—but the contact form on your website isn't working. Could you please email your address to me at chase.superman.duff@gmail.com? Thank you!

      Delete
  9. What an awesome prize. But my odds will be pretty slim, now... tee-hee!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You never know—the more posts you comment on, the better your chances ;-) Good luck! And thanks for stopping by.

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    2. Hi Jen—not slim at all!
      In fact, I wanted to thank you for commenting / supporting my A to Z Challenge this year by sending you a set of the Chase books—but I can't find your contact info to direct email you. Could you please email your address to me at chase.superman.duff@gmail.com? Thank you!

      Delete
  10. My mum lives near a rooster and it crows all the time. We are dead curious where it actually lives.

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    1. Huh. I wonder if over time, you just become immune to the sound—like the train that runs past my street. I hardly ever hear it anymore. Thanks for stopping by!

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  11. I love weather myths! These are really interesting.
    Lisa at Tales from the Love Shaque
    (part of the #azchat comment mob!)

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    1. Thank you! I am fascinated by all kinds of myths.
      Thanks for stopping by as part of the comment mob! What a great thing to wake up to.

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  12. Kids and I recently did a tour of a weather station and I learned quite a lot. Great stuff here, my kids love this kind of stuff. THanks.

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    1. Oh, I bet that was very interesting!
      I'm glad you enjoyed my post—and thank you for stopping by.

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  13. J here, of the #atozchallenge Arlee Bird's A to Z Ambassador Team.
    How has the challenge been going for you so far? Are you meeting your goals of posting and hopping to other blogs? M= 1/2 way point!
    My blog's giveaways are still going! I'm encouraging everyone to visit more stops.
    http://jlennidornerblog.what-are-they.com
    #FlashMob giving you extra love from #azchat #AtoZChallenge!
    Shared you on FB and Twitter. Love the post. Lightning is great to watch, but not great to get hit by... though it does leave cool markings on those who survive!

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    1. #Flashmob—what a great idea! It was so nice to wake up to so many wonderful comments. Thanks for choosing my blog.
      I have been meeting my goals—but I'm looking forward to taking time on Sunday to visit more of the blogs on the challenge. Thanks so much for stopping by.

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    2. You're welcome. I'm sending you an email from me in response to your message. :)
      Thanks.

      Delete
  14. Wonder how those myths became popular. Was the rooster one some city slicker who visited a farm and heard a rooster crow in the morning and people get up at the same time so he just assumed?

    ~Ninja Minion Patricia Lynne aka Patricia Josephine~
    Story Dam
    Patricia Lynne, Indie Author

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    1. Ha! That's an interesting theory. Although I live in the city, my grandparents live in the country, and I seem to be always correcting my friends' misconceptions about farm life :-)
      Thanks for stopping by!

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  15. If there are a lot of birds on your telephone wires, you might want to grab an umbrella, whether it's going to rain or not! It was an interesting post.

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    1. Ha! You're SO right! Thanks for stopping by!

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    2. Hi Karen,
      I wanted to thank you for commenting / supporting my A to Z Challenge this year by sending you a set of the Chase books—but I can't find your contact info to direct email you. Could you please email your address to me at chase.superman.duff@gmail.com? Thank you!

      Delete