corinasays: November 2014

Magnificent picture of Brisbane, on the 27th of November, 2014 under the storm, taken by Higgins Storm Chasing

A storm attack! ...

as one of my colleagues puts it.

This below is actually our workplace, hit by a virulent hail storm yesterday, You can see shattered windows on several floors, and you may imagine the panic when all 'associates' had to leave 'everything' on their desk, and rush to the basement, in the midst of hail storm roaming and building sirens deafening sounds.

My work building

Fortunately, no one got injured. Given the severity of the storm, this is quite incredible. Queenslanders should consider exporting their Disaster Management Skills because no one got injured despite a lot of material damage to cars, homes and city buildings, and tens of thousands of people losing electricity.

It looks like we are becoming good at it :)

I personally was lucky enough to leave the building half an hour before it started as I rushed home after an sms storm alert. I could see the clouds formation getting darker and darker and moving at a very unusual speed as I was driving back home and called the kids to stay put. As branches began to fall off the trees, I stopped my car in a supermarket. It was still very hot outside, about 35C, but the temperature was dropping slightly as we saw ice cubes falling down from the sky (hails), and I saw two little girls warming up their hands on the grilled chicken stand: I thought they had gone troppo ...

... I was losing my reference system ...

2014th Once in a lifetime White Christmas in Queen Street Mall, Brisbane

The following day, there would be no school for my son, as this email from the school principal explains below. Glass debris and falling branches are to be cleared. The school ground was unsafe for children but we have been reassured that it would reopen on Monday.

As I rushed to meet a group of volunteers I am involved with, for our end of the year Christmas lunch, someone was complaining they could not 'have their cup of tea + toast' since there was no power.

well, I have no place to go to work and my son has no place to go to school :)

There were people still working there that day: Hello World!

Less than two weeks ago in Brisbane, Pt Barrack Obama was warning us of the risk of more severe thunderstorm, hail and fires to come 'especially' in this vulnerable part of the world, in an attempt to convince G-20 leaders and policy makers that economy and climate change could no longer be considered independently.

I quote:

Full transcript of the Speech: http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2014/11/15/remarks-president-obama-university-Queensland or you can watch it online here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=52ZPlDSmEj4

14-15 November 2014 - University of Queensland

Today, places like my workplace - see picture above - are no longer Ivory Towers where men, mostly older men from economically dominant cultures, decide for 'others' in the comfort of corporate towers where nobody or nothing will reach them personally in their flesh.

This is over

Your very own office's glass windows will be shattered if you ignore Climate Change warnings!

Wouldn't it be delightful if Queenslanders would finally be at the forefront the the Climate Change debate now that they can feel it in their flesh? I can't wait...