My humans are on a roll. Yesterday we had surprise. Today we had drama. The morning went fine. This afternoon I was in the camper, and that was ok. Well, honestly the quiet and calm was pretty nice, until it wasn’t quiet or calm. There was a storm. You’re probably thinking “big deal,” but I’m a Florida bunny. I’m used to storms, but sometimes they’re pretty intense. Little Girl is quite fond of thunderstorms, unless they get too big that is. One caveat of loving the camper: I don’t love being in it during storms.
It was close to dinner time and my humans were going in and out, in and out of the camper with their food, plates, napkins, silverware, more food, in and out. Every time I thought they were done the door would swing open again. I was so relieved they were outside. I saw what they were having for dinner: steak. All my animal instincts tell me to flee when Big Rabbit grills meat. I hate the sound. I hate the smell. You get the idea. I noticed it was getting dark, but it wasn’t raining or anything yet.
Some time passed and Mama came in to feed me after dropping off a few dirty dishes. She brought the awning in, which she usually only does if it’s windy, raining, or nighttime. Mama told me it looked like a storm was coming, put me up in my bunk, then left. I was unconcerned.
A few minutes later the camper started swaying slightly with the wind. I heard my humans making a commotion outside, so I looked out my window. I’d never seen anything like it before. It looked as if there was a giant grey rope swirling from the sky to the water, and it was slowly moving. Then the rain came. My humans got quieter outside. It rained harder. Harder. Ok, now I knew this was a bad storm. How dare they leave me alone! It wasn’t as windy as that time we were in a tornado watch (I should tell you about that one sometime), but it was the hardest rain I’d ever remembered in a camper.
Suddenly the camper door burst open, and Little Girl and Mama poured into the camper. They were drenched. The wind was howling and some rain came right in the camper before Big Rabbit closed the door behind them and headed back toward the tiki huts. The puddles were growing beneath Mama and Little Girl, as their clothes and hair kept dripping. Mama grabbed some paper towels and dried off enough to cross the camper and get the big towels. As Mama helped to dry her, Little Girl told Mama she was scared. Mama comforted her and sent her to get a stuffed animal. I knew she’d pick Puppy, the King of the Stuffed Animals (even though he’s smaller than most of them).
More water streamed in as Big Rabbit opened the door to hand Mama what was left outside. He wasn’t happy. I craned my neck to see what he had handed her, and realized they didn’t get to finish their dinner. Interrupted meals make Big Rabbit grumpy. He’s not a huge fan of storms either. Mama helped dry him off while he grumbled and she mopped up the floor again. I thought it was a good thing she overpacks and has so many towels.
After everything was as dry as it was going to get and the door was locked, Mama brought me down. Soon I was kicking myself for being upset earlier about being left alone. I had all that space to myself! The dinette was packed with stuff (ok, maybe it’s not so great that Mama overpacks), so everyone ended up finishing their dinner on the floor, with me. I was surrounded. Sure, I could have gone and hidden, but that’s not my style. I had to make sure no one infringed on my space too much. Plus, Little Girl was happy I was out with them.
The camper kept swaying and the rain kept pounding the walls and ceiling. Mama got up a few times for leak checks and kept saying, “Thank God,” when no leaks were found. Everyone was tense. During their conversation I discovered the thing I had seen outside is called a water spout, which is a tornado over water. That was comforting information.
It kept getting darker outside…Then it went dark in the camper for a moment, there was a long beep, and I’m pretty sure Big Rabbit said a bad word. The lights came back on, but a little dimmer than normal. Little Girl said “Yay!” But then Big Rabbit told her they were only on because of the camper’s battery power. He turned off all the lights except the dinette, to save power he said. I’d about had enough but Mama came in for a cuddle. I decided to be heroic and calm her down. Happily, that earned me a carrot. Cool camper tip: If your power goes out, your refrigerator will keep working on propane. This means your carrots and lettuce won’t go bad!
Big Rabbit’s been on and off the phone, trying to make sure the power company knows we have no electricity. The storm has finally subsided, Little Girl is finishing getting ready for bed, and now I’m worn out. I may need a vacation from vacation. I signal to Mama that’s it’s bedtime, but she’s preoccupied. Sigh. I foot stomp, loudly run inside my condo and soar to my perch, then look over at her. Good, I was loud enough and she’s getting my feed. Just as Mama lifts me up into my bunk, the long beep sounds again and everyone cheers; the power is back on. I settle down, ready for a heavy sleep, and drift off listening to Mama and Big Rabbit tucking Little Girl in…
