My mom called special to tell me she was right.
The argument started when she was relating a story about something that happened in her work as a teacher. Just in passing, on her way to make a point about something completely unrelated, she dropped one of those gems that only a parent can come up with:
" ... and it was raining, so we made sure the kids stayed away from the computers."
She continued, but I got stuck right there.
Wait! What?
She had made a turn and was winding up her story before I caught up with her.
What did you say about the rain and the computers?
Sure, she said. Everybody knows. When it’s storming, you don’t use your computer. Or your telephone. You could get zapped.
Zapped?
By lightning. It happened to a lady in Kaumakani. She said this with authority.
So you don’t use your phone when it’s raining? This was the first I’d heard of this business.
Raining, yes. Electrical storm, no. Don’t wanna get zapped.
At this point, I was laughing. At this point, she was annoyed.
When we were kids, she said, mothers wouldn’t let their daughters curl their hair with metal rollers if there was a storm.
Oh, brother.
Others in the group added to the lore:
"One time, I was looking to buy a horse on the Big Island. I took a look at this one horse, but decided it just wasn’t the one. Lucky thing, because that very night, there was a storm and the next morning, they found the horse dead in the pasture, struck by lightning. Maybe it was because the horse took shelter under a tall tree. Maybe because the horse had metal shoes."
Or maybe the horse was on the phone.
Intrigued by the tales, I called the Honolulu Fire Department. The nice person who answered the phone assured me the department doesn’t get reports of people getting zapped by lightning through their computers or telephones. I could hear that "Oh, brother" tone in his voice.
Then I called The Advertiser’s "Dr. Gadget," Joe Laszlo, who used terms such as "ionized air particles" and "plasma state of matter" that made my head hurt like I had been wearing metal barrettes in a storm. Lightning isn’t trying to get to you, he said, it’s trying to get to the ground. He explained that service boxes outside most homes provide grounding, and therefore using your computer or phone during an electrical storm shouldn’t be a problem.
But then I got the message on the machine. Check out the O‘ahu phone book, Page 72, she said, under the heading "Important Safety Tips." It advises: "Avoid using the telephone during an electrical storm."
The chances of getting zapped are remote, it says, but it can happen.
My mom was right. She called to tell me.
She called to tell me, even though it was raining.
Oh, brother.
