A Storm . . .Er . . . Fish . . . Called Wanda . . . Er . . . Nemo
February 10, 2013
By: O. J. Cunningham
This Disney NEMO was never very scary.
According to The Weather Channel (TWC) -- "Naming winter storms will raise awareness, which will lead to more pro-active efforts to plan ahead, resulting in less impact on the public overall."
Sadly for Michiganders, the first "NAMED" storm of 2013 that recently bludgeoned the Great Lakes Bay Region was named . . .
"NEMO".
Could there have been a wimpier name for Mid-Michigan's first-ever NAMED winter storm?
I tried to think of an even more wimpy name for a snowstorm.
Tinker Bell came to mind. She's not scary.
Barney Fife would be less imposing. Barney was never one to be scared of.
Let's take it a step further. How about
Cindy Lou Who from the Grinch Who Stole Christmas? -- Now we're REALLY talking WIMPY STORM NAMES.
Another nomination for "Worst Storm Names" might be Pooh or perhaps the ever-frightful Piglet.
"Breaking News . . . This just in . . . Piglet is picking up moisture from the Gulf of Mexico and is heading across the plains states into the Midwest. Chicago and Detroit are bracing for the onslaught of Piglet."
RIGHT!!!! . . .
Piglet
LEAST SCARY OF ALL.
Cindy Lou Who
COULD NEVER BE SCARY
But NEMO (The Cutesy Orange Fish). . . at least to the current generation of Millennials . . . brings forth only thoughts of a small, cute, Disney fish with a high-pitched voice that won the hearts of millions as they watched Finding Nemo (TLM) on the big screen.
Now . . . The Weather Channel wants us to be frightened and pay attention to a storm named NEMO. Not gonna happen.
There's Another NEMO
There's only a small group of well-read geezers (LIKE ME) that are even going to think of
Jules Verne's Captain Nemo and his submarine, Nautilus when they hear the name, NEMO. With that age-group in mind, I can only assume that it's an over-65 committee that comes up with the names of the storms each year. The Committee was probably thinking Jules Verne but the masses are all about the fish.
Jules Verne's Captain NEMO
was indeed very scary as the
pilot of the submarine Nautilus.
Come to think of it . . . That same committee-age-theory might also explain why there haven't been any storms (YET)) named Beyonce or Madonna or Kid Rock or Zeppelin or Metallica or Rihanna.
A Little Background -- Hurricanes and tropical storms have been given names since the 1940s. In the late 1800s, tropical systems near Australia were named as well. Weather systems, including winter storms, have been named in Europe since the 1950s.
According to the experts, "Important dividends have resulted from attaching names to these storms: Such as
Naming a storm raises awareness.
Attaching a name makes it much easier to follow a weather system's progress.
A storm with a name takes on a personality all its own, which adds to awareness.
In today's social media world, a name makes it much easier to reference in communication.
Just don't name storms Tinker-Bell or Cindy Lou Who or Nemo . . . or Piglet.
ONE MORE THING: If you look a little further down the list of upcoming names for storms (List is at the bottom). . . you'll find the name YOGI . . . Seriously? . . . Who am I supposed to think of? YOGI BERRA or YOGI BEAR . . .??
"Hey . . . Boo Boo!? Got a pic-a-nic basket?"
Heavy Snow collects on tree branches during the all-day storm
Photo by O. J. Cunningham
© MyBayCity.com
Count the inches of Snow . . . 6-8-10?
Photo by O. J. Cunningham
© MyBayCity.com
The Full List of Winter Storm Names for 2012-2013
Photo by O. J. Cunningham
© MyBayCity.com