Growing up in the dead center of Tornado Alley, I have always had a fascination with thunderstorms and the twisters they so often spawn. When other people went out, I went in, often directing my car onto the Oklahoma backroads to see how close I could get to the storm's fury.

And so, yesterday, I became "official". As part of my duties with the volunteer fire department (which so far have consisted of handing out papers and taking an ambulance on a test spin; it's hell to be a rookie...but I digress), I was trained by the National Weather Service as a storm spotter and issued a number. I now have a cool decal on my car, and a card in my wallet that delineates me as official (although, as they warn us, the card can't be used as an excuse for speeding or running roadblocks).

On the coolness level of 1 to 10, this is about a 9.5. I'm reserving papal election for 10 (just because I missed this time doesn't mean my time won't come...I'm only 35).