Bill,
It can get you even if you can't see it. Lightning can strike as far as 10 miles away from the storm that generates it. I used to like to watch it as well, but the strikes around here seem to be getting more ferocious each year. Now I duck and cover... they say if you feel your hair start to rise you should hit the deck and make yourself as small as possible.
Lightning struck an oak tree in my dad's front yard several years ago. This tree is about 60 ft. tall and a good 3 1/2 feet in diameter. It peeled a 2 foot wide swath of bark off the length of that tree and sent it flying all over the place.... When I was cleaning up the mess, I found what looked like a thick leaf laying about 100 feet away. Turns out it was a chipmunk - he was instantly well-done cajun style....
