It's raining hats and frogs

Dear Matthew:

In the movie Magnolia, it rains frogs near the end. At first I thought this was preposterous. Then I fond out that this actually happens. How does it rain frogs?

-- Mrs. Ingrum, fifth grade teacher

Now if a tornado can pick up Aunt Em's house and blow to Oz, don't you think it could pick up a crummy frog and blow it into the next county? It's rained amphibians and reptiles, trout, flounder, bass, carp, birds, snails, trucks, lamps, landscaping, appliances, Hummel figurines-- just about anything that can be picked up. A tornado or waterspout Hoovers across the landscape, sucking up anything in its path. At some point, the debris is released from its grip and succumbs to gravity. None of this is news to science; the only mystery remaining, apparently, is how the frogs, fish, whatever, remain grouped together and aren't more widely scattered by the force of the winds.