Change of Plans

I'd planned to go to Publishers Day at Virginia Festival of the Book today, but ended up changing my plans—mainly because the weather changed. Yesterday afternoon, clouds blew in . . .

. . . and turned darker. Before long the sky looked ominous and the air was heavy.

Given the hot weather (80s here) and the unsettled weather in the west that was moving our way, the forecast called for thunderstorms that could be severe at times. Nevertheless, last night I had my camera, bookbag, maps, and lunch-bag ready. Since it's hard to find restaurant food that's both low-carb and gluten-free, I made tuna salad for my lunch. 

My husband gassed up my car, checked out various things, and had it ready to go.

At 5 AM, I awoke to the sound of rain. I figured the rain might stop soon, but it got harder. I didn't want to drive in heavy rain in the dark, so a bit after 6 AM, I changed my plans. I'm finding it increasingly difficult to drive in the dark when there's a lot of traffic. On-coming headlights make seeing difficult. The rain would make visibility worse. Plus, I'm still in the process of getting my blood sugar under control. I figured I'd better not risk the drive. The older I get, the fewer risks I take.

At full daylight, when I went out to feed, rain was still falling steadily.

Puddles lined the sides of the rain-slick road.

The pasture was filled with mud and standing water. Melody's shed had a moat in front of it.

Her water-tubs had filled to overflowing.

Any critter that ventured out was soppy wet.

Beside the kennel, the cherry tree was losing its blooms to the downpour. A rush of muddy water poured through the kennel.

 On the front sidewalk, a bowl that was empty last night held at least two inches of water.

I couldn't see the Peaks of Otter . . . 

. . . or Smith Mountain.

Most of the house-cats usually plan to go out early, but this morning they stayed in the house. The few who ventured out stayed close. I'm staying close, too.

Bad weather is supposed to continue through the weekend, so I figure a lot of folks—and critters—will change their plans.

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