Weather Matters
Yesterday was miserably hot. Temperatures went over a hundred in several places. The thermometer below hangs in the shade of my patio, one of the cooler places around the house.
The day began badly. A hot wind was blowing when I went to feed at 6:30 AM. It would have been a good day to cool off at the lake. No doubt a lot of people were doing that.
Later, John heard over the scanner that a girl who'd been floating in Smith Mountain Lake was missing. It wasn't long until her body was pulled from the lake. The Penhook Point neighborhood where this happened isn't that far from us.
During the day, temperatures climbed. We were thankful for air conditioning and, except for brief ventures outside to check on the critters, spent the day in the house. Most of the cats stayed inside too. Melody sweated in front of her fan. The kennel dogs dug holes in the mud. Emma the garage dog holed up in the bushes. A bit of a breeze would be a welcome relief.
About dark, I brought the last house cat in for the night. It was still oppressively hot. A few minutes later, when I went out to turn off Melody's fan, the wind began to blow in earnest. Trees bent low, but I made it to the barn. Melody wouldn't come into the shed, and I wondered if I'd make it back to the house. But I did.
Emma wouldn't stay in the garage. She sought reuge in the bushes up against the house. Inside, a restless Dylan paced back and forth, meowing to go out. The wind blew harder, and we momentarily lost power a few times. TV coverage showed that many areas were harder hit that we were. Facebook friends, among them a local meteorologist, reported wind damage around them. Things looked bad all over.
Before six this morning, I went out to check the critters and the damage. The deck was covered with leaves.
We were lucky. The damage to the property was minimal. The top had snapped from the big maple tree in the side yard.
But the oak trees in the front yard only lost a few dead branches.
The day began badly. A hot wind was blowing when I went to feed at 6:30 AM. It would have been a good day to cool off at the lake. No doubt a lot of people were doing that.
Later, John heard over the scanner that a girl who'd been floating in Smith Mountain Lake was missing. It wasn't long until her body was pulled from the lake. The Penhook Point neighborhood where this happened isn't that far from us.
During the day, temperatures climbed. We were thankful for air conditioning and, except for brief ventures outside to check on the critters, spent the day in the house. Most of the cats stayed inside too. Melody sweated in front of her fan. The kennel dogs dug holes in the mud. Emma the garage dog holed up in the bushes. A bit of a breeze would be a welcome relief.
About dark, I brought the last house cat in for the night. It was still oppressively hot. A few minutes later, when I went out to turn off Melody's fan, the wind began to blow in earnest. Trees bent low, but I made it to the barn. Melody wouldn't come into the shed, and I wondered if I'd make it back to the house. But I did.
Emma wouldn't stay in the garage. She sought reuge in the bushes up against the house. Inside, a restless Dylan paced back and forth, meowing to go out. The wind blew harder, and we momentarily lost power a few times. TV coverage showed that many areas were harder hit that we were. Facebook friends, among them a local meteorologist, reported wind damage around them. Things looked bad all over.
Before six this morning, I went out to check the critters and the damage. The deck was covered with leaves.
We were lucky. The damage to the property was minimal. The top had snapped from the big maple tree in the side yard.
My sunflowers were bent a little, but the pergola wasn't damaged.
Jim-Bob's hideaway in the gladiola patch was still useable.
All outside dogs, the barn cats, and Melody made it through, although Melody was moving a little stiffly. The roof over the dog stall part of the shop was peeled back a bit.
The silver maple in the kennel had a few branches come down.
But the oak trees in the front yard only lost a few dead branches.
The glider under this oak was turned over but was undamaged.
The gazebo, which I thought might have toppled over, was fine. The cushions were dislodged from the chairs but didn't blow away.
My flowers were bent a little but were unbroken.
We are so lucky—and so blessed—to have weathered the windstorm with so little damage.
~
Labels: weather
posted by Becky Mushko | 10:29 AM
1 Comments:
You are very lucky - we lost power Friday night right after the brief hail storm, during the horrific front that blew through. Power was restored Sunday 4:30pm - too hot to go without electricity. Lost no trees this time.
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