It has been awfully hot. I drift through the days longing for relief. Be careful what you wish for. Sunday night Mama Nature sent us a little cloudburst.
It has been a long time since I’ve been in the middle of so much thunder and lightning. We knew it was coming, of course, but it was so hot that we just went to bed with a book and a nice big glass of water. The big show started with a BLAM!! that levitated me right off the bed and sent Miss Sadie under it. I thought I should go over to the bluff above the Bay and watch the drama. Rumble-rumble-boom-BLAM. OK, maybe not. But it would be a fine thing to see the Bay all tumultuous and lightning-lit. BLAM-grumble-grumble-booooooommmm-BLAM. And then the rain came. The Cowboy trotted from window to window, keeping alert. He seemed to have things well in hand so we left him to it. Miss Sadie stayed under the bed. I went back to my book. Good thing, too.
The next day I discovered that my favorite white pine had been decapitated, leaving a splintery stump about 30 feet high and an impressive pile of lumber filling my path to the Bay. The pine took down a good-sized cedar with it when it fell. If I’d followed my first impulse and trotted over there to watch the show, you could be having a memorial service for me right about now, weeping copiously next to the remains of the white pine. Not to mention the remains of Gerry, if you could find any under all that pine.
We’ve been having a lot of storms lately, and all of them seem to take down pretty good sized trees. Makes a person think long thoughts about living in the woods. Makes a person want to dive under the bed, but Miss Sadie is already there and she’s not coming out.
Torch Lake Views 
Carsten
July 20, 2011
If One makes several forest walks after storm then a tiny idea slowly emerges: STAY OUT of the forest in stormy weather. Find a safe place, preferably under the bed. It is of course difficult if the space is occupied by large furry animals – or if you have a waterbed.
uphilldowndale
July 20, 2011
Whoa, what power of nature. I’m sure a few more could squeeze under the bed
Fee
July 20, 2011
Much as I enjoy watching Mama Nature showing off, I much prefer to do it from a nice dry house. You stay inside and stay safe, Gerry.
P.j. grath
July 20, 2011
Gerry, I thought the idea of going outside to watch the storm sounded risky, but that pine tree—-!!!! Glad you stayed in bed! Has Miss Sadie come out yet?
We had the storm, too, and at the first big CRACK! Sarah was at the bedside, giving pleading looks. Naturally we said, “Come on up,” which she did gratefully. I was so tired I went immediately back to sleep and slept through the whole rest of the storm. I hear it was spectacular, but priorities are priorities.
kanniduba
July 20, 2011
My goodness Gerry…so glad you listened to the whisper that told you to tuck up inside with a book! We are expecting temps in the mid 90’s the rest of the week, with heat indexes of 105-110. Mighty hot for us. I’m not complaining one iota though, thinking of the way too long winter which will sneak up on us way too soon. The storms, I could do without though. I’m a chicken and what if sort of girl as you know, so I don’t like them one bit.
Sorry about your tree. 😦 Glad about You. 🙂
Karma
July 20, 2011
Oh dear! I’m glad you decided to stay put with your book – it seems Miss Sadie had the right idea. I hope you can get some help to clear your path to the bay – I can’t imagine the Cowboy would like having to climb over those limbs very much.
Gerry
July 20, 2011
Thank you all very much for dropping by and commenting. I would love to visit a bit and put individual responses in but I promised to go over to Providence Farm to wash vegetables. It seemed to be something cool to do–literally as well as figuratively. I’ll let you know how that goes.
Dawn
July 21, 2011
Glad you are safe, but you’re going to miss that white pine. 😦 Washing vegetables sounds fun….let us know!
Bruce Laidlaw
July 21, 2011
Good decision to not go out into that storm. Here are some links to give you an idea of its intensity.
http://www.annarbor.com/news/video-shows-deadly-storm-that-capsized-sailboat-during-chicago-to-mackinac-race/
http://www.powerboat-world.com/usa/Chicago-Mackinac-Race-100-Knots-and-Off-the-Clock/86145
I don’t think we had any 115 mph winds, but it was pretty wild.