Monday, June 15, 2009 -
It is cooler this morning and the sky is full of rain filled clouds. I decided to start a small fire to take the chill off the sunroom and then started the generator so I could go online to work on my blogs and do some research.
NWS is predicting a 60% chance of thunderstorms today and by 11:45, the sky opened up and it rained hard for about 15 minutes, and then quit. The sky has that eerie glow of gray-green and the forest is dark green with freshly washed needles. I love a good storm as it washes and cleans everything, helping to keep the dust down and Mother Nature at her best.
Like other areas in the north, I have suffered the devastation of the Bark Beetle, which has moved down from Canada, killing off fir trees by the thousands. It is nature’s way of thinning out the weak trees as the beetles don’t attack healthy ones, but the next natural step is a forest fire to clear out the dead debris. Living in the middle of an almost million acre national forest is wonderful, until you realize that it can all be taken away in a moment. I know that fires can affect everyone and people lose their homes to it on a regular basis, but homes can be rebuilt, forests take years and years to grow to their beauty.
The day passed with two more downpours, depositing almost half an inch of water, but by late afternoon, the clouds started to break up and the some sunshine started to shine through. It never did warm up, but I did have to finally let the fire die down and open the sliding doors for some fresh air.
After doing research most of the day, and writing, I finally stopped at 7:30 PM, took a shower, fixed myself some dinner and then relaxed in front of the television.