Our Windfall...

Today's the first day of Hurricane Season.
We've already had some strange weather
a week before the season officially begins.
This is a long story...

See these two tall trees in our neighbor's backyard?

She had one more just like it out front.

The folks across the street from her were having a party

and a company was putting up an inflatable slide

(like a bounce house, only it was a slide).

I saw them from the backyard when I went out

to take pictures of the garden.

It looked like rain, so I wanted to get some shots before it hit.

A few minutes after I came inside,

there was a tremendous gust of wind for a few minutes.

Turns out the slide had not been fully secured and the gust

took not only the slide up, but the guy holding it.

He was airborn and finally let go of the thing.

He ended up with a broken ankle after landing on the street.

My neighbor lost her mailbox and the giant tree out front.

The slide continued on for four blocks

after destroying her property,

damaging fences along the way.

That was some wind...

The tree was taken down and cut up. 

It will not be replaced,

and the two in the backyard will be removed as well.

This neighbor offered to give us the mulch

that used to sit under her trees.

Generous soul, she is.

We had planned on purchasing more pine bark

to fill in the path along the east side of the house.

Just hadn't gotten around to it.

Although I feel awful for the guys and the expense of repairing the damage done by their equipment,

and knowing the tree wouldn't make it

and now the other two will be cut down as well,

I'm mighty grateful that it didn't turn out worse.

And that we'll have a piece of that tree right here.

Stay safe out there

and get those supplies stocked up!

It's gonna be a long season...