Irene's upon us...

I’m sitting here watching the trees swaying in the wind and waiting for the storm to pass.  Irene has been downgraded to a tropical storm now so we are the lucky ones.  And we haven’t lost power yet.  For that I am very grateful.  I got my shower, my cup of coffee and checked my email.  We have friends who weren’t that lucky this morning…not to mention all the folks who don’t have power down the East Coast.  We have had LOTS of rain…a lot of rain all along.  Flooding could be an issue.

Last night Greg and I watched the Red Sox finish a double header in soaking rain.  Of course, we were watching on TV, but there were still quite a few members of Red Sox Nation sitting in the stands during that second game.   Die-hard fans or just nuts…I don’t know.  It will sure be one game they will remember for a while.  It looks like the right decision to cancel today’s game though.  It could be dangerous in Fenway Park right now.

But what gets me is all the hype about this.  My mother even called on Friday (Friday!) from Ohio wanting to know if we were going to evacuate.  Well, there was no need for that up here in central Massachusetts, but you wouldn’t know that to listen to the weather reports.   Of course, one has to proceed with caution in these circumstances but all day and all night coverage…PLEASE! Give it a rest already.

Okay.  There is my rant.  Out of the system and down the drain,

joining the flood waters and going out to sea.

Today I thought I would post a few pictures I took the other day of a birch tree that I love.  It sits down by our pond tucked a little way into the woods.  I am hoping that that location will protect it a bit from this weather as birches seem to take the brunt of the damage in storms like we are having here now.

Take care and stay safe, everyone, whether or not you are in or have been in Irene’s path or are dealing with weather issues of your own.