Stormy Weather-- At Last!

Rick and I both worked hard yesterday morning to finish scrubbing our white vinyl fence.  It needed the bath badly as pollen, dirt, bird droppings, and brown spots (gecko poop?) were all over the fence. We even went into our neighbor's back yard to scrub that side of the fence before he rents out his house to a new tenant.  By noon yesterday, the fence gleamed. (Smile.)

Dunedin has been in a draught lately.  While severe storms have traveled in waves across the United States, all of the storms have flowed to the north of us, reaching only as far south as the Florida panhandle, if even that far.

The heat and draught have taken its toll on area vegetation.  Our bottle brush tree started to lose all of its leaves.  The Nursery people told us to water, water, water it.  We have done so each day, and it is starting to recover a little.  We also have watered our flowers on an almost daily basis just to help them get established.

Yesterday we checked Steve and Chris' house.  Most of the potted flowers are dead with the exception of one hearty bloom and the cacti.  Even the cacti, however, looked like they could use a good drink.  The weeds, of course, were hogging whatever moisture was available in the gardens.

One stubborn plant still is green and growing
in one of the back yard pots.

TV weathermen (and women) have been promising rain today, and at last, it finally arrived!  We awoke this morning at 5:46 to flash after flash of lightening.  The thunder arrived shortly thereafter as the storm rolled in off the Gulf.  Then came the winds, some gusting as high as 60 miles per hour.  Torrential rain lasted for at least half an hour, resulting in our back yard and the street in front of our house both becoming large, deep puddles.

Thankfully, the new patio did not pool too badly in the low corner, and no water remained anywhere near the house.

Oh, and as for our clean, gleaming fence?  It is now a splattered, muddy mess.  We knew that would happen, but that's OK.  With the pollen and other debris washed away yesterday, the mud can easily be hosed off once the rain stops for good.

At this point, the skies are still dark with low-hanging storm clouds.  Further storms are promised for today, and that's all right.  We'll take as much rain to replenish the aquifer that the sky can deliver.  Gladys needed a good bath, and we're happy that she at least took a quick shower today.