One of the coolest things about living in Michigan is the impressive thunderstorms. Last night we had a doozy, and not only did it provide a much needed drink for our plants and trees, it also led to a portrait of Small Town USA (aka Chelsea, Michigan).It was a torrential rain, and I went out on front porch to check it out. I noticed the vehicles on Main St. had stopped, and I wondered if the road had flooded. I looked east and saw it wasn't floods, but a gigantic branch -- more like half of a tree -- that had fallen across the road.
The cloud burst only lasted a few minutes, but we lost power. I dare guess it was because of the half a tree that had hit the pole across the street. Of course, with no TV, computers, or other electronic distractions, neighbors had little else to do than come out of the woodwork to see what was going on.
I don't think I have seen that many people on Main St. since last year's parade. The kids stomped in puddles, we chit chatted and made jokes about "how many firetrucks it takes..." , walked over to see how the numerous emergency personnel were handling the situation. (Firemen with chainsaws.... that's all the entertainment my 4 year old son would ever need!)We all mocked ourselves about whether this big excitement would be on the 11 o'clock news or on the front page of this week's Chelsea Standard. Perhaps not, but I'm just thankful the tree fell into the road and not onto someone's house. And it was nice be outside on a summer evening laughing with friends and neighbors. The electricity came back on within the hour, the traffic resumed, and we all returned to our little plugged-in homes.
And if you happened to notice... I was the dork taking pictures for my blog.
1 comment:
I saw that mess the next day. Good thing it didn't fall on someone's car as they were driving past! (unlike me, who got nailed by a falling branch on Old U.S. 12 a few years ago.)
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