Damage Report

Pecans forming; this photo was taken a couple of weeks before the big storm

I finally got to meet the owner of the pecan orchards that surround us. He stopped by right after the big storm that caused so much damage. I was sitting in the driveway with a cell phone and the telephone book, shakily trying to remember how to look up the phone number for my insurance agent without the Internet. The power was still off at that point.

He was pretty worried about hail damage to his crop and wanted to know how big the hail was and how long it lasted. I could only see the tiniest branch down on his side of the fence, but he told me later that the hail knocked a lot of the little green pecans right off the branches, considerably thinning his crop.

While I'm talking about damage here, I can announce that yesterday we finally got gas to the house, three weeks and one day after the meter was broken off by the falling tree. I have spent some chilly mornings in the cold shower and have eaten a lot of microwaved frozen dinners, so I am grateful that we will finally have hot water and a cookstove. Yes, I know I'm spoiled.

However, the entire roof of the house still needs to be replaced (hail damage), a section of fence ditto (torn up by the falling tree), the family room ceiling ditto (I remember noticing that it was raining in there when I was evacuating), and some carpets require professional cleaning beyond what my rug shampooer can do.

The memory of the terror caused by the storm will eventually fade. For now, we all get a bit anxious when the afternoon thunderstorms begin, and the dogs follow me from room to room.

*****

P.S. Happy Birthday to J.R.--you know I'll never forget your day.

Heading West for Skywatch Friday

Having lived for so long in New England, I have always found that the sight and sound of a long freight train means WEST to me.

We saw this train rumbling along under stormy skies, somewhere in central New Mexico. For photos from all parts of the compass, be sure to visit Skywatch Friday.

My Eyes Are Full of Sky for Skywatch Friday

The Manzano Mountains

Such a contrast between the dark skies and the bleached grasses

The Vaughn train depot

We traveled a few days ago from Clovis in eastern New Mexico to the Manzano Mountains, which are located a bit southeast of Albuquerque. Here are some of the amazing skies we saw on our journey, both going and coming back.

This storm was just a little bit behind us all the way. Once we got home we sat out on the deck watching it approach until the rain forced us onto the covered patio, where we had to shout to be heard over the powerful winds and rains.

Be sure to look at skies, both calm and stormy, from all around the world via Skywatch Friday.

When it Rains in New Mexico…

Near Truth or Consequences, the place (and the concept)

From Clovis Weather:
“The annual average precipitation at Clovis is 18.50 Inches. Rainfall is fairly evenly distributed throughout the year. The wettest month of the year is August with an average rainfall of 3.43 Inches.”

Our last rain was on April 9th, when I woke up to thunder and lightning and the delicious smell of rain sweeping across the plains. Rain is a big event here, in a place where the sun shines an average of 335 days a year .

Here are some photos of rainfall and its effects that I’ve taken around the state. The first two were taken in Clovis during a September downpour, the third in Old Town Albuquerque in August, and the fourth shows what landed in a Las Cruces arroyo after a big storm--I wish we could read that sign.

The last three photos were taken when we were on our way to see some property that overlooked Elephant Butte Lake which was, ironically, very empty that year. We wisely chose not to go through the water over the road, luckily taking our cue from the fellow who was waiting it out on the other side. The last photo shows what was going on under all the water on an upper unpaved section of the same road. We decided against building a house up there.