Hail From Hell

Thursday started off like any other day.  Unfortunately by late afternoon things took a decidedly bad turn.  A storm brewing on the horizon began to trek directly towards us here.  Strong wind and rain soon followed.  And then, the hail.  At first it wasn't really too bad (for hail anyway) just some pea size hail.  And then suddenly it morphed into a nightmare.  Golf ball size hail fell furiously for the next few minutes.  Mars and I were in the RV ,which took a pretty good pounding, just knowing that it was decimating the gardens.  And that it did.
John and Carrie lost alot of their garden. He thinks its wiped out.  I hope hes wrong.   I am trying to stay optimistic. Most all of the cold weather crops are gone.  The broccoli, cabbage, etc...  I feel horribly for them and can only hope that most of it will come back.  Everything took a beating.  We spent yesterday out there with scissors snipping off the broken branches and limbs.  I suppose we will know in the next week or so exactly how much will pull out of it.  I'm praying that the loss ratio will be less than what he expects.  I suppose it is in God's hands now.
I can't begin to say how deeply sorry I am that this has happened.  They have worked so hard and have had such high hopes for a productive crop this year.  And now... I don't know. 

One of the melon plants last week....

And today they all  pretty much look like this....(notice all the holes in the plasticulture)

The bell peppers before......

And after....

The tomato's......then

And now.....

I'm sure the beans and the all the varieties of peas will be ok. As to the rest?  I just don't know.
Oh and just for a little "added bonus" we were storing some of our things in a tent as this trailer is pretty small....

Notice the clothes on the line?  Yep.... they were in there too.
This picture was taken out our window... As you can see hail pretty much covered the ground.

I would ask that you all keep John and Carrie in your prayers as they try to recover from this devastating stroke of nature.

Acts of Kindness

You know, I still find it amazing that in this virtual world we are lucky enough to find friends, acquaintances, and like minded people.  In this way I have been blessed.  I have "met" people from all walks of life and for the most part have been blessed by that.  Not that the virtual one doesn't have its share of ugliness and pettiness.  I suppose that is to be expected as well.
There have been many people that I have never met (and probably never will) who have deeply touched my life and my thoughts.  Others who have reached out with a kind word and a  (((Hug)))) when I needed one most. Folks who's words of encouragement have given me back my optimism about life.  I have been lucky enough to meet some of these people in person as well.  I have never been disappointed in meeting any of them.
Some of you know that we are currently staying at the Pioneer Living Homestead.  Their hospitality has been a blessing for us.  You can't find folks more down to earth than J&C. They have found their "place in the dirt".  And that is our ultimate goal as well. To find our own piece of dirt and our version of the American Dream.
That dream, for us, is a large one but not all that complicated really.  Just a piece of land where we can raise a few chickens and rabbits, grow a garden to sustain ourselves and grow new roots.  Neither Mars nor myself have grandiose ideas.  We are just fine living in our little RV especially if it were sitting on our own little piece of land.  Which brings me back to where I started this post.
A friend from the American Preppers Network chat room did an amazing thing for us last week.  Now first let me say that we have never actually met in person although I hope to someday soon.  We have been looking online for property for months and months now and found some land that we wanted to go look at.  Due to a shortage of funds at the moment we aren't able to go and look at it just yet.  Well, to my surprise and delight MapDude and his wonderful wife CntryJewell volunteered to make a drive and go look at the property for us!  They took tons of pictures and looked over the land as if they were the ones interested in it... Asked all sorts of questions of the realtor and gave us honest opinions on what they had seen.  Now let me ask you this.... Just how many people do you know that would do that for someone they had never even met?
And then there is my buddy Wolfe.  He's a computer whiz and a wonderful web designer.  This man has been volunteering his time and knowledge helping me start a website out of the goodness of his heart. I haven't been working on it lately but I know that when I am ready to move forward with it he will be there for me and will do what he can to help me be successful.  We will probably never meet in person as he and his lovely wife InnerRain live in Canada but I am proud to call them friends.

I have made real friends in this virtual world and feel blessed to have done so. There are so many that to name them all would be difficult.  I have learned much in the time I have been online and continue to meet wonderful unselfish people.  There are some who don't even know how much I admire and respect them and the things they share with us all on their blogs.  And so to all my "virtual" friends and acquaintances...  I just want to say.... Thank you for being there as well as here in my heart. I am truly lucky to know you all.

Gulf Of Mexico

I have been avoiding the subject of the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.  It is painful for me to think about the destruction of something so close to my heart, much less write about it here for everyone to see.  Maybe I have been waiting for it to hit my beloved Texas coast and until it did I wouldn't have to admit how horrible the damage really is.  I've been thinking though that it isn't a matter of IF it happens but when. The oil has now begun washing up on the Mississippi and the Louisiana coastlines.  Dolphins are washing up on the Mississippi shoreline and wildlife and aquatic life will be  affected for years to come.  That beautiful coastline will be a virtual dead zone for many years to come.  The Valdez Spill twenty years later is still felt in Alaska.

The long term effects of this spill are yet to be realized.  Already people are losing their abilities to make a living.  There will be a backlash of economic devastation to areas already hit hard in this part of the country.

The shrimpers and fishermen are already feeling the effects of this disaster.  What will become of them when they can no longer sail the coastlines to make their living?  Many of these folks have lived on the water for generations. Made their living from the sea. It is a daily struggle for many of them to eek out a living even during good times.  The hours are long and the work is hard.  How will they survive all this?  I don't have any answers... only an underlying feeling of despair for what is about to befall these good hardworking people.

And what about all those who depend on tourists to make a living.  I'm not just talking about the hotels and restaurants and charter boasts and businesses that depend on tourism to survive. What about the little guys?  The bait shop owners and the boat rental places?  The mom and pop stores that cater to those who come for a little fun in the sun?  Those little motels and RV parks,the bars, the fresh fish markets, most of which are family owned and operated? And then there are the good folks who make a living working for those businesses.  The waitresses, cooks, dishwashers, oyster shuckers, and even bartenders?  The maids and motel clerks?  You see, there is a far reaching effect that alot of people don't even consider.  If there are no tourists there are no jobs for thousands who have catered to the industry for years. How will they be able to stay afloat when there is no "floating" to be done?  

I spent the first half of my life on the Gulf coast. I spent countless hours on the beaches and in and around those waters as a child and a young adult.  I've lived all up and down the coastline of Texas and even spent some time in Louisiana. Now I wonder if I will ever be able to wade fish for flounder and redfish again. Or toss a cast net for bait?  Or eat oysters fresh off the reefs armed with a good knife and a bottle of  Tabasco.


Of course most of this has not yet come to pass.  Unfortunately, I believe that it is only a matter of time.  Fishing and Shrimping have already been affected and I feel it is only the beginning. There is no way that that much oil spewing out into the Gulf will not have adverse reactions on the people and the creatures of the sea. 


(image from Google Images)

Homegrown Tomatos

  Ain't nothing in the world like homegrown tomato's. 
This has always been one of my favorite songs as well as a favorite musicians.  Hope ya enjoy it!  Have a great day.....

Prepared for Disaster?

We had some serious weather here in Southeastern Oklahoma yesterday. The National Weather Service reported about 10 tornado's touched down.  Five people are dead and dozens of injuries have been reported. Lot's of people are still without power today.  Heavy winds, rain, and hail.  Everything you need for a recipe for disaster.  From watching the radar we barely missed some sheer force winds.  We were lucky.

One thing became quite clear last night.  I am not prepared for this type of emergency.    We don't have television here, which used to be my first source of information for bad weather. The FM radio stations here did a poor job of covering events and I was unable to pick up a decent AM station.   We do not have a NOAHH weather radio.  Trust me, its on the list now. (At the top of it) And lastly, even though we did not loose internet connection throughout the evening- I had no idea where to find more detailed information than the ability to watch the radar. That I can fix.  I can be more informed for the next time.

I have always been freaky about weather.  It probably stems from my grandmother and my mom both being  weather watchers.  Growing up on the Gulf Coast hurricanes and squalls were common events.  As far back as I can remember when there was bad weather the women in my life would be glued to either the radio or the TV and would ride out most storms without getting up except for the personal call of nature.  Ok that's an exaggeration, but not by much.
For the last several years I lived in Central Texas. We lived just down the road from Jarrell, Texas when one of the worst tornado's ever reported demolished the entire town in 1997. The weather for miles around was chaotic that entire afternoon and evening.  The fear of another F5 tornado striking in the area was a real one. Several smaller tornado's were reported that day as well.  One of which touched down less than a half a mile from where I worked at the time.  There were 20 confirmed tornado's that day. We were informed and had evacuation plans.  Others were not so lucky.



I suppose what I am trying to say here is that I should have been prepared this time and sadly was not.  There is no excuse for that.  There is also no excuse for not being more prepared the next time something like this occurs. We were lucky this time.  We might not be so lucky in the future. This is why we prepare.  I learned a valuable lesson yesterday.  Things could have gone horribly wrong.  We dodged the bullet this time but might not be so blessed the next time.  Are you prepared for a natural disaster where you live?