The Tempest

  My grandmother used to always use the idiom of "Tempest in a teapot" to describe some of her grandkids when they were being a bit rowdy.  I guess as country kids, we were quite active at times and she was just not used to that.  We were kids being kids. Nowadays, we would most likely be labeled with some learning or behavior disorder but then we were just "misbehaving".  Of course, we were reprimanded and not one of us are any worse for wear.  We were not mollycoddled that is for sure!  We did not behave so we were corrected in the good old-fashioned way of a switching.  (Can't do that nowadays!  No, no, no! Hmmmph!)  I thought about that tempest in a teapot mid afternoon today.

  The kitchen windows face the north and I had been watching dark clouds build up on the horizon while I cleaned.  They did not seem to be too threatening so I figured all was well. I did, however, make the remark to Mark that it seemed just like the weather before a tropical storm or hurricane. I guess I should learn to keep my mouth shut!  Little did I know that on the south side of the house, a tempest was sneaking in on us!  From out of the Gulf of Mexico, a squally bunch of weather zipped our way.  I walked into the (south side) living room just in time to hear the wind start to whip around the Bayou.  I peered out the window as the bird feeders blew off of the driftwood hangers. Uh oh, this is going to be a doozy of a storm!  The wind pounded the Little Bayou House relentlessly.  Limbs and other debris pelted my house. Out on the Bay, the waves were huge!  They splashed up over the pier with a vengeance!  Ahhh, my kind of weather!  Yep, even though storms like this squall could spell trouble, I do, indeed, like them.  There is a certain excitement that comes with watching the strength of the wind and water.

  After the worst passed over us, I headed out to check the rain gauge.  Wow!  In just under an hour, we received nigh on two and a half inches!  I made my way to check the greenhouse roof.  Not a single problem could be detected there!  Next, the pier. The water made it a bit slippery but I was able to make my way to the end. Whereas just minutes ago, a raging squall had the waters churning, now it was slick calm. There did not seem to be any problems with our pier but my brother's boat did not fare as well.   His small skiff was upended with the outboard motor down in the water.  I could see items floating far out on the Bay and assumed that those were from his boat.  Not having our boat in the water, I could not retrieve his escaping belongings.  Since he was not home at the time, there was little I could do but bemoan the fact that he might lose some things.  This man will be able to repair any damage to the motor and will have his boat up and running before we know it but I did feel badly for him.  He always helps anyone and everyone in need and I could do nothing to help him in return.  This was no small squall.  The tempest wreaked havoc.