Hail Storm

Thursday evening a bad lightning and hail storm bombarded us. Why do things always happen when Allan is gone? The hail was about nickel size and it really made a racket on the roof. Katie disappeared under the bed. I had transplanted my squash plants today which were not looking too good due to excessive rain and very little sun, but after the hail storm they looked pretty ragged. There are lots of leaves everywhere. I was concerned about the campers with tents, but they apparently made it through ok. We lost electricity for a short time, but when it came back on, the living room/entertainment center and refrigerator still did not have power. I tried to reset the breaker, with no success. I called Allan who was in New Hampshire and since we decided I could run the refrigerator on LP that there was no need in him returning early. Christina, the park ranger, asked me to walk with her on the night rounds. Boy is it dark outside. You can really see the stars if you can find a clear area. The trees here are very tall and form a canopy (over 40 feet above us).

Katie and I had a good time while Allan was gone. I did my daily walking with some extra exploring of trails and campsites. Katie was a good girl. I had work to do outside and she begged to come outside too. She was content to stay on the picnic table taking in the sounds and smells of nature. She has also taken up residence in the bedroom window since I have been leaving it open more. I think it gets more sun.

We were glad to have Allan home. He worked two days on an RV US Maps volunteer project. The pastor was really grateful that Allan came when he did. Prior to that only one man had been working full time on the job. They were beefing up all the rafters for the church that the architect had specified since the new addition had been added. This far north they get so much snow that it can pile up on the roofs and can collapse if they don't have proper support. They were able to finish the rafters. They also finished assembling several temporary showers for the group of 25 men from Georgia that are coming in next week doing the wiring, insulation and the sheet rock on the ceiling of this portion of the church. Allan will not be going back next week since the large group will be working there, but he plans to return the following Thursday and Friday.

Friday night we drove to Rutland to a street function where they closed off a street and had local vendors and a band. We did not stay long as it started raining AGAIN.
Christina had planned to go with us but she got a call about an injured red hawk and agreed to transport it to VINS, a raptor sanctuary.

Saturday was a designated R&R day. Allan was very sore from his two days work of climbing scaffolds and through the rafters. We did our evening walk through the campground, talked with campers and Allan fixed a toilet handle. Christina came by to request the use of our portable generator as the electricity was out at the office. They discovered that a woodpecker had apparently shorted out the transformer so the electric company had to be called. We are sorry to report the woodpecker did not survive.

Today we attended church in Rutland. Good service with lots of praise reports of healing. After the service we talked with several friendly people. We have signed up to help on some projects at the church. We had lunch at McDonalds and did some grocery shopping.

We hiked a new trail in the park. The trails are not flat, but I did pretty good with Allan's help. As usual I had more trouble with the steeper down hill trails. When we returned to the RV, Allan was able to reset the breaker.

Update: Allan is at mouse #7 caught in the basement.