Yikes!

There was much ado about the hurricane coming this weekend. Original forecasts suggested we'd be seeing up to 60-70 mph winds, but alas, it likely wasn't above 40 mph. I had a bunch of small seashells near the lip of my porch, and not a single one moved, thanks to me being shielded from wind by the other buildings. And heck, I even saw the sun set today, not to mention that the stars were amazing to see after our power went out and there were no lights outside.

Seems not all was great, as we received a lot of rain early in the day. While I avoided the flooding, my county didn't: Flooding wreaks havoc in Franklin Cty. Saw some gnarly video on Facebook of a local covered bridge getting washed out. The highway and several routes are closed from flooding. I would hate to have to drive to Greenfield right now.

Even worse it seems is Brattleboro, VT. It's one of my favorite cities in New England, very scenic, cute atmosphere, with one of my favorite cheese shops up the street (om nom nom Grafton Village Cheese). I haven't been there since (I think?) earlier this year, and it makes me sad to see the flooding in downtown: Flooding conditions 'awful' in Vermont due to Irene's rains. I hope all of that subsides soon.

On a side note, I'm now really craving maple-smoked cheddar from Grafton Village. Reminds me of a time I decided to drive to their original store in Grafton, VT in the middle of winter. One hell of a drive that was. It's an absolutely beautiful location in winter- snowy hills, cross-country skiers making their way through a covered bridge over a partially-frozen brook, all the stuff that makes the quiet of winter even more special.



And now, a parting shot I just found on my old hard drive.

View of Pioneer Valley from Mt. Sugarloaf, just up the street from me. I live off to the left of the shot. I'm glad that river doesn't flood in this area.