Author: Kay

First there were the clouds

A brief, beautiful sunset Thursday evening. Gorgeous colors. Beautiful clouds. Really beautiful!

After a short downpour, by 11 p.m. the thunder and lightning started. We don’t get much of that around here and it’s usually brief. But we got plenty. What’s notable is that it kept going. I woke up to spectacular lightning and plenty of thunder early yesterday morning and it rumbled and flashed all day, mixed with the occasional cloudburst. And we were still seeing lightning 24 hours later.

And the weather forecast? Coastal fog and sunshine.

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Sunset

Sunset has been lost in overcast and fog lately. So it was nice to see the unhidden sun celebrating another day recently. The newspaper reported yesterday that our sunsets have been unusually colorful because of smoke from wildfires in. . .Siberia. Prevailing winds are coming from the west and the smoke is high in the atmosphere, giving our skies extra color in the mornings and evenings.

Remembering Elsie

My mother-in-law Elsie died yesterday. It wasn’t a shock. Mini-strokes and life had taken a long, slow toll. And yet, you’re never really prepared. There’s always a sudden, painful hole. It seems your heart can never plan for loss. At least mine has never been able to.

I don’t want her to just slip away, another flame of that Great Generation suddenly a wisp of smoke. And so a modest post, a picture of her on a particularly happy day – my wedding, when we were all much younger and the future was bright. She embraced me with an open heart, a warm welcome, and kindness that never faded.

I’d like to think there’s a bright new star shining out in the cosmos, or a new angel kicking up her heels and trying out a fresh pair of wings.

Wind turbine

The North Olympic Peninsula has its first wind energy turbine. It went up in late May at the Sequim Valley Ranch.

The turbine is expected to power the ranch maintenance facilities and is capable of generating up to 13,500 kilowatt hours of power each year. This is the amount used by an average of one and a half homes. The ranch will get a rebate from the local utility district for every kilowatt generated.

The turbine is 100 feet tall and has a rotor blade about 20 feet long. It can handle winds up to 72 mph. but will shut down at 60 mph. if winds become unusually strong.