Happy Sunday!
Here’s a weekend waterview from Lake Norman. . .
It’s been a week of hot, steamy and stormy weather with
two EF1 tornados touching down just north of us, as they made their way
through neighboring counties.
Fortunately there were no injuries or fatalities from the storms, but there were
downed trees and power outages for thousands in our area.
Our weather apps on our phones were going crazy with alerts
on both Sunday and Monday.
The sky also told us to brace ourselves. . .
*Crack!*
Our Silver Maple tree took a hit from a lightning strike two summers ago. . .
It’s been struggling and has significant die back
on a main trunk where it was hit . . .
*sniff*
It’s going to take some heavy equipment
to remove the broken section from the water.
We have a tree company coming to take a look at it.
We hate to lose such a mature tree and prominent fixture in landscape.
It also provides our only shade by the water.
Duke Energy has very specific rules and regulations regarding trees
within 50 feet of the shoreline of the lake.
I created a graphic of North Carolina’s 12 Seasons for fun. . . .
Raise your hand if you’re currently experiencing ‘Hell’s Front Porch’
season like we are! 🥵
Winter – 30 days
Fool’s Spring – 15 days
Second Winter -15 days
Spring of Deception -15 days
Third Winter – 15 days
The Pollening – 40 days
Spring – 30 days
Summer – 90 days
Hell’s Front Porch – 60 days <- we are here
False Fall – 20 days
Second Summer – 25 days
Actual Fall – 10 days . . .my favorite and incidentally, briefest season!
“Our” Great Blue Heron is a year-round resident . . .
He can usually be found on our dock or our neighbor’s
while he patiently waits for fish to swim by.
I’m always amazed at how long he can balance on one foot. . .
And I get a kick out of watching him contort himself as he preens. . .
In case you missed it, you can join me at a lakeside table
with sunflowers and find additional sunny floral inspiration from
my Monday Morning Blooms’ friends, HERE.
I’ll leave you with a sunset photo. . .
Hope you’re finding a way to beat the heat and stay cool!
Happy Sunday ♥
Thank you for your visit!
Your photos of the storm clouds and the magnificent sunsets definitely tell the summer story. I’m glad you were not in the direct path of the tornadoes. So many people have suffered from direct hits this summer. We have herons and egrets by our lake and they are mesmerizing to watch. I would love to have their “balance ability.”
You do have an interesting lineup of seasons, Mary. We have only visited one part of your state-Emerald Isle-and experienced the real summer. It was a fabulous change from our cool Seattle summers.
Do hope you are able to save your Silver Maple. Losing old trees is almost as hard-sometime harder- than losing old friends!
Love your photos and learning about your area. Have used many of your recipes and craft ideas over the years. How many years has it been?
Kitty
The pictures are so beautiful….I absolutely loved the storm picture and your heron friend! I have lived in SC and now VA (northerner by birth) but these last 20 years have gotten me to love the weather in the South ( the hot days beat negative temps any day in my book!) Your table picture by the lake is so enticing! Peace.
Here, too…*sigh*…early morning about the only time to…”sit in my swing.” We have been SO fortunate, at this point, storm clouds divide leaving us in that small window.🤞 franki
Your weather chart supersedes anything you learn from the local meteorologists! Do consider sharing it with your local news station/weather forecasters as it will provide some levity for your community.
The most important question
We know you love fall! (My favorite season as well) But your calendar lists this favorite season lasting only 10 days? Based on your creative (and accurate!) calendar, what date on the Julian calendar will fall begin for you?
So sorry about your tree Mary, I hope you don’t loose it! Yes, we are experiencing “Hell’s Front Porch” too, we have been under an excessive heat warning all week and have had violent thunderstorms popping up. I think your weather calendar with 12 seasons is quite accurate! Your water views are beautiful, keep cool and safe this week!
Mary, it is always sad to lose a tree. The hubby had to remove one of our snowball viburnums this past week 😢 We have had the same kind of weather, strong storms, high winds, heat indexes off the chart! Love your water views!
Mary, I am so sorry you’re losing your lakeside tree. It’s truly beautiful. The storms have been so rough on all the trees this year. We’ve lost 3 very mature oak trees in the past year or so due to ice and wind so we feel your pain. Dealing with tree cutting and removal companies gets expensive! Hopefully, you can create another spot with shade. Your lakeside table view is gorgeous! Love the sunset! Enjoy your Sunday. Clara❤️
Oh, gosh, your silver maple removal will definitely change your landscape near the water. The sheer removal will also be tricky, depending on the tree company’s access to the area.The summer before our sale of our home on the river, we ended up with 7 (!) maples impacted along our riverbank from strong storms – like dominoes, they fell into each other. Being over an embankment meant they had to winch the cut logs up the bank. I hope your project leaves you even more inspired with garden ideas, rather than frustrated like I was.
So glad no more damage resulted from the storms. Fall is my favorite season, also. Love the blue heron photos.
stay safe and peace be with you
Beautiful pictures topped off by an amazing sunset view. So sorry you lost a mature tree, but glad you didn’t suffer any further damage.
Oh my, this brings back such memories – I grew up spending summers on Lake Norman. My grandfather bought one of the original lots WAY back in the day, when there were there were only a handful of houses on the lake. My siblings and cousins and I used to sit on the long 2nd floor gallery of the house and watch storms move across the lake. Most days that was okay but sometimes Mother or an aunt would come and herd us back into the house because the storm was getting too dangerous for us to be outside.
I so hope the tree service can save your tree – maybe they can do some judicious pruning and some crown reduction? I know from experience those can really help and give the tree more years of life. But, of course, it depends on the tree. Good luck!
Oh dear, Mary! I am so sorry about your bad storms and for losing that big tree branch. It is always so heart-breaking.
We have had miserably hot and ridiculously humid muggy “rain forest” weather – yesterday was the WORST. Then a fast storm blew in and gave us a good soak and took all that awful heat away. This morning was gorgeous- actually perfect. So I took a painting mirror project outdoors and enjoyed it for a bit.
My niece is up at the lake where I grew up and watched the meteor showers last night. Her friend with her had never seen a falling star before…….so that was a double thrill to see so many!
Hope your heat passes soon. I am not ready for fall but I am certainly ready for a reprieve to last a while.
Mary, the damage by lightning is so intense. We have a cabin at 7500 ft elevation and we get scary lightning strikes all the time. So glad the tornados stayed away and those moody skies speak for themselves. Love all the photos of the water and sunset!
Mary, I’m so sorry about your stormy weather and the loss of your tree. We have been experiencing storms tonight. On Father’s Day our area had 90 mph winds that wiped out a lot of trees. The city of Tulsa is still cleaning up from that storm. Your lake views are gorgeous! I so enjoyed your Monday Morning Blooms post this week with your beautiful table set in front of your pretty lake. Wishing you a blessed week ahead!
I’m so sorry about your silver maple tree, Mary. The removal will definitely change your landscape, but hopefully you’ll find something to beautify the area there. Thank you for the sunset view and also of your resident blue heron. May you have a wonderful week ahead. 😘
Oh, I’m weeping too! The loss of a tree, especially a large mature one, really hurts.
I’d say we are well past the 60 Days at Hell’s Front Porch. Our triple digits continue day after day since late May.
The news tonight forecasts a slight drop on Wednesday morning, but climbing back up quickly.
You are so lucky to live on the water despite your fearful weather you live magically year round!
So glad you didn’t lose power, stayed safe, but so very sorry about your tree. Gosh, thats upsetting. Our love of trees is mutual, enjoying our shade trees especially when so beautiful. I have lots of large braches, medium size and tons of twigs to burn this fall. Strong winds this spring and summer with every other day ( Or so it seemed) of rain. The upside is, I haven’t had to drag the hose around and my grass is luscious green. Beutiful pictures Mary, love the sunset! Totoally awesome!