Danger Still Lurks Above
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Hill Country Living
By Coulter Fussell
I’m writing this column on Monday morning and the temperature outside is 43 degrees. This is very much unappreciated by me as I assumed the weather had gotten all of this out of its system. Guess not. One more fling with the heater and hopefully we can say good-bye until Ole Miss wins the Egg Bowl.
I hesitate to point this out for fear of summoning the opposite into reality, but we have not had many major storms yet this spring. The few little dust-ups we have had have made one thing very clear, though – there will be a Round 2 and, likely, a Round 3 and Round 4 when it comes to post-ice storm debris cleanup. It seems that a new branch falls down every time the wind blows. Even trees that survived the storm are now often leaning precariously from the base or have weakened branches that arc and droop under the weight of even just a little rainwater on their new spring leaves.
Here is why I bring this up: My husband and I were on our daily walk on the Yalobusha Greenways Trail the other morning and right when we crossed Lafayette Street onto the wooded part of the trail we heard a very loud commotion in the trees above us. We both looked up to see a six-foot-long branch about the diameter of a pool noodle headed straight down toward us. We both quickly jumped to the side and watched in disbelief as a giant branch fell to the trail path and stuck in the ground, end first, and then rolled to the side with a heavy thud. All I could envision was my childhood fear – which is was what happens to the priest in the park from the 1976 horror movie “The Omen” starring Gregory Peck. We continued on our walk but I think we both contemplated life for a while after that.
The incident made me hyper aware of falling branches. So, y’all be careful around your yards as you get out there to do storm cleanup and spring yardwork. If the wind is blowing and you’re working under a tree, then keep an eye on the dangling branches above you. They aren’t going to hang there forever. They will eventually come down, likely sooner than later, and you don’t need to be there for it.
Other around-town morning walk observations this week are that the globe lights downtown and around Crawford Sports Complex are being repaired. I think the Water Valley Electric Commission offered their supplies, manpower and know-how to help with that. Town is looking better already and as one of the many daily park users, I appreciate this effort!
I have also enjoyed observing the Electric Department’s vintage Touch-A-Truck situation happening in the open lot beside Jack’s. They’re pulling out all their old equipment to be auctioned off at a later date and there are some real blasts from the past out there, truck-wise. It’s funny how something can look junky in storage but then kind of cool when put out on display. The power of presentation!
The flowers are blooming and Water Valley is looking pretty so y’all get out there and walk around in this lovely north Mississippi springtime!
