Arrrgh!!!

Tuesday, a strong storm cell came through the Chicago area. Most of the really heavy rain was dumped on the towns near the northern border with Wisconsin, but we had our share of the high winds.

Unfortunately, one of our old trees succumbed, either to a lightning strike or to the high winds. When Dear Husband made his mail walk down the driveway at 5:15 in the morning, it was apparent that the tree had fallen and was snagged on a mulberry tree at the bend in the driveway. He trimmed enough branches to allow his truck to pass. He came home early to do battle with the tree.

He cut the smaller branches first and pulled them to the side of the drive. Then he started on the the trunk. He said that the tree was winning the contest because the chains on the chain saw were all dull.

We have been collecting branches from across the grounds the past year, and stacking them to the east side of the driveway. DH rented a chipper-shredder last month and chipped through the stack in one afternoon. He mowed the area that had been covered with branches, and it looked bald. Apparently Mother Nature wanted it covered up again with branches, so she sent a storm to help us restock.

The skyline has changed. The bend in the drive is much brighter now with a tree and a half gone. The mulberry that caught the falling tree lost branches, too. It will be interesting to see what effect the additional sunlight has on the area that's been opened up. Fewer shrubs, more grass, LESS POISON IVY are just a few of the possibilities.