Yesterday, we spent part of the morning going through and making extensive lists of exactly what we think we'll need to build our little shaded patio and a small pump house (it's really about time, I think!). We'll probably have the riding mower delivered, and Donald figured we might as well save gas, time, and wear on a borrowed truck by having them deliver the other big, heavy stuff, too. (If we understand correctly, adding more items to the list shouldn't change the flat rate delivery fee. We'll see. . .)
So, after making our list, we went to scope out the two major competitors in our area-- mainly to see what they have in the way of mowers-- so that we can make the final decision of what to buy and where. It went well enough, but we were held hostage for quite some time by torrential rain and lightning.
Fortunately, we were in a store when the storm hit, so we didn't have to sit in the car, but by that time, we were just getting ready to leave for the last stop of the day. I wasn't about to walk through that, though. We'd have been soaked instantly, not to mention potentially struck by lightning. So we (along with most of the people in the store) just milled around for a while, looking at things we had no plans of buying. (They have so many nice things in those home improvement stores! Can you imagine winning a shopping spree? I wouldn't know where to start. . .) Finally, we took a rest on one of the covered swings set up for display. (A couple other groups of people had the same idea. I'm sure those displays had never had so many people testing them at one time.)
That was probably the worst storm I've seen so far this year. And when we finally decided that it had slackened off enough that we dared risk going out, it was still raining, with lightning not far off. According to the local news, an air show at a local beach was postponed because of (separate) thunderstorms, and some people who had assembled to watch the show were struck by lightning.
Oh, the joys of summer in the South!
It definitely beats being so dry that we have out-of-control fires, but I could still do without some of the lightning.
On a happier note, Donald has Monday off, so this will be a nice, long weekend for us. :o)
I hope you're all enjoying a restful Sunday!
