Gully Washer Days

Every few years we get a series of these "gully washer days" filled with bands of rain. It is a letdown for those of us who love to partake in outdoor activities so we chant about the rain going away. Flooding concerns do not make things any better as we witness homes deluged with water, bridges washing out and the possibility of trees falling thus injuring innocent bystanders. Worse yet, there are the possibilities of dealing with sinkholes. Between the bands of rain, we survey the damage and only hope that more nasty weather isn't on the way.

Despite the rains' doldrums, there are obvious benefits to the weather patterns including cooler temperatures as well as adding to the area's water supplies. It's shame that we cannot do better to conserve the water we are currently receiving. These "gully washer days" are rare and it would be advantageous to do our best to preserve this precious resource in times of drought.

It's certainly nice to have flowers blooming and greener grass, but that grass itself and weeds grow too fast after so much rainfall. With more rain there are fewer birds outside on our feeders chirping away while the lizards and snakes become a bit more daring. Between rains, more rabbits like to come out and play among the chipmunks, squirrels and deer. All of them are out for what our yards provide them.

Driving on slick surfaces has always been a challenge for metro area drivers. The roads are already slick with oil residue and poor drainage thus causing some nasty traffic mishaps. Metro Atlanta Drivers are already distracted so multiple rain events are the last thing that this city needs.

The gully washer days dampened the metro area during the July 4th holiday - leading to cancellations of many patriotic celebrations. Indeed those events have been moved to the following weekend, but there's a strange feeling about celebrating Independence Day on July 6.

Oh well, there's always next year.