It All Started in the wee hours of May 28th when 80 MPH winds was tossing everything against the side of my house.

 Those winds were substained for well over 40 minutes. The results were trees everywhere down or large branches broken off. One of my bus routes to a train station passes a large cemetery. I noted piles of sawdust near 4-5 feet high where the crews were already removing the damage from the graves. That scene would be seen throughout the Metroplex, especially east of the I-35E corridor and southeast Dallas County.

Then, the dreaded thing happened: no power. Estimated repair time about 4 days. With no AC or lights, there was only one thing and that was to find a room in an extended  stay for the duration. With procedures booked at my hospital, It was just a short ride to the outpatient check in. Procedures cancelled by the anesthesiologist for a development  that he was not comfortable with, he did not want me to die on the table on his watch. It took me three weeks to get those appointments. Long story shorter----I ended up in the ER and being admitted for 4 days with all kinds of new appointments scheduled to August and still have not been rescheduled for the initial appointment and procedures. It is this type of thing that causes me to think that the entire medical system needs to be revamped quickly. Luckily, I am a very patient man. 

In a concluding thought here, I must say, I don't see much shutter

clicking for the rest of the summer. I am very weak and my photography mobility would not withstand were I am on that scale today.

What a Storm We Had as it continues with short waves slowly pushing the system out of here.

 Well, I remember being awakened by the roar of wind and things crashing all around and went back to sleep. Later I found out that the winds were 80 MPH for better part of three-quarters of an hour with pounding rain and hail the size of baseballs. 

Having said that, there is more. I spent two days in  an extended stay hotel because I had no air conditioning or lights, going from there to the hospital two blocks away where I had two outpatient surgeries scheduled. Going through all the prep, right down to the time the anesthesiologist man can in to see me before being taken to the surgery unit. Much to my surprise and my doctors, the anesthesiologist did not feel comfortable with putting me under and cancelled the surgeries. He wanted a sonogram first. It was a scramble to get one booked for the day after in the late afternoon. As usual, it would be a Friday and the results would not be available until Monday. Never-the-less that task was made complete and it is only the awaiting call from the Doctor before the surgeries will be rescheduled with urgency. 

Then, when I got home, the lights had been restored. The kicker there was that my internet was still down. I spent the next two days on the phone with ATT and got no answer when it would be back up, although ATT and sent out hourly text that they were working hard. Then came the text that they had fixed the problem but they found a connection problem that I could resolve. The problem with that is that I would need to have internet service. Saturday later afternoon, I got up from a long and well deserved nap. When I sat down at the desk and looked up at the modem/router the unit was showing all green lights again. With some baited breath, I turned on the computer and started the process of going on line as usual. Bingo!

Now---Even with rain every morning, or afternoon, or evening and overnight time frames, I would not be able to go out and shoot what I had on my schedule to shoot, although the weather in temps and dew points were perfect, the rain has been coming down in 4-6-inch totals each time. The conservation of the lakes levels  have risen by some 16 feet of new water. The ground is totally saturated like a sponge.  

No photos have been published for nearly a month, now. My brother and I were talking about change this past week. I said to him that, "Change shadows common place routines every where we go or what we do." It does seem, without fail, that change is going to happen whether we like it or not. I have always embraced change but as I get older than old, it is beginning to wear a bit thin lately. Especially in the area of electronics where I see so much over-kill taking place in the name of security. I just got my third letter that a breach had been made on another of my medical accounts. two of the three have been with sub-contractors of my health care provider. The third was go ole Ma Bell herself.