Our visit with Ike

What was left of Ike blew through here overnight.

We awoke to gusting west winds and a yard full of tree branches of varying sizes. There was a large limb on the patio - fortunately it missed the grill and outdoor fireplace - but coupled with the still somewhat scary wind, it kept Pete the Timid Aussie on the porch.

I finally walked him out into the yard so he could do his business. I think he was grateful.

It was gusting to about 50 mph up around the treetops and I watched one of the taller trees in the woods west of our house snap. I heard a loud crack, then moments later saw the top 20 feet or so of the tree fall and then dangle by a few splinters.

So I guess I'm finally going to have to fire up the chainsaw I bought last winter and carve the fallen limbs into logs for our outdoor fireplace. The largest deadfall I can see from the house came down exactly where I've been seeing the 6-foot Blue Racer. I expect to see him when I go out to saw the branch into firewood.

It's amazing to consider that the wind energy that made a mess of our yard was born near the Azores and trashed Haiti and Cuba, Galveston and Houston before visiting us.

It's making people miserable in Missouri and Illinois now and will doubtless dampen the spirits of our friends at the MotoGP motorcycle races in Indianapolis today.