El Niño finally showed up this weekend!  Within 36 hours, mother nature blessed us with 10 inches of rain, and 40 mph winds.  Along with the life saving and drought quenching rains - which came in torrents - came the very predictable landslides, downed trees and powerlines.  Road closures and miniature rivers of whitewater rushing down our roads.  The sounds of chainsaws echoing throught the hills.  Generators humming.  Ahhhh, these are the sounds of my mountains.  This used to be a normal winter here.  Glad to see we haven't gotten soft in our drought induced dottage.

And!  Neighbors and community coming together, checking on each other, opening roads, and getting together to enjoy our seclusion in the storm aftermath.  THIS is the mountains I grew up in.