The wider impact

Took a walk outside my cluster yesterday morning. Quite a bit of damage in the greater ‘hood, beyond my cluster.

The golf course cleaned up the one tree that was on the third hole fairway, but there’s still a lot of major damage in the rough.

W&OD Trail was okay, because Dominion Power razed the sides last year. But Old Reston Avenue looked like a cyclone had passed through.

(Note the smashed wall.)

The Bowman Distillery apparently escaped damage, but both in front and behind both tall and short trees were down or de-limbed.

The AAFMAA property (soon to be a squillion townhouses) got hit:

Temporary Road park had minor issues:

But the basketball court is out of action for a while:

Really, just don't mess with Mother Nature..

  

©2026 Bas Bleu

 

Sturm und drang

We had a little storm front come through Sunday evening:

Very grateful that the only damage to my back yard was a whole lotta leaves on the ground yesterday morning.

Others in the cluster, however, were not so lucky:

(This is what's on the other side of the video just above.)

And this guy—who’s been here since before these townhouses were built around him in 1970, and who’s kind of a stickler for slapping PRIVATE PROPERTY signs all around the perimeter—took a couple of direct hits.

(Fire department came out; no one injured, fortunately.)

Folks: ya doesn’t want to mess with Mother Nature. Her bitch slap is a corker.

 

©2026 Bas Bleu

 

Gratitude Monday: Surviving the dome

My gratitude for two days after our nation’s 250^th anniversary is meteorological: the stinkin’ hot weather has finally broken, and it’s only seasonally ghastly. Thursday, Friday and Saturday brought triple-digit highs, along with humidity levels kicking the heat index up to the teens.

Then a storm system came through Saturday evening. Messed up the cult activities on the National Mall, but it also knocked the corners off the heat, so ill wind and all that.

Moreover—grateful for air conditioning in home and car, and for ceiling fans. I had to drive out at midday on both Friday and Saturday for appointments. Even with my 25-year-old Saab’s AC working at max all the way, it didn’t do more than take a bite out of the heat. Still—I cannot imagine the experience without it.

Willis Carrier—you da man!

 

©2026 Bas Bleu

 

Cool it

The extended environs of the District They Call Columbia are under a heat dome, which is expect to last at least through Friday. That means that our normal stinkin’ hot and disgustingly humid days and nights are about to go on steroids. (It was 85°F at 2130 last night; we never get any respite from Summer here.)

God bless the marvel that is air conditioning in buildings and cars; ditto, ceiling fans. For those who have neither, seek out public cooling places.

(Ignore the date; some time ago all the electrics were disconnected during some service and I've not bothered to hunt out the owner's manual to reset. Shot yesterday at 1514.)

Like my local library:

And hydrate.

 

©2026 Bas Bleu

 

Marching along

They say March comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb. I have to say that this time around I’m looking forward to the lamb. Or at least sticking to something—it’s been quite the yo-yo.

Viz: last week.

Monday and Tuesday was in the 70s; Wednesday we hit above 80°F in The People’s Republic. A couple of my neighbors had their AC on; I opened my patio door and was grateful for ceiling fans in all the rooms I used.

Thursday started out with rain, which then morphed into this:

Fortunately, it did not stick.

Monday of this week we were forecast a squall line that was said to include the prospect of tornadoes. Mercifully, we dodged them, but had a few bouts of exceptionally heavy rain.

Temperature was 63°F when I went on my morning walk, so I was not at all surprised when yesterday it was 30°F. But not without it's charms.

There may be a hurricane today, followed by a blizzard and a downpour of frogs and locusts. I mean—March, man.

 

©2026 Bas Bleu

 

Weather whiplash

 March is such a schizophrenic, ADHD month. I mean—the saying is that it comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb, and it’s known for its windiness. But this year it just seems unable to make up its mind.

Technically, I suppose we’re in the “lion” phase, and we certainly started out with snow flurries and snowcrete on the ground from February that wouldn’t melt because we were still facing sub-freezing temperatures. But, starting Sunday, we here in the environs of The District They Call Columbia have had daytime temps in the 70s; yesterday Google told me it hit 83F. Aaand…on Tuesday they expect the highs in the 30s.

Meanwhile, I’m reverting to my summertime diet of dinner salads—Greek, Niçoise, primavera, etc.

 

©2026 Bas Bleu

 

Icing

Okay—a couple more shots from Monday’s snow. I just like the way it collected on the leaves..

 

 

©2026 Bas Bleu

 

Sugar dusting

We got a dusting of snow from the latest passing storm on Monday night. Not enough to stick to the pavement, but enough to create beautiful sights.

And we need beautiful sights in the first week of the latest war started by the guy who's still tossing his toys out the pram for not being awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

©2026 Bas Bleu

 

Aux barricades!

Okay—one final blizzard-related photo. Seems that the small miscreants in my neighborhood began a snow fort on the pathways in the center common.

(I’d watched my very small neighbors—probably 2 and 3 years old—with their sand pails and shovels on Tuesday; I hadn’t realized the possibilities that the pails presented for defensive works.)

Bravo, mes amis! Bravo!

 

©2026 Bas Bleu

 

Tempus fugit

Okay—one more blizzard-related photo, this slightly bedraggled snowman:

He probably has maybe another 18 hours to live.

 

 

©2026 Bas Bleu

 

Aftermath

We here in the District They Call Columbia had just got to the point where you could see more ground than snowcrete by the end of last week. Then, on Sunday we got another dump of snow.

Fortunately, where I am it’s maybe an inch or two, and it’s going to melt pretty quickly, if the Lord blesses us with above-freezing temperatures.

Meanwhile—it has its pretty points.

 

©2026 Bas Bleu