When a Tree Falls

Every morning, Monday through Friday, my Big Ben Sunbeam alarm clock begins to blink at 4:15 am. As I race to turn my fan off before the oscillation hits me, I listen for the wind. And the rain. This week has been incredibly and insanely windy. 60 mph gusts shake the house and threaten to flip my car when I drive past the cows at the dairy farm. Luckily I have the five miles to the Astoria pool memorized and I rarely pass anyone else on the road. Today was no exception. It was not quite as windy as it had been so I knew I was going to be able to run later; just had to get through the test I had in pathophysiology/pharmacology. After my dutiful hour of studying on the elliptical at the pool, I retraced my steps home. I was cruising down Williamsport (the one mile hill that winds through tall trees, thick bushes, and the WOW (Western Oregon Waste) site. I hadn't even made it halfway down when I saw flashing red and blue lights up ahead through the trees. Wow, I thought. They were out early (many people go 40 mph on Williamsport when it's only a 25 mph zone; lotsa tickets). As I crawled to a stop in my car, I realized the dark blue SVU that had Astoria Police in small white letters on the bumper was parked in the middle of the road. Um what? And then I saw it. An enormous fir/pine/some kind of confirous tree had fallen across the road, completely blocking it. Apparently it had just happened because there was only one police car there and the road wasn't even closed yet. I turned my car around and did a little detour back home. But that tree must have JUST fallen. What if it had fallen on me? Or I had run into it? Gulp. Yeah I was driving fast (but cautiously) the rest of the way home, watching the rest of the trees and power lines carefully.