It's beginning to look and feel more like Autumn in the mountains. We love to drive to the nearby Blue Ridge Parkway (BRP) where the color first appears around here.
I took this photograph for the clouds, not the color
Spots of color give a hint of the beauty to come
The wildflowers and shrubs add to the color
And the clouds again. Almost like a huge contrail
Just mention the words, "possible flurries" during the winter in the south and people run to the grocery store. In no time at all the bread and milk are sold out.
Likewise, mention the words, "some gasoline shortages" and everyone drives to top off their tanks. Immediately. So it comes as no surprise that there is no gasoline anywhere in our county, and likely not in neighboring counties as well. And by the time of this writing there may be none anywhere in North Carolina. The Colonial Pipeline carries most of the gasoline delivered to the East Coast has a leak and spill in Alabama. So warnings were issued that gasoline supplies might be reduced. That statement created a self-fulfilling prophecy and the gasoline stations sold out completely by Sunday morning.
Photograph from a mountain newspaper
Our governor (and other governors in the Southeast) has declared a state of emergency as the delivery interruptions might create huge problems for the school system and emergency services.
A diversion around the leak is in process and hopefully the gas deliveries will return to normal soon. Meanwhile, there will be no casual driving on the BRP to see the colors unfolding.
13 comments:
Beautiful color! And crazy about the gas shortage - what about people who actually NEED to get somewhere...
The the muted shades of fall color! Yes, I heard about the gasoline shortage in NC!!! Oh dear, hope you fare well, there...(both of my children are there right now, also!) :-/
Correction:
LOVE the muted shades of fall color!
I love this time of year for the added colour it brings.
Sorry to hear about your gasoline shortage - hope things get sorted soon.
All the best Jan
Didn't know it had gotten that bad. I just thought it was very expensive. Hopefully they get the leak fixed and gas pumping again. I hope emergency vehicles have their own supply. If it goes on too long I'd get a locking gas cap. I remember when that became a necessity in the 70's.
I'd filled up Wednesday night before I even new about the problem. When I went in to Asheville yesterday, I saw some people getting gas here in Madison County. I expect we'll survive this.
I'm seeing in the news about the shortage, and wonder if it'll come up into Virginia. Our gas did go up ten-cents overnight, and I'm hoping we'll be okay. Just in case, I filled up.
It's feeling like fall here too. Some of the smaller trees are already turning.
I love your clouds, hanging over the land below you. I also can see hints of your autumn colors. Sorry about the gasoline. I'm now in a canine epilepsy group online, and one person was very worried about her dog who was having lots of seizures but they had no gas to go to the vet. That made it seem very real. I assume that 1st responders get dibs on some gas so that they can help people who have emergencies.
Beautiful images. My cousins are up there visiting right now. Hope they don't have any problems. When you're on vacation, it's hard not to drive!
Beautiful images.....love the clouds. I look forward to seeing your posts when the trees are in their full autumn gowns.
Oh dear, it is the same here.....with groceries and fuel :(
A gas shortage, even if short lived (I hope) does take a bit of the bite out of the politics that I'm so tired of reading about. It's more immediate, affecting people's lives right now when deciding whether to go somewhere or not. That's what the politics will not change. Our immediate lives will just continue to have these kinds of things, no matter who is elected president. There may be some global changes, which eventually will make us make another decision...but in our everyday lives, who sits in the White House doesn't really matter as much as the political folks want us to think.
Love seeing those clouds there and that early fall color. Looks like it's going to be even more beautiful very soon. Hope things have worked out with the gas issue there.
Thanks for your comments, everyone.
Bug - Yes, if only the people who don't really need another two dollars worth would just wait...
Louvre girl - Me too. I just love the differences week to week.
Jan - The problem is made so much worse by "panic" buying. But folks just won't listen.
Patti - Oh, I remember that as well.
Vicki - Yes, we always do, don't we? We figure as long as we can get to the animal hospital if necessary we'll be fine. Otherwise, we just sit it out.
Kim - Not sure how far the shortage worked its way up.
Ms. A - True that. Regardless, it shouldn't be a problem for long.
Cheryl - The color is coming.
KB - Yes, our biggest fear is that we couldn't get Lucy to the hospital if necessary. Otherwise we just left the cars in the garage.
Barbara - I really wish I could feel that way, but I'm afraid it will matter more than ever this time.
Robin - When I see interesting clouds I always think of you.
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