NoCo Wind – Chimes & Gnomes

Now, if you have read The Wise Ass you will know that the wind in Northern Colorado is Mother Nature’s most effective weapon. When she starts blowing –

Wait, I can’t say that here. Let me try again.

When the wind starts to pick up around here you really need to batten down the hatches.

Yesterday started out a little breezy and seemed to be coming from the North West.

It was enough to keep Claire and Honey with their asses pointing into the wind most of the afternoon.

It was steady enough to make my smaller wind chimes hanging from The Old Man sing all day long, and later on, even his base chimes were bellowing.

If you would like to hear them play, check out my FB page for some of yesterday’s videos – https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100091444194790

One of yesterday’s chores was introducing some new stone gnomes who had traveled thousands of miles and across dimensions to seek sanctuary at Casa Claire. Word is out among the magik folk that Claire is a wonderful host.

They are three brothers, whose gnome names are unpronounceable, as I have not yet mastered their native tongue, so I am going to have to give them Americanized names at some point.

Now they are called stone gnomes because whenever a non-magical type gazes upon them, they turn themselves into stone so as not to be discovered. They are most active in their natural state during darkness and can be heard scampering around the fields of Casa Claire most nights.

Gnomes are keepers of family secrets and are wonderful sentries.

Luckily my stone gnomes on Gnome Island are so damn heavy that it would take a category 5 tornado to move them, and that would only happen if they wanted to travel to Oz.

And honestly, what does Oz have over Casa Claire anyway.

It was also lucky I moved the smaller gnomes earlier yesterday to the safety of the base of Jack The Spruce, in his grotto, where they now guard by the fairy door while keeping an eye on my front door.

Well, last night the wind kicked up a real fury, causing the weather door on the western side of the house to moan all night like a banshee, long and sad enough to kill everyone listening within a square mile of Casa Claire. The tarp we had covering the back patio furniture tossed off the numerous twenty pound weights – I will have to collect them from around the yard – and danced like a chorus line of those inflatable tube men outside every used car lot. If its base wasn’t securely tied off in numerous spots to the metal deck railings we would have lost it for sure.

However, the open metal gate going to the side paddock tore free of its bungee cords and wedged itself so tightly into the bordering wood posts I needed a 2×4 to pop it loose when I went to feed the mules this morning. I’m going to have to hammer its badly twisted bolts back into shape sometime later today.

Claire and Honey had forsaken the safety of the smaller, older barn and had their asses glued to the much larger and stronger eastern wall of the Geppetto’s studio as their wind break. I actually served them their meals there.

Luckily it was only wind and not accompanied by rain or cold.

But the most astonishing thing about last night is what I found out front when I went to feed the kitties.

There was my front fence yard flag rolled safely beside Smokey’s Jeter bed.

When I went out to see who might have done me this kindness, because I have often had to go searching for my flag after similar storms, I saw no one, until, turning back towards my front door I spotted a strange gnome, hiding like Boo Radley (“To Kill A Mocking Bird”) over behind my eternally sleeping guard gnome.

Well that moment had the same feel as the following film clip.

https://www.bing.com/videos/riverview/relatedvideo?q=When+Scout+first+notices+Boo+Radley+in+the+shadows&mid=42DBC4F9117EF164FA8042DBC4F

And just like Scout, I am forever in this new gnome’s – who I now call Boo Radley – debt for saving my flag.

Well, that’s just the kind of thing that can and regularly happens around Casa Claire. Some new magical creature arrives from the ether and steps up to do us a solid.

I’ve captured a lot of that in The Claire Saga.

Speaking of which, its an ill wind that blows no good, so last night’s gusts also worked some magic on my books, who were again appeared all together in the top 100 of Amazon’s Kindle Humorous Sci-Fi category:

Well, Monday awaits, so I better get to it.

You fine, five readers have that last cuppa caffeine, get yourselves together and storm the work week. No prisoners on Mondays.

I’m going to head out and cuddle some kitties and then make my rounds.

Then see what the law has in store for me.

But no matter what else we get up to, let us make today a great one.