We can’t stand too much more excitement in Salado. Last week it was the President who paid a surprise visit and today we had a surprise visit by a tornado. The Village was fortunate in that there were no injuries but many beautiful trees were uprooted or had huge limbs split from the trunks. Just two houses down from us, trees were stripped and uprooted. Downed trees blocked many of the streets and several cars were crushed.

I was especially fortunate because we lost only a few limbs, but the yard looked like it had snowed leaves. We were without power for several hours and the worse thing to happen was that I had to evacuate the porch.

After the high winds and rain I can sure appreciate the plight of the farmers and how they are affected by the weather. My tomato plants suffered some minor damage. I secured them again to the stakes and only hope that not much permanent damage was done. The crop will be affected somewhat by the storm and each tomatoes will probably end up costing me at least $200 to produce, rather than the $100 I had predicted. I now know how the wheat farmers must feel.

It’s sure great that Jenna Bush had her wedding last weekend. The places in Salado where the pre-wedding festivities took place now have the trees reduced to rubble. Poor George Bush leaves a path of destruction wherever he goes. Iraq, New Orleans, the economy and now Salado are all victims from the mere presence of George W. Bush.

As I settled back into my routine on the porch I reflected on how very similar the tornado and the economy are. Both are leaving a path of destruction. The war is not even in the news anymore. Our weatherman is predicting another round of bad weather tonight just as the economist continues to forecast doom and gloom. Even the porch is not a safe place from the bad weather or the terrible economy. There is no place for me to go and no one to vote for.