From talking with fellow Lincoln County residents, I know I was not the only one relieved when we got past the anniversary of the windstorm without a repeat. So naturally, Saturday night brought a big windstorm, not on the order of last year's, but it made a run at it and had a respectable showing.

Power crews and all our first responders were out dealing with limbs and lines. I had to turn around on West Alna Road due to a tree blocking both lanes.

The wind had just picked up greatly, during a sunset glinting through a foreboding sky eerily similar to the post-windstorm sky last year.

When I came across that tree and other tree parts elsewhere, I thought how lucky I was it was still light out. It's a good reminder to try to avoid travel after dark when the weather is precarious. Lights help, but a blustery, maybe rainy or snowy night, lowers visibility.

When the forecast is foul, get errands out of the way well ahead. Nix fun plans if getting there or getting home might be a risky ride. No one likes to miss out, but it's more important to not end the evening in the emergency room or the cab of a tow truck.

Also bear in mind, if you need rescuing from a tangle of lines, a flash flood, or from under a tree, your choice to travel has also put your rescuers wherever you wound up.

They have the training, equipment and gear to keep you, one another and other motorists safe as they work. But the best emergency is the one prevented.

People shouldn't go out onto the rocks to watch when a storm is coming in or blowing by, no matter how impressive nature looks. And so should we who choose to live in a tree-dense region stay off the roads as much as possible when those trees might be coming down and taking lines with them; even more so after dark, no matter how much care you take, the elements have the element of surprise.