A storm ripped through Bowie. To this day I’m not sure I fully understand how one huge tree can be pulled out of the ground, while another tree, smaller, but just as tall and only 30 feet away remains apparently untouched.

That’s a mystery to me.

Some houses got away clean and clear, without any damage at all. Others suffered from sizeable limbs coming down.

Or in this case, the entire top of a tree came right off. Lucky, it just barely missed the house.

Others, not so lucky, had gigantic trees come up altogether. This one was among the biggest and it even tore up the sidewalk.

Look at the size of those roots! That’s amazing.

Not quite as big, but I’m sure the family is still upset.

Here’s one that I didn’t get to before someone came and cleaned it up. The tree was gigantic. Not only did they lose a huge, very old tree, two of their cars also underwent some serious damages.

This whole situation also happens to be one of the few times I don’t find the presence of these guys totally annoying.

My parent’s were not without their own damages. A sizeable branch was taken off of a very tall tree in their back yard, carried over the house, finally resting just a few meaningful feet away from their car. Cuts and bruises, though. Not too bad.

The real detriment, however, is the loss of an offset umbrella that provided shade in the back yard and made it a viable place to enjoy a good conversation or meal during the summer. Whether my parents will decide to replace or repair it (as if that were really a realistic option), has yet to be seen.

RIP offset umbrella, you will be missed.