Rain

Droplets of rain cling to grass in the early morning hours after a thunderstorm the night before. The photo was taken in a pasture off the New Boonesboro Road.

Brooklyn Johnson, left, and Sara Sleightholm shared an umbrella to make the short trip from St. Joseph Gym to St. Agatha Academy Wednesday morning. The girls are second-grade students at St. Agatha. The rain, the first in several weeks in Winchester and Clark County, measured just a little over a half inch in most parts of the county. James Mann/jmann@winchestersun.com

The 33rd annual Daniel Boone Pioneer Festival once again brought large crowds to Winchester, with a few kinks. The festival began with the downtown street dance Friday night with performances by local singer Lauren Mink opening for Nashville-based band High Ground as planned. Saturday, the Daniel Boone 5K and the arts and crafts booths saw high participation and attendance. Sunday, however, the concerts and fireworks planned for Lykins Park were canceled because of rain. “(It's)

HARRODSBURG¿— Saturday’s scattered showers may have altered the schedule, but they did not wash away the high spirits of those in attendance at the first day of this year’s settlement raid set at Old Fort Harrod State Park. Del White, president of The Friends of Fort Harrod, a non-profit organization that raises money to help the fort, sat patiently under his dripping tent for almost two hours, waiting for the rain to wane so he could begin grilling and selling hot dogs and hamburgers.

Jennifer Sewell of College Street lent a helping hand to Mother Nature during Tuesday morning's heavy rainfall in Winchester. Sewell was watering grass seed planted under a large evergreen tree in which the branches were stopping much of the rain from watering the ground. Clark County received some much needed rainfall, receiving nearly two inches Monday and Tuesday.

The little crystal clock beside our bed said 2 a.m. I don’t know what woke me up or even whether I’d actually been to sleep at all that night, but whatever — sitting up in bed to get a better view of the clock I realized it was pouring down rain. Since our bedroom is on the second floor, the sound of the rain hitting the slate roof was close and, as so often happens to me, one sound or smell or event can spur a memory to form. In short, the tap, tapping on the roof evoked another night in another bed with another person.

Nearly two inches of rain fell Monday, but high water and flooding caused little trouble across the county. This morning, there were no roads in Clark County closed because of high water, though some creeks got high enough to cover roads in some places Monday. According to Kentucky Mesonet, 1.91 inches of rain fell Monday, following .63 inches on Sunday. Despite the constant rainfall and wet conditions, there were no injury accidents reported. Early Monday morning, a car collided with a school bus near George Rogers Clark High School.

This one is an easy one - huge thumbs up to the rain we enjoyed last weekend. After nearly a month without the rain, lawns across Jessamine County and the central-Kentucky region received a nice soaking over the course of three days. Yards across the area, including my own, are turning a bit greener, and after speaking with several members of Jessamine County's farming community, they too are breathing a bit easier as crops received a much-needed drink. I hope it won't be a case of too little, too late.

Late rains on Thursday evening that carried over into heavier showers on Friday morning forced Ponderosa Speedway track officials to cancel the May 4 racing program due to unsafe track conditions. Conditions were also treacherous off-track with the heavy rains saturating the pit and spectator parking areas. Racing returns to Ponderosa Friday, May 11, with the Chevettes and the Frontrunners in to-win money main events during a full program of racing series action. The Tri-State Vintage Racing Association which was scheduled to be in competition on May 4 will be rescheduled for another Friday later on during the 2007 racing season.

A Jessamine County man drowned Saturday evening after the horse he was riding slipped and fell into the rain-swollen Hickman Creek near Brumfield Lane in southern Jessamine County. Firefighters from the Jessamine County Fire District found the body of Danny Reynolds, 56, around 9 a.m. Sunday, approximately a half mile from where he and his horse went into the water, fire chief Mike Rupard said. Reynolds was pronounced dead by Jessamine County Coroner Michael Hughes. Reynolds was riding with several friends around 7:30 p.m. Saturday when he guided his horse into the creek, Hughes said.

Lisa Marie Teaters (Raines) together with the bride's godparents, Mark and Holly Wilson, announce the engagment of Alicia Danielle Raines and Kyle Logan Adams, both of Nicholasville. The bride-to-be is the daugther of Lisa Marie Teater (Raines) of Nicholasville and the late Danny Raines of Bryantsville. The bride is a 2003 graduate of West Jessamine High School and Lexington Community College. She is employed by Lowe's in Nicholasville. The future groom is the sone of Julie and Chris Wells, and Michael and Kathy Adams, all of Nicholasville.

Nearly two inches of rain fell Monday, but high water and flooding caused little trouble across the county. This morning, there were no roads in Clark County closed because of high water, though some creeks got high enough to cover roads in some places Monday. According to Kentucky Mesonet, 1.91 inches of rain fell Monday, following .63 inches on Sunday. Despite the constant rainfall and wet conditions, there were no injury accidents reported. Early Monday morning, a car collided with a school bus near George Rogers Clark High School.

marsee@amnews.com The moment belongs to two girls who have cemented their plans to play basketball at the next level, but they're more than happy to share it with their entire school. Kristen Asmus and Katherine Raines, who play basketball for Danville Christian Academy, are the first two athletes from their school to commit to play collegiate athletics. Asmus plans to play basketball for Centre College, Raines for Kentucky Christian University. The two girls said it's a milestone not only for themselves but for their small school, which they said is sometimes considered athletically inferior to the area's much larger public schools.

The annual Veterans Appreciation Day luncheon in Danville proved again Monday to be such a force of nature itself, even the nastiest elements could do little to keep people away. Now in its fifth year, the event hosted by the Heritage Hospice veterans committee drew a crowd of 1,342 people to the National Guard Armory. The crowd included veterans from Boyle, Garrard, Lincoln and Mercer counties and beyond. Hospice provider liaison Sharon Martin, who has headed the committee since it started, said there also were 203 first-time attendees at the event.

This one is an easy one - huge thumbs up to the rain we enjoyed last weekend. After nearly a month without the rain, lawns across Jessamine County and the central-Kentucky region received a nice soaking over the course of three days. Yards across the area, including my own, are turning a bit greener, and after speaking with several members of Jessamine County's farming community, they too are breathing a bit easier as crops received a much-needed drink. I hope it won't be a case of too little, too late.

The weather was much more comfortable on Saturday, so we had a wonderfully busy day at the farmers market. With the much needed rain this past week, everything began to grow and ripen. Tables were filled with beautiful, red local tomatoes. The flavors and colors of summer are here. Stop by our booths on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays to check out all the great things our market has to offer. We have a bigger variety of vegetables and fruits every day now. Look for these goodies in the coming week: Vegetables and fruits: blackberries; cantaloupe; corn; cucumbers; eggplant; fresh herbs; green beans - roma, tenderette and jade; shiitake mushrooms; green onions; peaches; potatoes; raspberries; summer squash - yellow, patty pan and zucchini; tomatoes; and watermelons.

Despite severe thunderstorm and flash food warnings, weekend storms didn't bring much more than welcomed relief for Clark County. Residents were mostly free of any weather-related trouble during the weekend, though some homes lost power. Clark County Emergency Management Director Gary Epperson said there were no reports of damage throughout the county and few trees or branches obstructed local roads. Clark County Road Supervisor Kevin Wilson said his office dealt with a handful of trees down but nothing out of the ordinary.

The water shortage advisory is still in effect for Clark County, but the rainfall this week has improved water levels at Winchester Municipal Utilities, a WMU official said Thursday. WMU General Manager Mike Flynn said Thursday that conditions are improving, but customers are still urged to voluntarily conserve water. “We have been steadily improving our overall distribution system pressure,” he said. “We've actually gained levels in our elevated storage tanks, and we're actually breathing a sigh of relief this evening compared to a week ago.” On July 1, Flynn issued a notice of a phase one water shortage advisory, because of the extreme heat and dry conditions in the area.

STANFORD - Heat and dry conditions have continued to persist in Lincoln County, preventing the Lincoln County Fair from featuring its traditional July 4 fireworks show tonight. Fair President Mike Poynter said until the county gets enough rain for officials to lift a county-wide fireworks ban, the fireworks show is on hold. After storms that caused torrential downpours in nearby counties rolled through the area Sunday without touching Lincoln, the county did see a miniscule amount of rain Tuesday.