As the winds intensified, a California desert town 60 miles northeast of Los Angeles was held hostage by its zombie foliage.

An invasive species of ground plant, Russian thistle, gets its common name from its unique seed dissemination technique. As the plant dries out and the winds blow it away, Russian thistle is known more commonly as tumbleweed. And in mid-April, the city of Victorville was overrun with them.

Victorville officials trace the massive influx of tumbleweeds in their town to unusually high winds, measured around 60 miles per hour. In some cases, the tumbleweeds were so large and numerous that they accumulated in front of yards and doorways, blocking entrances and prompting a series of calls for service. In a statement to the Victorville Daily Press, city representative Sue Jones estimated that the weeds effected up to 150 homes.

One Victorville resident told the local news station, "Normally you get a few flying down the street or whatnot, but never this many that will stack up even this much, and this is mild compared to what it was actually in the backyard and in the front of the house. So, no, it's never been this bad."

Potential Preaching Angles: 1) Small sins that seem easy to control can easily overwhelm us; 2) Like tumbleweeds some people are easily carried away by the slightest wind of change.