Enough bragging. Life is full of other interesting stuff, too.
Like Irene. That's Hurricane Irene to those of you who are just now hearing about the mandatory evacuation of New York City. Since this is our first hurricane/tropical storm, I thought I would post what it's like here on the blog.
Today, we've just finally figured out that the best thing to do is stay on-Cape. Between media overhype to increase ratings and politicians making sure their heinies are well-covered, it wasn't an easy decision. Your first clue, it turns out, is when the announcers on a certain weather specialty channel start sounding disappointed that Irene probably isn't going to make Category 4 before howling across North Carolina. By then, of course, it's too late to miss the evacuee-choked roads if you do decide to leave.
Fortunately, I didn't wait on the TV announcers. After questioning various long-time residents and a local fireman, we are satisfied that the storm surge and wind damage aren't big problems where our house is located. Also, David's fellow workers at NOAA have a lot more information on Irene than most people and no reason to skew it.
The Woods Hole facility's computers are being backed up in another location, but the facility is not being shut down. They say it will be somewhat worse than usual, but not up to Hurricane Bob standards, so we have decided to stay on-Cape whie she blows through.
We now have radios and the batteries to run them (hard to find as early as day before yesterday, but I found 'em), 10 days' worth of water and non-perishable food, tarps and duct tape, and the host of supplies we're told we should have in our emergency kit. Lawn furniture and my potted herbs and flowers will come indoors tomorrow.
The power will likely be out for a while, and our cell phons probably won't work for that same "a while," but we're ready. In the meantime, I plan on reading, writing, and painting while we wait her out.
It's Friday evening, the sun is shining, the sky is blue, it's very humid, and there's not a breath of wind.
