7/23/08 Hurricane a-comin'...

Oops. I think I might have caused a hurricane. Hubby and I were out on our nightly walk on Sunday. I jokingly told him that I wished a hurricane would come through town, just to shake things up a bit. You know, create a little drama. Hubby came home early from work the very next day declaring, “Way to go! There’s a hurricane coming!”

We continued to watch the weather last night to see how Dolly would develop. I remember in college when Rita was predicted to wipe out College Station, and we didn’t even get a drop of rain. In a very sadistic way, it was quite disappointing. All of the fuss and preparation for nothing.

That was still on my mind this morning when I reluctantly got out of bed. We immediately checked the weather to see if my certainty of Dolly dying down during the night had come to fruition. Nope. It had grown in size and strength while we peacefully slept in our bed.

I sat at home, relaxing and reading while drinking my morning coffee. I was, and still am, in utter denial that anything will come from all of this hurricane activity. I talked to my mom this morning to let her know what was going on. I told her how I was silently protesting the possibility of having to leave my home. I just couldn’t make myself get anything ready for the chance of evacuation. Her response when I told her I was still in my pj’s while a hurricane is coming at me and not preparing for it? “Kathryn!” I haven’t heard that tone in years! That at least got me thinking about starting a few preparations.

Hubby had an early meeting with his command this morning to let everybody know what was going on. The word? They would decide in a few hours if the planes were to be evacuated. They’ll decide on the people later tonight. The EPA recently put a value of $6.9 million on every human life (look it up if you want more information…this is not the place for current events!). The cost of a T-34, the trainer planes that the Navy uses, is approximately $1.1 million dollars. You do the math!

As I sit here writing this, I am hearing plane after plane above our house. I keep thinking that if the planes are in fear for their lives, maybe we should be, too.

After Hubby informed me that we wouldn’t be going anywhere for a while (he still has to work tonight!), I still piddled around a bit. But then I got to thinking. If we weren’t going to be leaving our home, but flooding is still expected, we have nothing essential for survival for even a few days! That got me moving…a little. I took all of our pitchers and cooking pots out and filled them with water. There! Fresh water! Past that, I have still made only a few other preparations. I pulled all of our pictures, personal files, Hubby’s uniforms, Hubby, and Puppy and stacked them on the couch in the living room. In case we decide or are made to evacuate, I’ll just grab that stuff and go.

One of the great things that I’ve learned from this drama so far is how I could really care less if all of our stuff is damaged. We have all of the truly important things ready to go. If Hubby and Puppy squeeze a bit, everything should fit in one box. The rest is all replaceable, though probably quite a pain to do so. Another lesson? Be careful what you wish for!