Monday, August 18, 2008

The Clam Before the Storm - Hurricane Fay?

It smells like a monkey in here. It's getting dark outside. The rain has begun to fall and the wind is howling at only 10-15 mph. Tropical Storm Fay is expected to reach hurricane status in the next few hours and Fort Myers is expected at this time (5:40 pm Monday) to take a direct hit.

People are boarding up their homes and burrowing in like clams in advance of the storm. (See I was going somewhere with that title. It's not just another misspelling.)

We decided to return from Fort Lauderdale last night at 11 pm to make sure everything was secure at home and so we could evacuate with the cats if necessary. We stopped at the Wal-Mart in Miromar since that was all that was open and we needed a few last minute things. Miromar is north of Miami and apparently we arrived just after the looting occurred. The shelves were bare of hurricane supplies like water, food, propane....it was weird. When we arrived in Fort Myers at 2 am, two of the gas stations were out of gas. We filled up near the house and headed for bed, expecting a busy Monday. But its been quiet and remains quiet except for the occasional howl of the wind.

We have our batteries, candles, cupcakes, water and everything else required to survive a storm for the next few days if need be. This thing may just blow by. But better to be stocked up. Hurricane Wilma knocked out power for weeks in some places. We could go live in Kenny's truck if we needed to. I think it's a certified fallout shelter.

But for now we wait. I brought the cat carriers inside in case we need to evacuate them. In truth the carriers are former monkey "sky kennels" used to transport monkeys to my parents old Monkey Sanctuary. I forgot how much they still smell like monkey. Maybe I should leave them outside until the worst comes. The clam shell hasn't been completely closed yet.

9 comments:

  1. The wife has already gotten into the emergency bag of Oreos!

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  2. Hey man! Why are you using "Weather Underground" graphics when one of your most loyal readers (me) works for the National Weather Service? You should be linking directly to our National Hurricane Center (www.nhc.noaa.gov). After all, that's where Weather Underground gets them!

    By the way, Oreos are EXCELLENT hurricane staples. Be safe and good luck!

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  3. Um...I was...Well you see...I was distracted by venemous snakes and I...like the color scheme for Wunderground? yeah! that't it! I'm all about style....

    7:43 and still all's quiet on the western front.

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  4. Thanks for explaining the monkey smell. I sure wasn't going to ask! ;-)

    MA-LE and I share the same 'likes' when it comes to hurricane survival food. Oreos with ice cream is the ultimate but w/o electricity just the oreos works. Oh, but I always make sure to have peanut butter and spoon, too. You got to have the protein to survive. ;-)

    Jim has been keeping an eye on the storm. Stay safe!

    darlene

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  5. It's raining out. Not much wind. This is just a little storm here. We'll have to eat the rest of the oreos now. And all of the cans of food and certainly the cupcakes.

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  6. Now isn't that the best part of a storm? Being missed AND having to eat the survival food before it ruins. ;-)

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  7. We have until 2013 to eat all of the canned items so we better get started! I do belive there are more Tasty Cakes :)

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  8. Fallout shelter? Maybe not but defiantly a good escape vehicle. This morning the truck served as a release from boredom while the power was out. At least the TV worked in the truck.

    Glad all is well with you guys.

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  9. I thought that was why you had the nuclear symbol on the truck? Oh wait that's bio-hazard clean up. ;)

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