I Am Sad

We basically were unscathed from Hurricane Irene. And even though NYC didn't get hit as hard as they feared, upstate NY, VT, and CT have been hammered and massive flooding has occurred. My hometown, where I spent all of my childhood, is experiencing extreme flooding. My sister still owns a home there, and even had to be evacuated, from an area that is not usual for evacuation. The water has not yet entered her home, but it is sneaking closer. There has been major flooding in Prattsville and Schoharie, NY. Homes wiped out, people stranded, yet the big news channels have moved on to business as usual with regular political BS and so on. It irritates me. To all our friends and family suffering with power outages and flooding, our thoughts and prayers are with you.

Come On Irene!

Bleh, here we go again. Yes, I know it is hurricane season, but I do not relish one heading for us or our friends and loved ones. We do need a good deal of rain to help with the severe drought, but any real damage would only hurt the economy more. I suppose if there is one up side it could be that any damaged homes or other structures could spur construction jobs. This one looks like it could turn into a real monster. Even if FL does not take a direct strike the risk of flooding, power outages, and tornadoes are real risks. I will still need to watch closely to be sure it does not veer towards the west and take a different path. One concern is always pets. With two dogs and a rabbit, evacuating could be a real challenge. I am afraid the rabbit would have a heart attack, so I would have to reinforce his room and leave extra water and food. His room is really pretty secure. The dogs would need to be packed up and go with us, if we had to leave in a hurry. Since this storm is probably going to be a Cat 4 at some point, and probably a 3 wherever it lands, I am encouraging all our friends and family members all the way up the East coast to be prepared. Stay safe, and pay attention! If you don't know how to be hurricane prepared there are tons of posts in my archives.