It's Heeere!

I'm reposting some of my old blog material,
mostly to get it all in one place again.
This was originally posted on My Space on Aug 3, 2008.

Everyone say hi to Edouard.

Edouard is our newest tropical disturbance in the Gulf and the local weathermen could not be happier. Right now it's a tropical storm but they're quite sure it will be a Category 1 hurricane by the time it rumbles ashore. The news people are giddy with excitement and are already staging their gear on Galveston Island where most computer models (which are almost always wrong) have Edouard headed. They've been watching this area of low pressure ease its way out into the Gulf from southern Louisiana and praying it would develop.

It did.




So what happens now?

Now we wait and see... and we prepare... and we watch the news people make complete asses of themselves.

The waiting part won't take long. Estimated time of arrival is Tuesday morning.

Preparation basically involves buying some batteries, some canned goods, water and maybe a little plywood. Electricity will almost certainly be lost for at least three or four days... possibly a week or two so no lights, no TV, no laptop. (that last one is unacceptable.. i may have to go purchase a generator tomorrow). Cell phones may be out temporarily depending on how much damage the cell towers receive. The hot water heater, stove and dryer are all natural gas so we should be okay there unless there's a break somewhere in the line and the gas gets shut off. I hate cold showers and that will really piss me off.

But the worst part of all is no air conditioning. If you've ever lived along or visited the Texas Gulf Coast in August you know exactly what I'm talking about. Temperatures have been hovering near the 100 degree mark recently. Throw 10 to 12 inches of rain on top of that, mix in the near 100% humidity that follows when the sun returns and you've got one of the most effective sauna's nature can provide. And it's not just during the day. Oh no, it's a 24/7 delight. I just can't wait for that one. Fans would help but since there's no electricity then that is not even an option. No, you just try to sit as still as possible, expend the least amount of energy you can, wonder what in the hell people did before there was electricity and pray for it to come back on.

Bet no one is bitching about their $400 electric bill this time next week. lol

And so we wait. I'll try to keep you guys up to date over the next 24 - 36 hours. There's not a lot to worry about. It's mostly just going to annoy the crap out of a lot of people.

Stay tuned.