Crossfire Hurricane

The Season Begins

The National Weather Service (http://www.nws.noaa.gov) is predicting a normal to above normal number of named storms this Atlantic hurricane season; 11-16 all together, with 6-9 "major" storms, 2-5 of which will be Category 3, 4, or 5 in nature. They are basing this on prevalent weather patterns, but I don't think they really know. The science of predicting storms has come a long way by now, once they've got one spotted and moving. We at least know they are coming; it is hard to imagine, but a killer storm like the 1900 Galveston hurricane, or the one that struck the East Coast in the '30s, hit with almost no prior warning.

I would say the science of predicting where they will make landfall still leaves something to be desired. Rita (2005), remember, was up until the last minute supposed to go in somewhere west of Galveston, in the Freeport area. Humberto (2007) came up so suddenly many people went to bed the night before not even knowing a hurricane was in the Gulf, much less headed this way. I know this - next time one is predicted to hit here, I'll go if it does. But I am waiting to the last minute before I leave, just to be sure. Since Rita we've installed a propane generator that will keep us up and running for several days if the power goes out. It is going to take a lot to get me up on the highway with a half million other people trying to get the hell out of Dodge all at the same time. A lot.

Heavy Weather

I'm Stupid For The Rain

I wasted probably an hour and a half today, total, just watching it rain. Well, I say "wasted" because that is what my bosses would think, if they knew. I don't feel like I wasted the time at all. The fact is, I love when it rains; watching it happen takes precedence over work and career every time, sorry.

I am not generally a gloomy person, and I have spent a good deal of my time pursuing sun-worshipping activities in my lifetime; but the most beautiful thing in the universe to me is a gray, forbidding sky, big heavy clouds lumbering slowly by, and rain pouring down. I suppose it is a good thing I live in an area that gets around 60 inches of rainfall a year, on average.

I love the way rain feels, and smells, and looks. It is for me a sensual buzz. Sometimes I'll just go out and stand in it, which makes some people worry a little. I never carry an umbrella, and never have. When it rains, I just get wet.

Next time it rains, and someone says to you, "Well, it is a great day today. . . if you are a duck", remember, it is great if you are an Inca From Peru, too.

I do love the rain. It is just that there is just not enough of it. When I retire, I have an idea to move to one of the volcano/mountains in Hawaii, where I have read they get over 300 inches of precipitation a year. Now that is more like it.