A Fine Mess

I'm not so sure about being able to find the answer blowing in the wind. When a storm like TS Cindy rolls through town it makes you wonder what will happen in this city if a real hurricane hits. I was without electric for 2 days. I can handle not having lights, but I cannot sleep in this legendary N'Awlins heat. It was like a sauna in here and it could have been far worse. I managed to get myself to sleep by playing a computer game until I was passing out in the middle of it. When I awoke I felt comfortable which amazed me. I think my brain was able to cool the rest of me off while it was sleeping. Once I started moving about though I began sweating like a field hand. By the second day I was getting pretty ticked off about not having any service. I'm okay with things happening. That's life. But, waiting without any sign of effort from the powers that be gets old very fast.

Tropical Storm Cindy made a fine mess of things here. For the first time since I moved here I did not do my girl scout duty of bringing everything in and tying things down. I did not even fasten my shutters. The wind was whistling and howling and gusting like a Tasmanian Devil. It would whip up and calm down and then start up again. Every time the wind was about to start an onslaught my ears would pop. I make a great barometer.

I watched TV until the electric went out. I couldn't sleep for all the noise of wind roaring and things crashing. The electric surged off at least six times before it finally blacked out permanently. I went to the kitchen window to see what was going on. My neighbor's tree had fallen and was dangling over the street on the power lines. I would see what I thought was lightning at different intervals. It was pretty in a way. There would be a bluish green flash in the distance and then another one a little closer. After a few minutes I realized those flashes were the power lines going down and making contact with whatever was near.

At one point I heard a loud bang of something falling against the house. My little home shook and so did I. I went to the back door and opened it up to see if the tree in the back had fallen on the house. It had not. I closed up and went to the front door. I was making an assessment of whether or not I would be able to bring the bicycle in. But when I opened my door I got a very thorough hair washing. I swear I was doused with at least 2 gallons of water just opening the door. I had, however, seen that the iron gate I propped up against the fence had fallen against the house.

There is a terrible hurricane beating down Cuba at the moment. The odds are only 13% that we are in danger, but the idea is frightening. A category 3 would kill anyone who does not leave this place. I am preparing to leave and go to Atlanta if the storm turns this way. I am waiting to see what happens once Dennis has passed over Cuba and churned back out into the Gulf. If it turns to the West at all I am out of here. I will take a Greyhound out of here in the morning to my sister's house. It will take about 12 hours to get there. I will take my best clothes, my data disks and will do everything I can to get my 2 little birds on that bus. I am going to pray beyond all hope that they keep quiet so no one insists that I leave them. (You are not supposed to bring pets on the bus.) Perhaps I could pay the driver to ignore them. If I learned anything about life here in NOLA--people can be paid off to look the other way. I've never resorted to this, or have I needed to, but I will give it a try now if I have to.