Florida roll calls
 

I'm checking in and asking my fellow Floridians if they are safe and sound.

We had a hurricane/storm last night. As far in as Orlando where my home is, the winds were hitting 100MPH plus.

I faired well, just a few trees and shingles lighter than I was yesterday. How are the rest of you?

All is fine here. We didn't even get any good storms after taping all the windows and setting up my safe room. Very lucky here since we were due for a direct hit.

Truly lucky
 

When we woke up at 5am Saturday and saw the latest predicted forecast it was headed right over our house. Although we didn't have to evacuate as we are in zone D (they evacuated zone A, B and C), we're only 1.8 miles from the water in Tampa Bay. Finally getting apprehensive, we headed to Lowe's (the first Lowe's we went to was sold out) to get plywood for our sliding glass doors and a few windows. As far as we could see, we were the only people in a few block vicinity to do any boarding/taping of windows, and were feeling a little silly about it. In the end however, we barely got any rain at all. The thing is, if it had hit as a strong Category 4 (originally it was to be barely a Cat. 3), none of us would have our roofs intact. Lesson learned? Although I don't know what anyone could have done at that point.

I feel for those people who ended up in the path of the hurricane. After talking to several neighbors with relatives and friends in the Punta Gorda area, I guess the damage is quite severe. Much more than the mobile home devastation the news was showing. Perhaps the news crews weren't being let in (or couldn't get in) to show the houses that were leveled.

ReNae - one would have never suspected the hurricane would hold together all the way through to Orlando. Incredible. Sorry to hear about the damage to your house.

Cynthia - you must have a house built after Andrew to have a safe room? Or did you add it in later? Good for you!

The power of mother nature can be mind boggling.

Holly

Holly,

No, not built after Andrew. It's a safe room in the sense that it's in the interior of the house with no windows and is downstairs. Basically, it's my dressing room / bathroom, but it's quite large. Big enought for at least 3-4 people to even lay down and get some sleep - if one could do that.

Actually, I was thinking of taking into the safe room my girlfriend's bottle of wine and her carrot cake that she left in my frig during her last visit. I rarely, rarely drink or eat sweets - but this seemed to be the occasion for it. If I were going to die, why not have some last moments of unguilty pleasure? :)

Cynthia, after reading that post I want to go and take you out for a drink and desert. No death threat needed for me! (Of course, your hips are most likely smaller than mine ;)

I guarantee you my hips are NOT smaller than yours. :) And, the hurricane is passed, so I can't use that as an excuse.

Don't count on it! Where you rarely eat sweets - I live on them. If we ever meet in person at one of those portrait events we can share a bottle of wine and whine about our hips.

One needs brain food every once in a while. While that used to be the candy we would buy before study sessions in college, it's now upgraded to homemade cakes and the like to provide fuel for painting sessions and forum administration. :)

Here we go again
 

9/3/04 Well, we are about 10 hours from the worst storm in like 100 years here in Florida. Let's all check in again as we can. In the mean time. My hope and prayers are with each and every one of us in the path of this storm.

My paints and brushes are in a safe place. (I guess) So I'm as ready as I'll ever be. ;)

ReNae,

Aren't you close to Orlando? Or is that Winter Park? If so, you're in a worse place than me. Stay safe.

And, then we have to keep an eye out for Ivan that's already brewing in the Atlantic.

I hope Renae is doing well though all this. Cynthia & Holly, how are you holding up?

Jean

Checking in - I didn't get much wind and rain until early this morning and then it rained and rained a torrential downpour for hours on end. There was some wind and trees and wires down where I am, but I'm fairly protected here and it wasn't too bad for me. I just worry about my skylights. In Tampa, there was serious flooding. One idiot in Tampa was out on a waverunner with his two kids going down Bayshore Blvd. which was at least two feet deep. Hello, ever hear of downed power lines? broken glass? snakes?

Now we have tornado warnings and Ivan the Terrible is comiing.

Thanks for asking!

Tuesday Morning
 

Well,

I'm at the office. With power!!! None at home yet. What a weekend.!!!! 4 days stuck in the house while the wind howled, but never over 70 mph this time. I lost many, many more shingles and one very large Australian ear tree, which everyone always told me was going to blow over some day. I've got 6 inches of standing water over the yard so far but the house is up off the ground.

The folks on the coast at Cocoa and Melbourne were not so lucky.

People like myself in the electrical supply field hit the ground running this morning.

I hope everyone is OK, Thanks for your good thoughts

Glad to hear everyone is safe. A fair amount of downed trees in our area, including one of ours. That was one sloowww moving beast! I'm not looking forward to another anxious weekend with Ivan on its way.

Good to here from all of you! Here's hoping Ivan takes a hike and gets blown out to the Atlantic.

Jean

I just checked the latest forecast track of Ivan, and it looks like it's heading south of Cuba and may not be as much of a threat to Florida.

Yikes!! As of this morning they have Ivan coming across the Florida Keys and up thru the middle of the state and it's currently a category 5. I think I'm freaking out now. The attached map goes thru Tues AM. Even though it's not shown going thru Tampa, as we saw with Charley things could change in a heartbeat.

Hi Cynthia,

Don't waste your mental energy on Ivan yet! As you said, things will change and we have a long time before Tuesday. I'm sending good thoughts down to Jamaica and Cuba. Regardless, this will be a summer for Florida's history books.

Cheers and carrot cake,

Holly

The Trifecta
 

This is beyond imagination.................... Let's ALL hold good thoughts.!!!!

I hear what you're saying, Holly, but it's gotten worse for my area. Now a category 5 and closer to Tampa. I'm having a hard time thinking about anything except survival preparation. Not much work getting done here.

Hmm, that's looking marginally better for ReNae, but worse for both of us Cynthia. Interestingly, the weather channel's prediction is still showing a very wide projected area, the center of which is out at sea, west of the Florida penisula, for what that's worth. Chances are it'll decrease from a Cat. 5 as it passes over Jamaica and Cuba. The best way I know to deal with the jitters is to have everything in order, then stay busy with my normal schedule and not think about it too much. Five days is a long time. However, if this prediction holds over the next couple days, I'm sure we'll be making another trip to the lumber store along with the rest of half of Florida. You're probably not too far from us, let us know if we can do anything to help?

Cheers,

Holly

Holly,

Thank you for the offer.

I'm in a condo and am not even sure what we are allowed to do to protect the windows. I've called the condo president and he's yet to return my call. But, even if we are allowed to put up plywood, I have no one to do it and finding someone at this time is probably next to impossible. After that, I have nowhere to store the plywood until I get my garage cleaned out. I've thought a lot about it and there doesn't seem to be any immediate solution. The thing that worries me the most (next to losing my whole roof or my life) is losing the skylights over my office. Some things I'll clear out and take downstairs in plastic, other things I plan to wrap in plastic tarps with bungee cords. Oh what fun! I'd rather design websites.

I am buying an external hard drive tonight to backup everything and am getting a battery-operated tv. During Frances, I was here alone. All I could think was if my electric goes out for an extended time, what would I do. No tv, no radio, no internet and no one here to even have a conversation - all I had was a NOAA weather radio and was that got pretty boring during the 2 1/2 hours of electrical outage.

During Charley, my girlfriend came up and we prepared together as best we could, but she decided Frances wouldn't hit here and stayed home. We were both sorry afterwards. We're cleaning out my garage on Saturday to try and make room for my car. If I lose my home, maybe I'll at least have a chance to save my car.

Another girlfriend's mom lives in St. Croix and has been through 3 major hurricanes. The 1st one, she lost her roof completely and was left clinging to the bathtub to not be blown away.

I wouldn't mind having your phone number just in case and I can give you mine - thru email, of course.

I've been keeping up with trajectory maps on several sites and they all show Tampa as a possibility.

HI Cynthia
I wish there was something I could say to make the situation better. Please consider leaving, and worry about all the stuff later. Stuff is just stuff.
We all care for your safety.
Good Luck

I echo Linda and Wisconsin is about as far away as you can get, so come on up. Stuff is just stuff, a back up hard drive is essential but you may even consider sending it out of state for safekeeping. I have an ex mother-in-law in Pinellas that I'm concerned about. I hope she is handcuffed and physically removed from her property cause she refuses to leave for any reason (Brooklyn transplant and stubborn).

Anyway , stay safe.

Jean

being prepared
 

Cynthia,

I know how you feel, as a single woman, many of the things we could do to better prepare are a bit out of our own reach. The thing that has me worried about anyone in the path of this new storm, is the shortage of supplies now. Generators, plywood, tarps, things like that.

Do the best you can, and when the time comes to leave,... leave.. I didn't last time, and I won't make that mistake again. The lingering stress over waiting and riding it out is tough. I spent 3 days in the house imagining the worst, then the best, round and round. It didn't change the outcome.

It's funny, the things you decide to pack and the things you find you don't really care about. I put away all my art supplies and works, old books and photos I love, enough cloths for a week and that was it. I forgot my insurance policy the first time during Charlie. The only change during Frances... I remembered the insurance papers.

PS.

I have a small Sony battery op LCD TV and it really saved the day, both times. It's no bigger than the old transistor radios back n the 60's. Get one if you can.

Thanks, Linda and Jean! But, I'm staying. Evacuating is basically sitting in a parking lot for hours on end. And, Gordon Wetmore told me that during Frances, motels were booked up all the way to Chattanooga.

ReNae, I got the TV, which I'd already planned to do. I really lucked out. One of the Radio Shack's was taking names to call when they came in and they really did call. I could have sold it many times - not a chance.

After talking to the condo president, I am feeling better. Our roofs are good up to 180 mph, skylights to 140, skylight attachments to 180. And, I'm not right on the water, have windows on only one side and it's a fairly protected area.

Am working on backing up my entire hard drive on the new external drive I bought last night. Will take photos over the weekend and Saturday, two friends are having a garage cleanout party so I can get my car in.

By the way, I've made a pretty complete list of emergency numbers if any Floridians would like my list. Good to have with you.

Things I didn't think to take in my "safe room" during Charley:

-essential phone numbers (this time I typed everything on a single sheet)
-purse (duhhh)
-glasses
-yellow pages (in case I needed to call contractors in the aftermath)
-pad & pans (again, if I need to call contractors, I'll need to take notes and what if all my paper is wet?)

And, if you have a safe desposit box, the key to that.

Not sure why they always say to take insurance policies with you. I called State Farm and asked if I have my policy number and the phone number to call them, do I need the actual policy and they said no.

I also looked up on the internet the AM radio station for my county's emergency broadcasts.

Community
 

Hi Cynthia, and all of you in Florida,

It's times like this that I know the importance of community. I wanted to touch base with you all and tell you that I'm sending you thoughts for a positive outcome with this weather situation.

Though I haven't posted one of my paintings in a while, I feel a part of our community on this forum, and have been thinking of you all this week. I have a cousin on the west coast of Florida as well. Cynthia, you sound very prepared.

Stay safe everyone, Magdalena

Thank you Magdelana. I've been cleaning out the garage tonight trying to make room for my car. What an ordeal. The good news is that the troops are coming in tomorrow - 2 friends. I've just been doing some of the prep work for the morning, but that alone was tiring.

Prayers for Florida
 

Hi -

My prayers are for all of you in Florida. I have relatives and friends there as well as the people whose names and faces I have come to know on this site.

Will you on the Forum join me in praying for safety for everyone involved, and a lessening to the storm's effects?

Hurricanes improve lighting
 

How did everyone fare this time around? I know there are a couple new Floridian members, hopefully all is well. We had winds 70 mph +, a lot of fallen trees in the area, but no house damage as far as I've seen. We lost our second wax myrtle this time, which happened to be right in front of the window of my studio. There's so much more light now! The first photo is of our house last year, the second is of the fallen tree, the third is our new tree sculpture :)

Holly

All is well here. Lost electric for about 24 hours and just got it back this afternoon. Being without electric is really a severe reality adjustment for me.

Good Grief! Yikes Cynthia! It just occured to me that you live in hurricane hell!

I hope everything is OK. Wishing and praying for the best.

Everything is fine, except my nerves. I was about to pack up my freezer foods and take them down to a friend's house so I didn't lose everything when the electric suddenly came back on. My girlfriend and I cheered!

Cynthia
http://www.familyculture.com/holidays/moonlady.htm

S.B., do you mean that it must have been like the rejoicing during the Chinese Lantern Festival, when the lights come on?

Gettin old isn't it
 

This time, I was in Chicago........I'd left before we got word that it was coming, and my daughter sat out the storm at the shelter at school (Rollins College).

Lost a China Berry this time. We had just gotten the Ear Tree out of the back yard. I've got an inch of standing water (stinky) in the whole yard again, and the shingles MUST be replaced now. Compared to many others we were very lucky again.

That's 3 for me.... If this had not completely destroyed the real estate market, I'd be putting up a for-sale sign. My soul mate is in Northern Illinois, and we turn 50 this year, and have decided, some place like Chattanooga, would be a great change of pace for both of us......

Hi Cynthia and you other Floridians that have to live with the weather.

I think that I know how you feel about weaterfronts, because it is a natural part of my primary job, as a thatcher, to be aware of the winds and the rain.

Whenever there is a hurricane brewing in the Atlantic I know that it will touch America somewhere, and thereafter turn right, and hurry on to the coast of Denmark.

Normally it shows up as a well used, second hand autumn storm. But now and then it is still a genuine hurricane, that rip off my tarpaulins and do all kind of tricks to entertain.

So my request, to you in the front line, would be to plant some more Palm Trees, as they seems to be the ones that stand.

This, of cause, is not a serious suggestion, but just a way to say that we have something else, than paint, in common.

Allan

Cynthia and Mitchele:
Cynthia means Goddess of Moon.

http://www.familyculture.com/holiday...stmoonfest.htm

Actually I heard Cynthia has that meaning in ancient Greek and most Greeks I've known don't even know it. :)

Mitchele:
Yes, it is rejoicing with harvest and family reunion.

Wind, flowers, snow and moon are the group subject matters of ancient Chinese literature. This may inspire our painting.

Li Bai
DRINKING ALONE WITH THE MOON

From a pot of wine among the flowers
I drank alone. There was no one with me --
Till, raising my cup, I asked the bright moon
To bring me my shadow and make us three.
Alas, the moon was unable to drink
And my shadow tagged me vacantly;
But still for a while I had these friends
To cheer me through the end of spring....
I sang. The moon encouraged me.
I danced. My shadow tumbled after.
As long as I knew, we were boon companions.
And then I was drunk, and we lost one another.
...Shall goodwill ever be secure?
I watch the long road of the River of Stars.

[http://www.chinapage.com/poem101.html
http://www.chinapage.com/poem/300poem/t300a.html