Is Hurricane Irene Headed My Way?

It’s that time a year again, the time of year when the beach is more reminiscent of paradise than ever, when the high tide of tourists is beginning to recede, and the air and water is just so deliciously warm. This time of year, from about now through the better part of November, is to me when the beach feels most like the world was meant to be.

On the other side of this time, however, is the potential for hurricanes. Since I’ve been fairly consumed by moving for a while now, and since I don’t have a television news source at this point (yes, I’m one of those people who consumes most of my news with the TV informing in the background while I clean, do laundry, chase small people around the house, etc.), I haven’t given it much thought until Monday, when I received my first warning phone call. And now, the emails are slowly starting to trickle in, from towns and schools and the like, and, in certain areas, preparations are well under way.

Here I thought I was going to be posting about my bathroom mirrors today.

Every once in a while, living by the ocean falls slightly short of paradise.

This is one of those times. As I write, Irene, currently a Category 3 hurricane that may increase to a Category 4, is headed our way. The most recent predictions are suggesting most of the Carolinas, with the possible exclusion of the Outer Banks, will not be hit directly.

The first I heard of it, they were asking the Carolinas to stay on alert, and South Carolina was projected to be hit directly. Then, early yesterday, I was told it was moving more toward North Carolina, and then by late yesterday afternoon, they were predicting that much if not most of North Carolina will miss its direct path. If, and this is key, it stays in the projected path. A weather cough, so to speak, and its course, or its strength, could change. Every time it adjusts, my mental picture of the future state of my home adjusts accordingly.

It’s strange, because this is the first potential hurricane I’ve faced where I don’t have the TV on in the background to keep me posted on the direction and the strength of the hurricane. My typical practice during a hurricane threat is to “speak unkindly” to one of the TV meteorologists in particular who, in my opinion, hypes up the bad weather eight notches beyond honest just to build drama. I probably shouldn’t be sharing my opinions shamelessly, even if it’s just with the TV and LCB, but sometimes it just seems like this meteorologist has scoured the area to find a low-lying drainage ditch to stand in and bend dramatically, clutching his hat with each small gust, implying with his stance that he can barely manage to remain upright, all to increase the intensity of the scene and to build his career. All the while, the rest of us are trying to make reasonable and educated decisions about what to do to protect our homes and our lives.

Regardless, when you go through this, you sort of realize that you need to be prepared for just about anything. So you watch, and wait, and hope the storm weakens and/or blows out to sea. You don’t wish it on anybody, so it’s a difficult thing when it moves away from you, but in the direction of someone else, knowing the wave of relief you can’t help but feel might mean a great deal of pain for someone else. So you pray that it moves seaward, away from lives and homes and all that is loved.

I imagine the people of Carolina, and the whole East Coast, and many of the Caribbean islands would appreciate your prayers right now, as they are either recovering from yesterday’s earthquake and/or hurricane, or are bracing for the hurricane headed their way. These are, in fact, our homes and our lives and all that we love.