We are as ready as we’ll be. We have water, food, treats. The cats are fine. We have taken extra precautions with the house – closing the shutters and putting up some boards because it’s easy and it means we are less likely to deal with broken windows. We have what we need to be ok in an extended power outage.
We are, as the authorities say, “sheltering in place.” And now, just waiting. Yesterday I was up at 6:00 a.m. going to the grocery store and getting gas and running last-minute errands around town. This morning we were up early securing the house and yard before the rains begin. It’s already plenty breezy out there.
Even though Isaac is not a major hurricane it still has the potential to do damage with wind and rain – or with those tornadoes that develop around the wind bands. And it is headed straight to us. Plus the seven-year anniversary of Katrina is tomorrow, and that adds an additional layer of complicated emotions and memories.
Waiting for a hurricane is sort of a Louisiana version of a snow day. Schools are closed. Most people don’t have to work, although we did get mail today. But it’s not really like a snow day. Rather than watching downy flakes accumulate in the yard, you watch these satellite images of this giant weather system headed for your city. There’s more of a sense of potential doom. The knowledge that a microburst could flatten your house or rip off your roof or knock the tree into your bedroom. The anticipation of sleeping poorly while the winds howl. The wondering what plants are going to survive and what’s going to be on the ground in the morning.
I’m hunkered in the house for the day. I haven’t gone out to see what stores might still be open. I know the ice cream shop in our neighborhood was having a big sale last night in anticipation of power outages, and I’m sure there are plenty of bars around town that are open – several in the French Quarter boast having no keys to their places because they never close!
Some of my friends have evacuated, but most have stayed this time. There wasn’t a mandatory evacuation, and our general rule of thumb is to stay in place for a Category 1 or 2 and to leave for a 3, 4, or 5, or if the mayor asks residents to leave. Evacuating has its own share of ups and downs – sometimes it can feel a little bit like a vacation if nothing goes wrong at home, but it can be complicated getting it together to leave, and since Katrina it never feels like a vacation, really. I recently wrote an article with ten evacuation tips - you can check it out here.
It’s a relief that we aren’t evacuating this time – no crying cats, no sitting in traffic for eighteen hours, no loading the car to the gills with mementos and keepsakes and important papers, but it still doesn’t feel great. While I’ve been writing this it’s rained and stopped and rained and stopped, and the winds have picked up and died down a half-dozen times. And the worst is still hours and hours away.
It’s time to just do our best to relax and be ok with the waiting. If you’re in the hurricane’s path, I hope you’re safe and well and that all is fine in the morning!
Be safe Carla.
Thanks, Don!
I’ll be thinking of you, Carla! Stay safe.
Thanks, Heather!
Sending calm thoughts your way…
Thanks, Carla!
Keep safe…have been following progress on the news here in Portugal.
Thanks so much, Piglet!
Having been through several hurricanes it seems you are prepared. Nothing to do but wait, always hated the anxiety of waiting. Good luck stay safe.
More wind now but we still have power – I hate to think of all the birds out there holding on!
I remember before Hugo seeing seagulls walking west away from the coast. We laughed. Nope too windy but still evacuating.
Love that! Hope the little song birds have found some shelter somewhere. There were no songbirds here for weeks after Katrina.
Yes they do songbirds were one of the first things I heard after Hugo and Fabian. I wondered where they had been. They were up singing as soon as it was clear and sunny again.
We had butterflies and birds right after the storm this time – glad they found shelter somewhere – it was so windy!
Glad you are okay and back on line. The last of Isaac passed through here yesterday.
Hope you actually needed the rain!
Oh we need it and more!
Yay!
Thinking of you. Be safe.
Thanks so much!
I’ve been thinking about you as I watch the track of this storm. It’s gotta be especially nerve- wracking watching the approach so close to the anniversary of Katrina. Stay safe. We’ll be looking for your update after it’s over.
Thanks so much, Barb! Got a little reprieve after a brief power outage – trying to do a few last minute things on the computer before it’s gone! Thanks for the good wishes!
I too are keeping you and yours in my thoughts. Sending positive energy your way!
Thank you so much!!!
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I hope that you, and all of New Orleans, including the little stray animals, stay safe during the storm. My thoughts are with you all. Be kind Isaac. Snuggle up and stay safe!
Thanks so much! We are doing fine – power just came back on for us last night and all is much more back to normal. Will write a post soon…
Carla, I’m thinking of you. (Indeed, as soon as I learned of Isaac’s pending destination of NOLA, I started thinking of you.) Here’s to being -and staying – safe.
Thanks so much, Stef. We and the cats were safe and sound the whole time – but it was quite a wind! I’ll write about it soon!
Last night I had a dream that the puppies and I had to flee to a building across the street to escape a natural disaster (seemed to be a combination of tornado/hurricane/earthquake). Kooky.
Wild!
Hoping and praying for a calm outcome .. and that the Lord is willing the creek don’t rise.
We’re thinking of all the people we love down in NOLA!
Thanks so much – we did fine overall – no flooding here which is wonderful!
New Orleans gets its fair share of devastating weather. I can’t imagine what it would be like so all I can do is send you lots of good wishes, and crossed paws that it doesn’t escalate, and causes minimum – or no – damage.
We had some damage, but all to trees and plants – not to the house. Some of our neighbors had roof damage and will have more to deal with. We were really lucky. Thank you for the good wishes!
I used to lived in a hurricane area when I was a child and remember the strong wind. I hope all is well in your area. My friend whose moving to florida was telling me her house there may already be flooded due to the rain. Be safe.
Yes – it was very, very windy! But we came out fine. Thanks for the well wishes!
Carla, this brings back so many memories of when I lived on the Miss. Gulf Coast and hurricanes were churning out in the warm waters. Stay safe, okay? You can replace “stuff”; you can’t get life back. I’m praying for y’all!
Thanks so much – we were safe and sound the whole time. And aside from trees and plants that went kaput, our home stayed safe too. We were really lucky! Thanks for the good wishes and prayers!
Hope the worst is behind you, Carla.
Thanks so much – yes it is! Power came on last night so catching up some computer work today. We are doing fine – thanks for checking in!
Those of us not directly affected sending prayers for all.
Thanks so much! We were very lucky. We’ll have to see soon how to help out those who were less fortunate and had a lot of flooding.
Hope all is going well. Thinking about you guys.
Thanks so much! All is almost back to normal for us as we got power last night, but many in the area are still without power. And there was a bunch of flooding – not in New Orleans, but in surrounding towns and regions – it was quite a storm because it moved so slowly!
I’ve been thinking of you. I hope you’re safe, and that all is well.
Thanks so much, Robin. We’ve come out on the other side just fine. We were super- lucky – mostly just the inconvenience of no power. No great losses except for trees and plants. Others weren’t as fortunate, so we’re very lucky. Thanks for your good wishes and concern!
Glad to hear you are doing well and survived Issac. I can only imagine what it would be like to witness a hurricane in person. Sending positive thoughts and energy to all that have been affected by this hurricane.
Thank you so much. I’m headed to Mississippi today to help friends clear out their flooded stuff from their cabin. What’s amazing is how very far away from the water their place was – it had never flooded this high. This storm put some serious rain in the region and filled creeks and rivers in a way that hasn’t happened in the past 20 years or more.