Hurricane Ike

Once again we are awaiting the land fall of yet another hurricane to hit the coasts of Texas, Mississippi, and Louisiana. This one, Hurricane Ike, is expected to do a large amount of damage not only to the coast, but to many places of the U.S. inland from its initial landing, all the way up to the state of Maine.

It's Friday afternoon here in San Antonio, Texas as I write this and the clouds are moving in and the wind is picking up. Most all of the bottled water, flashlights, and larger-size batteries are gone from the store's shelves, along with various other items, as residents stock up on things to weather the storms' impact. The news and weather channels are full of pictures and images of the wind and flooding damage the hurricane has caused so far, even before it has hit the coast in full force. And many people have decided to stay put who live in the hurricane's path, even though they have been told to leave those areas. But I think the nuttiest ones are those you see that are having what looks like parties down on the beaches of the coast as the hurricane comes in. What are they thinking with the 30 foot waves! One can only hope that the damage won't be as bad as predicted and the loss of life will be minimal if at all.

On a happier note, I received a message that another one of the articles I wrote and submitted has been accepted for publication by a quality magazine. And with the weather like it is outside today and will be through out the weekend, I'll be staying in and working on some more.

Wow, is it ever hot!

Yes, it's very hot outside here this week! Hurricane Fay had sent a few rain storms our way to water and cool things off here in San Antonio a few weeks ago, but Hurricane Gustav was a bit short in sending our way any of its moisture. Just a lot of sticky heat! Yesterday, in returning home from a few necessary errands, I burned my hand on our front door's scorching knob, then headed for the kitchen in search of a tall glass of ice cold water.

My heart goes out to all those who felt the wrath of Gustav, and I hope they get the help they need as quickly as possible, but at the same time...I can't wait for the fall and winter months to arrive!

Even though I have a great love for nature and the outdoors, I think I'll enjoy the time I spend inside writing a bit more.