Lovely Rita, hurricane

It's safe to say, I think, that people already are panicking, including the staff here at The B'port News.

Tonight at the Wal-Mart Supercenter in Lake Jackson, they were pretty well cleaned out of flashlights, candles and batteries.

Hurricane Rita is 5 days away.

This afternoon, a lady, a perfect stranger, began talking to me about Tropical Storm Frances, and how when her roof started buckling her husband announced they better leave, and they did, in the middle of the night, and it was a very very scary trip down the highway. A loose electrical line lashed the windshield of their vehicle, but it didn't break, and there were downed trees everywhere, and since it was dark they coudn't really see where they were driving. She and her hubby live down by the water in Freeport. I let her say her piece, said a few "my goshes" and then left, very very quickly.

I think I may go stay with Tom Tyler, specially since the only lethal weapon I have around here is a 5-iron. He lives over in Dickinson. He had this to say tonight:

...At this time, I am making preparations to transfer an 80 year woman somewhere where she won't be cranky, as well as preparing my home for a possible storm ride!

If we are looking at a CAT 5 by evac time, I will leave as I don't think my home will take a 200 mile an hour wind and possibly a storm surge much higher than the door handles. ( I live on a bayou about 15 miles from the Galveston Causeway.)

If it's not a Cat5, though, I know from being here in other, lesser hurricanes that the home will survive and the water won't reach it, so I will stay here and guard it and repair it when its over.

We are not only loaded with flood insurance, I have a big attic, two generators and hundreds of feet of heavy duty industrial extension line, an air compressor, plywood for the windows, saw horses for the furniture, enough tools to build a house or fix a pick up, three heavy caliber pistols, two shotguns, a rifle, an AK47 and enough ammo to defend the Alamo for three weeks instead of just two, a deep freeze full of gallon jugs of ice as well as a ton of food, two 30 gallon Igloo water casks, 6 Igloo ice chests, a boat and 3 rafts, flashlights, lanterns, camp stoves and gas grills, three fans, air mattresses, four medical kits, and on and on. Things accumulate when you live in a huge outdoor recreation, sailing and offshore fishing area that is also a hurricane and nuclear attack zone in one of the the world's largest petrochemical and shipping complexes. I could hold out here for a while!

Anyway, gotta go fill the vehicles and my big 100 gallon stainless steel tank with petrol before the damn price goes through the ceiling!

And I gotta get some BEER, TEQUILA, LIMES, SALT, OJ and CHIPPED ICE!!!! Lots of it! Hurricanes take a lot of MARGARITAS!!!

But as the storm gets closer I will begin blogging it, especially if it makes a direct hit on Galveston Island and blows on over us into Houston.

The blogging will be done at our Katrina emergency site, which will begin carrying Rita emergency preparation info as soon as I can sit down late, late tonite and begin organizing it.

Haven't taken a direct hit on Galveston Island since Alicia went over the east end in 1983 and came right over us, destroying Clear Lake City and sinking thousands of sailboats and motor cruisers, every boat in every marina on the north shore of the lake, just across the street from the space center and Mission Control.

I will never forget finally catching up with some friends who lived in a waterfront condo at Bal Harbour, just up the street from Windamere Marina ( the yacht club next to the Clear Lake Hilton) where our sailing yacht was destroyed along with a hundred others.

I said, " My neighbor Barry ("Ol' Bear" of Superior Waterbeds) can't find his 30 foot ski boat!"

And my buddy Phil said, "Well, tell him not to look for it, I got a 36 foot ketch in my living room!"

Let's hope not this time!

ttyler5