Hurricanes: The One Positive

Hi everyone. As I just returned from a walk around my neighborhood here in southeast Florida, I decided to write a quick post. At this point, with Hurricane Matthew expected to make landfall as a category 4 about an hour north of me in approximately 12 hours or so, people are getting settled in for a long night and an uncertain few days afterwards. With a hurricane warning in effect for my area along, the last 72 hours have been consumed with getting the house prepared. I am not new to Florida hurricanes, but it has been several years and the unpredictability of these monsters always seem to put everyone on edge. On Tuesday, I tweeted how gas stations were already seeing lines and running out of gas and grocery store shelves were empty. The uncertainty of it all just seems to make people panic, and with good reason. 

Yesterday the shutters went up and by last night all large items were already safely stored in the garage. My son and I decided to go for a walk to take it all in. Oddly enough, one positive is I have now met more of my neighbors than I have in the six years I've lived in this community. Florida is notorious for not being very neighborly, but one thing is for sure. When crisis hits, human nature takes over and we are there for each other. During our evening walk, my son and I saw people busy finalizing plans, and it was wonderful to see neighbors helping others with preparations.

One unexpected success was the capture of the only stray cat (kitten, really, at only 3 months) by some concerned residents and myself. I have the space and the supplies so guess where the little guy is waiting out the storm? Yep, my bathroom. I must be crazy, but you know what? I couldn't not try to keep him safe during such weather. I decided to call him Matty, short for Matthew. 

After finishing up last minute preparations this morning which included moving my tortoise inside, filling up pots of water, and dragging the last of the flower pots into the garage, I went on another walk. The first thing I noticed when I stepped outside, now with the sky already cloudy and outer rain bands fast approaching, I remembered that familiar feeling of years past. The quiet calm before the storm. This time, though, living on a preserve, something else caught my attention. Birds! The sound of more birds at than I have ever heard at one time in this area before. It was eerie to say the least. Not long thereafter I noticed something else. The forests fell silent as the first outer rain band (squall) came through. 

I checked on a couple of neighbors including the elderly gentleman a few doors down who was still putting up shutters. Luckily, he was on his last window. 

Now it is time for me to take a shower (it may be my last hot one for a while) and prepare some hot food, which will also become a novelty if we go without power for a while like we have in the past. 

To those of you in the path of Hurricane Matthew, please be safe and listen to official orders. 

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