It is 09/25/2004 at 10:14 PM, and the winds are really picking up. We have a county wide curfew here in Orange County, Florida. Yours truly has lived in Winter Park, FL 32789 and the environs ever since I got out of law school.
It is a lovely town, pretty residential and retail areas, lots of lakes, Rollins College, art galleries, theaters, and lots of excellent restaurants. But, so much for the Chamber of Commerce portion of this post.
Right now the winds are increasing steadily. According to NOAA, Jeanne is coming ashore about 80 miles SE of here around mid-night and headed our way. It will be a long, long night.
Earlier today the forecasters were suggesting that the storm would pass through around 2 P.M. tomorrow afternoon, which while a very bad idea, is better because of daylight than in the dark. If you look at the tracking map linked above, you should see that Jeanne is going to travel just South of Buzzmodo command central. Since moving to Florida I really haven't thought much about the weather, because as a general proposition it is always lovely. But when you take a look at an overhead shot like this or this, you wonder why you didn't pick another spot to live.
I had planned to take and post some pictures, but I don't know if I will be able to without much light. I just drove back from watching a DVD with some friends. The streets were totally empty, with the radio announcing that if you were out after 11 P.M. you were certain to turn into a pumpkin.
It is very eerie to be in a good sized community, and with everything, closed streets empty, and the wind howling. Before the first hurricane this late summer, i.e. Charley, there was a lot of conversation about it not being a big deal. When Ivan hit, it was clearly a big deal, and now you hear people lamenting "why us!"
This time I am better prepared, I have some food, some cash, some gas for my SUV. Plenty of batteries, bottled water, and everything ready.
So my friends, stay tune, keep us in your thoughts and prayers, and be real grateful that you don't have 120 mph winds heading your way.
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