Woke up this morning and there is no change in our situation. Damn. We're still pondering what to do here. CrabAppleLane is under a voluntary evacuation order this morning ... as we were for Katrina. The rhetoric from public officials and the media is even more alarming this time than it was then.
Stay or leave? Not an easy decision to leave. We've never left. Not for Betsy. Not for Camille. Not for Katrina. Seems like a no-brainer to those a thousand miles away. Get to safety and deal with whatever happens when you get back. Better safe than sorry. Well, they're not mutually exclusive. During Katrina, we were able to deal with things during and after the storm that would have been disastrous and expensive had we left and not been able to come back for a few weeks. That was what happened for Katrina. Leaking windows was a minor inconvenience that we dealt with but it would have meant mold, a remediation team, a major expense and the insurance fight that goes with it, and upheaval of our lives had we not been here. That said, we have considered and are considering evacuation for the first time ever.
I offer two on this CrabAppleLane Sunday.
Gustav Watch - August 31, 2008 - These trees on the west side of the house are the tallest ones near us. They're not tall enough to crash through the roof. The worst they could do is fall and lean on the house. Katrina blew the trees south and east. We're expecting Gustav to blow them north and west. That 18" DirecTV dish survived Katrina intact and perfectly aligned. Neither pictured antenna are in use any more.
Gustav Watch - August 31, 2008 - Not expecting traffic to be pleasant in any direction but we'll head north if we decide to evacuate
4 days until football season ...
Quote of the Day
They didn't play like Michigan. They played like LSU.
Jerry Moore, Appalachian State coach
Blog of the day here.
Quote from said blog: "But all hurricanes are different. Their winds blow uniquely, they move massive amounts of water to places that normally are dry. There is no guarantee that what survived Katrina will survive Gustav."
That would definitely be a hard decision for me. Especially if the evacuation order was only voluntary. I'd be tempted to stay. From what I can see on the weather, looks like Gustav will go a little further west than Katrina. Let us know.
K-
He will be quite a bit further west than Katrina should present predictions hold, Kem. Unfortunately, he probably won't be far enough west and this side of him is his worst. As mean as she was, we were on Katrina's better side. We've decided to ride it out.