You know, I was part way through a post about my recent travels and with the way my phone has blown up the last couple days, I figured it might be prudent to address the weather. I’m not sure if you’re aware, but as it turns out A HURRICANE IS COMING AND IT’S GOING TO MAKE LANDFALL IN NORTH CAROLINA!!!!!!
First off, let me just express gratitude for all the family and friends that have called/texted/DM’d/Messaged me the last few days to make sure I’m safe. It kinda shocked me, but then I realized it’s because I’ve got the coolest friends on the planet and I appreciate each and every one of you, whether you reached out to me or gave me a few moments thought out of your day. So thanks, I’m humbled, truly.
Now, to The Storm (capitalization mine) that approaches…
Among the reasons I chose central North Carolina were the consideration that any hurricanes that might come this way would, in theory at least, weaken significantly by the time it came in this far. Believe me, I have no desire to “tough it out” when it comes to 100+ mile per hour winds and 25+ inches of rain all at the same time. I have what I consider a healthy respect for Mother Nature. Being a native Midwesterner I experienced several tornadoes over the course of my life, some closer than others, but I knew enough about them to know that it was foolhardy to try and stare one down. Tornadoes, of course, are fairly short-lived phenomena. Hurricanes, as I’m sure you are aware, last for days. If the experts recommend I should evacuate, I’m gone.
Now, please don’t take this the wrong way, I don’t mean to suggest any of the concerned calls or offers of a place to stay were out of line, rather I know they were placed out of genuine concern for my safety. And again, I appreciate you.
The initial storm track after landfall was actually fairly close to me, within fifty miles or so. But even at that the storm that was expected to pack winds around 125 mph and dump 25″-30″ of rain on the coast was only expected to bring 30 mph winds and 3″-6″ of rain to this part of the state. Granted that’s larger than a typical storm, but perfectly manageable, at least to me. As long as the storm doesn’t produce six weeks of sub zero temperatures (you know, like January in northern Illinois) I think I’ll be fine. Further, as of about 45 minutes ago the National Weather Service Hurricane Center now predicts the storm will move south and west after landfall, crossing through South Carolina instead of North Carolina. I haven’t seen the local updates yet, but I feel safe in assuming that will lessen the impact of the storm on this area even more. Of course, I’ll continue to monitor the updates and I promise not to do anything (too) stupid once the storm finally gets here.
I mean, after all, who wants to be on Florence’s list? Amirite?
Peace