I usually only post something when I have something to say...
We (my lovely wife, my mother and I) are all alive and well up in Dallas TX, the place to where we removed our domicile one day before the storm hit. We got everything boarded up (I have a set of hurricane boards already pre-cut to install, although it did take a couple of hours to assemble my bulkhead that seals off the huge French door from the bedroom to the patio) and more or less shut down the day before the big exodus, and as a result only had to spend six hours on the road (instead of the fifteen that those who left "on time" were sentenced to).
Having dealt with hurricanes in my capacity with the government (OSHA was heavily involved in both Rita and Katrina), I have no desire to "ride one out" on the ground. The difference here is that (unlike the last two "big ones" in my general geographic area) I can ignore the "on the ground" effects until it's convenient to return. Retirement has its advantages.
(I have had several calls from my former employer's "home office", which I imagine are "invitations" to return as a contract employee to "help out" during the big mess that they are now dealing with. However, caller ID has its uses and this is one of them.)
I only evacuated the "irreplaceable" horns (Series 9 and 10 clarinets and my Model 33 bass clarinet). Everything else (the saxophones, including my old Conn and YBS-62, and the band sound equipment) is easy enough to replace should it be necessary. Virtually all of the band's book (all but my music and the bass player's music) is in a pretty secure building, while the backup copy (in paper) has been completely scanned and stored in several locations (including a copy with me on CD-ROM and a copy on removable hard disk), so that's all secure as well.
However, since our house is some thirty miles from the ocean or bay and at a relatively high location, and since our boarding is supposedly proof against Category 5 wind, I'm only worried about looting, and there appears to be none of that going on.
And, we have no mature trees in our area, the main source of damage from the wind. Photos of houses near ours show no apparent damage, even with unboarded windows.
My main problem now is finding things to keep my mother entertained. There's only so many movies that appeal to a eighty-two year old woman, and she's not up to much walking. We are eating a lot...
So, I appreciate your worries, but they are unfounded.
