SANDY

The news about tropical storm/hurricane/take-your-pick Sandy is not encouraging. Dubbed both Stormzilla and Frankenstorm, this weather pattern is expected to make life hell for many of us on the East Coast for the next week or so. Oue local gas station was crowded last night as people both their cars and gasoline containers. Hurricane Irene did a number on us last year and Sandy may do worse.

Of course, nobody knows how bad this storm will be or where it will hit, but the combination of a cold front coming in from the West and Sandy coming in from the East -- as well as Monday's full moon -- does not bode well. Because the East Coast is such a great place to be, Sandy is expected to stay for days, bringing perhaps twenty-four inches of rain. I'm located high enough so any flood won't reach us, although a number of places in our development are at risk. More at risk are several homes sited on cliffs directly adjacent to the Chesapeake Bay; the steady erosion of the cliffs have placed these homes in danger and Sandy may provide the coup de grace.  (What people were thinking when they built homes on such places escapes me.)

We lost a lot of trees and limbs last year during Irene.  Entrance to our development was cut off and an old path had to be opened up for traffic, although many people couldn't reach even that due to felled trees.  My neighbor across the street had his car pancaked by a large oak.  Power was out for five days and we stayed at a local hotel which had us moving from room to room daily, depending on their advanced reservations.  Christina and her family stayed with us in the room for the first two days (they needed our room's small refrigerator to hold medicine for one of the kids).

This time around we also have Declan (the dog who found and ate all the Halloween candy we had bough -- bad puppy!) to think about.  Christina has added Jack Patrick Kangaroo (now three months old and very happy about it) to the mix, as well as the Kangaroo's six-year-old sister whom Christina and Walt have just begun fostering, and Gormagon the bearded dragon (who joined the three dog/one cat/four goat/one ball python menangerie earlier this month).

I've removed everything lying loose on the front and back yards.  Hatches are battened.  We have food, water, candles, etc.  Over at Christina's, they have a generator in working order.  So we're good to go.

Here's hoping nothing happens.

And here's hoping that everyone else onthe East Coast remains safe.