Still okay here in Boston, but I've been following this storm story too. Poor Louisiana.

The Weather Channel is awesome!

I hope they're all okay too. You'll know you have a real problem with the weather when you start hanging out in weather chat rooms.

I've got friends and family in FL and so far they've checked in ok... but when you see a hurricane of this magnitude you can't help but worry. I hope all your friends and family are ok as well, and I'm sending extra happy thoughts and mental voodoo their way and yours.

Holy MOLY! I had heard that they'd downgraded Katrina to Cat 3 instead of Cat 1, but YIKES! that thing is HUGE!

I called my Mom last week, when it hit Ft. Lauderdale, since she and my Uncles live near there. Her house was still standing, but her power was out, and the dog refused to go outside because it was dark, and this dog is convinced that if it is dark, it is nighttime, and time to sleep. Which, I guess, isn't a bad way to get through a hurricane.

Hopefully she'll lose momentum by the time she comes through Birmingham!

I am also weathe obsessed.

I am all ready for the Hurricanes this year. Now that I have mastered the knit stitch I can hide in my walk in closet and knit scarfs!

we don't have weather in socal. that's why you watch so much weather channel.

it's weather PORN.

Also a geeky amateur weather watcher! I know I always say this whenever I visit your blog but you are fab! Here in the UK we're also watching the weather reports - poor New Orleans.

I'm in South Florida - South Dade to be exact, we got hit by Katrina when it was just a category 1 and it was horrific. My friend Becky lives in the panhandle and is boarded up and suffering thru the outer bands at 62 mph now...New Orleans and Mobile are getting slammed - just horrible..I've been glued to the Weather Channel also...

I haven't been able to turn on the news. Went to bed at 12:30 last night after watching all evening and got up at 6:30 this morning to watch some more. I'm so relieved that New Orleans didn't get demolished like so many people were predicting, but the damage from this storm to other communities is going to be really bad.

Don't your parents live in Louisiana? I hope they are ok.

yeah, I always feel so bad for the people. And for the places (I mean, who wants New Orleans under water?? Not I! Great architecture, history. Not to mention the fun!).

But my main concern is always the animals! Who's taking care of them? You know there are some not-so-good pet owners that just leave their pets to fend for themselves! ARGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

Scary and sad. Scary and sad. Good thoughts to all the people, places AND to the animals!

My mom has always been a weather junkie. She was SO happy when the Weather Channel was invented.

I dated a meteorology major in college. He had taken a class from Fujita, of the Fujita Scale. I ended up marrying one of his (the ex-bf's, not Fujita's) ex-roommates.

I myself am often weather-oblivious. Until it hits! Then I wonder where that came from!

I'm sending hopes and prayers to all the good souls, human and animal alike, living in the path of that storm.

I must say, I was glad that she (mostly) missed us here in south florida, but sheesh...I never meant for Katrina to get mad and churn about, heading for the Big Easy!!

I got a call from one of my best friends in Louisville last night to tell me that her husband was flying in Katrina! He heads up the National Weather Service office in Louisville and flys in the hurricane planes for the Air Force. I think that's awesome; up there flying around in a catagory five hurricane.

as a hurricane andrew kid, i am torn between wanting to watch and wanting to hide under my blankets. but i am married to a storm freak. (and my grandma lives in biloxi) so at 1 am, we watched the news, at 4 am we watched the news. at 7 am we watched the news. and 9 am...yep, more weather news. i did get some knitting done.

I too am a weather junkie -- my son used to DANCE to "Weather on the 8's" when he was a toddler -- there is that one weather guy that is pretty hot too...hmm.... I also laugh sometimes that their voices and their mouths don't match the movements...sort of like watching an old japanese movie! LOL!!

Kat - That is exactly how I got my kitty! Some dork left her out during a hurricane (Andrew? something in 1991-ish)in Florida and my Mom's friend rescued her and brought her to live with me. I thank that dumbass every day for my sweet Keko!

I heard this morning from my mom in Ocean Springs MS (near Biloxi) and she is fine, but the entire first floor of their house is under water. They live on an inlet (don't know if it qualifies as a bayou) of the Gulf, which is now inside the house. But sounds like the worst of the weather is finished, and now they just have to wait for the water to recede.

I tell you what, I'll take my CA earthquakes any day! :)

I soooo love watching the weather too. My Mom did the same thing; I'd walk into her room and she always had the weather channel on. Then when she died, I found a notebook with YEARS of the daily highs and lows written down. I NEVER knew she did that. I love sitting outside and watching the weather anywhere. Hehhehhe Weather Porn - what Kendra said. Sigh. We only have TWO weather settings in Las Vegas. HOTTTTTTTTT and 50 degrees. The only thing that changes is the wind speed. I usually only turn on the news for the weather...like it's going to change much here. My heart goes out to all those in Katrina's Path. Blessings.

My husband is a HUGE weather fanatic. Laurie you'd love him. Even I know all the Weather Channel personalities because of him. He even went on a tour of the National Weather Service headquarters BY HIMSELF. I took a Weather course in grad school a couple years back just to be able to communicate with him, and my professor ended up being Dallas Raines! (For all you non-Los Angeles folks, he's local ABC weather man...)

My parents are in Florida, but they are on the water and at high tide they had water up up and even further up the sea wall ... and they are miles away from the storm! I tell you what, I'm with Jen M... I'll take earthquakes any day over hurricanes and tornadoes.

oh, my gosh, i am sooo completely a weather channel fan, too. my son calls it "mtv for old folks" cause it has the videos, the music, and the hosts. ha! speaking of hosts....dave schwartz is SUCH a cutie!!!!

I was glued to the tv, switched from CNN, FOX and then the Weather Channel. Whoever came up with commercials first would get booted and I'd move on to the next one. I've been thru a few hurricanes growing up in FL (first in So FL and now by Mickey) so I dont freak out at CAT 1 storms but I do find them fascinating. But going thru andrew (hi Yarnyenta!) I *know* what a bad storm can be and I know what they will be going thru. I hope all got out!! After a few hours I get weather overload and then I have to watch The Nanny.

Oh, so it isn't just my father who is like that? Even though I've seen Twister a bajillion times (Bill Paxton weakness) I'd never really thought of his natural-disaster-obsession as storm chasing. That sounds infinitely cooler.

At my Corporation Which Shall Remain Nameless, I walked into one of our breakrooms (for we have many) and found a Vice President glued to our 36 inch television. He was watching storm coverage on CNN, of course.

I have to disagree with Laurie & Jen M. at least you can see in advance that a hurricane is coming and get out of it's way. As for an earthquake there is no notification and that freaks me out.

I agree with No-L. I grew up in Oklahoma with tornadoes. Now I live in Louisiana. I can use a calendar for a hurricane. A tornado: maybe the minute hand of a stopwatch IF you've got a good meteorologist. Imagine getting 15 minutes notice for a c5 hurricane. Either way it's best to GIT when they tell ya to.

I live in Florida and was petrified that the little horror (aka as the hurricane that just pounded New Orleans) was going to come after us. As we all know it didn't, but maybe we should knit something for the poor people it did nail?

I just heard that this Hurrican ist as big as Germany!!! Since I live there I can now better imagine how big it really is. I couldn´t believe it, that´s horrible!

Hey laurie :)

Checking in... i ran to Dallas to stay with a friend. I left at 2 am on sunday morning and stopped at my mom-in-law's for 2 hours of nap in Baton Rouge.. then hit the road! Got in to Dallas at 6pm Sunday. Thought i'd watch the weather and be headed back home monday night or tuesday am... i mean that's how it USUALLY works... last time i evacuated it didn't even RAIN in new orleans, the storm turned at the last minute. last hurricane, i didn't even evacuate. and everything was fine. Now i'm seeing pictures of WHERE I WORK on the news... damaged.. i don't know yet about my specific office building. I'm having a hard time getting information. I don't know when the roads will be clear, i don't have high hopes of not at least having been flooded and maybe i'm stupid and disillusioned but i'm convinced that for *me* the worst is going to be that my place flooded. maybe if i deny deny deny then it'll all be true?? :) Yeah, i have a place to go back to. and yeah, i still have a job. and of course i'll have electricity when i get home!! well, you know.. i can be hopeful or i can cry. not a whole lot of options :) i'm sure i'm a lot better off than a whole lot of people so.. kidlette and i are fine. I can't get in touch with Pete. I keep trying and will continue to try. thanks laurie, and everyone else, for caring and for compassion.
*Hugs*

stephanie

Stephanie! Thank God you and the kidlette are OK! I am so glad you evacuated, I know you're freaking out, I am so sorry, but thank God you are alive and well.

I hope you are reading this -- I have been trying to call Pete for two days, last I heard he was riding it out but things look very soggy in his neighborhood, if you get a word could you email me or something?

Much love,
L

Hi, I live in Baton Rouge. It was a little rough here but everything is fine. I have gotten 4 days off from work (I work for the city-parish so thankfully I get paid for them all!). We have been told to not go out on the roads unless it was absolutely necessary, but no one has shown pictures of Baton Rouge damage except for some British news show on PBS!! Two channels have round the clock hurricane damage newscasts, which is getting depressing as hell. I'm horrified at the damage to New Orleans, not to mention Gulfport, which was pretty much wiped off the map. I was really lucky, electricity was out for only 8 or 9 hours, so I didn't lose food or anything. Had it all in the freezer with a frozen gallon of water as a cooler. No big branches fell in my apartment complex. I slept for much of the storm, because the low barometric pressure gave me a migraine, but I still feel like I hear the wind howling through the windows! It's kind of freaky. It is in the upper 90s here. Usually hotter in NOLA. Let's hear it for a/c!! Whoo-Hoo electricity!!!!! Keep those folks who had it so much worse than me in your thoughts. They surely can use some positive energy!

Mo

My parents have (had?) a home in New Orleans about 2 miles from the French Quarter. We have no idea what the condition of the house is, and apparently since 80% of N.O is now underwater, and the roads leading into the city not only blocked by the national guard, but so messed up that you couldn't get through anyway, we won't know for a long time. Thank goodness my dad decided riding the storm out in the house wasn't really a good idea and drove up to Baton Rouge. But the lesson I've taken from this whatever we lost in NO - it's just stuff. Stuff can be replaced. The lives of people you love, not so much. The house is insured, so we'll either rebuild, or not. But my dad is okay. And that's what matters most.

Three phrases should be among the most common in our daily usage. They are: Thank you, I am grateful and I appreciate.

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