THE ROONEY BIN: The ‘joys’ of hurricane season
"If any event teaches you how to perform on no sleep, it's a hurricane." --
Yikes! Hurricanes are scary. Although the Rooney Bin survived another major meteorological event, this one actually turned my hair white. (Admittedly, it could have been the fact that the storm delayed my monthly color and cut.)
I have a theory. If we spend two days in this heat -- a snow storm is beginning to look good -- sweating bullets wing-nutting 100 plus heavy metal storm shutters on Bin windows, we'll look silly, but
"Hurricane season brings a humbling reminder that despite our technologies most of nature remains unpredictable," author
Speaking of technology, the pressure was on as
That done, Storm Queen began making lists: Watch weather reports on TV; stock up on water; buy batteries; get more water; make reservations; cancel reservations; tell Binmeister to select a couple of bottles of wine to take along -- he chose six, just in case -- watch
Deegan addresses women's club
Club president
Program chair
"One of my draws here was, I could work where I could surf," he told the women gathered to learn about the job of forecasting Dorian and other storms on the horizon. He talked about the meteorology of hurricanes. "Hurricanes need warm water; that's their octane, their gasoline."
Tropical cyclones raise many questions, he added, but the fact that they move slowly means there is more time to prepare.
"It's so stressful. Small doesn't necessarily mean weak; large doesn't mean intense," said Deegan.
A category 1 or 2 storm is a big event, but not life changing; a category 3, 4 or 5 is major, and definitely life-changing if you get a direct hit.
"The words used to describe category 5 are 'unimaginable destruction,'" he said.
According to Deegan, the stretch of coast from
Then he offered some evacuation tips: Go where you're sure you're not going to lose power, and if you're going to evacuate, do it early.
Hotel hurricane party
Unlike 2017 when Irma kept shifting paths and had us driving all over two states, Dorian tracked up
Dorian canceled or postponed a few social events at
Although he has six or more model trains in his garage at home,
"It is always our best show for the most children seeing the layout," said
The club takes its portable layout to a number of events each year, including the Southern Division of the
The spinning "shark-nado," a tornado that appears to have sucked up sharks on the layout beach of the
There also was an operating model train in the Florida East Coast Mayport Depot and a static display of historic model trains in the museum's 1903 Post Office. Operation Lifesaver was there to instruct folks about train safety; the volunteer organization travels to events and schools to teach people to be cautious when crossing railroad tracks. The museum's historic chapel featured a screening of
The final word
Upon returning from our hurricane adventure, we were greatly relieved to find little damage, some tree debris and no flooding ... until I did a load of laundry, and the washer flooded the laundry room with a half-inch of sudsy water. Back we went to the store where the
"Laughter is like a hurricane, once it reaches a certain point, it becomes self-feeding, self supporting. You laugh not because the jokes are funny, but because your own condition is funny," said author
Joking about our hurricane experience is a way to relieve stress. We feel fortunate to have escaped the storm's fury, and our heartfelt thoughts and prayers go out to all who lost property and lives in the storm.
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