The latest answer is not.
I've been talking to David, who lives in Houston, to see if he was going to leave the city and come to Dallas before Hurricane Rita hits. At 8am he said he and his housemate would come "later today." At 1pm, he said, "We'll leave within the hour." At 3pm he said, "Nope. Too much traffic, and no gas is for sale in all of Harris county. We're going to stick it out."
He said he went grocery shopping yesterday, so has non-perishable foods. He hadn't thought of candles and a flashlight, so he may not be staying up to read when the power goes off.
4 comments:
In Puerto Rico, preparing for a hurricane used to take all of our school staff, including our three sons, a whole day. When everything was tied down, put away, boarded up, or moved into a sheltered place and supplies checked and replenished (hopefully not necessary, as the lines in the stores were ridiculous and the store shelves were soon emptied of things like batteries), water bought and saved (in every possible container---filling the tub is a good idea, but none of the apartments at the school had a tub), ice made (water frozen in pop bottles takes a while to thaw and in the meantime keeps food cold), food cooked (hard boiled eggs are a good idea), vehicles gassed up, and mopping/bailing equipment assembled, we would wait, wait, and wait some more, watching updates on TV until the power went off and then listening to phone-in radio programs where people all over the island would call in and say what was happening in their area (until the phones went out!). My husband and sons could always sleep right through the night (guess it helps that my husband is deaf---but the boys aren't, what's up with that?), while I would be wide awake, listening to the radio and the noise outside and keeping the hurricane map updated with the newest coordinates. After the worst hurricane we experienced, we had no electricity for six weeks, although we only went one day without water (many people on the island went without water for weeks).
All that is to say that I have come to believe that hurricanes are the "best" natural disaster, if there can be such a thing. You have plenty of warning, can prepare as much as possible, can choose to leave if that is the best plan (although in P.R. it would have meant flying out well in advance), and can keep yourself well informed as it approaches. Yes, they can be very destructive (especially in New Orleans, but that was a combination of unusual and tragic circumstances). That's not to say that there is no cause for concern. They are a big pain in the neck, and anything could happen. It makes you very thankful for normal, even "boring," days and, no matter what kind of damage you have to deal with, so very thankful to God for life when it is over.I'm praying that your David and his home will come through with flying colours.
GrammaMack
I'd forgotten David lives in Houston...
We will certainly pray.
Thank you for your prayers for David. I still wish he would come home.
GrammaMack--send me an email at thainamu@gmail.com I'd like to ask you about your time in PR.
Yes,hurricanes are quite the bother but can be planned for. It is hard on those of us who have family...in the wake of one. We have to wait far away and just pray for them. My family is in TX..most evacuated from Houston and Galveston...now it is headed to Longview...LETU my kids are there so we MoMs will just keep praying for safety!
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