Batten down the hatches! - for real this time

Well, the only topic of conversation here is Hurricane Ike...


Originally tipped to make landfall further to the south of us, we're now expecting pretty much a direct hit. Galveston (on the coast) is under mandatory evacuation, as are parts of Houston (though not us at present), and the Houston ISD (Independent School District) has closed all schools for tomorrow (Friday), which means most of the businesses in the area are following suit. There's talk of putting the freeways into contra-flow, meaning that the only traffic would be OUT of the city, on both sides of the road, and we're all being advised to buy up gas, food and water... I'm not seriously worried about the winds, though they may be unpleasant (and I'm a bit concerned that the junky old tree in the front yard might take this opportunity to make a better acquaintance with our windows!), but we could be hit with some flooding, and if we lose power the weekend could be interesting...

It's a weird thing to sit and wait for something like this; the weather is normal right now, sunny and still for the most part, and yet I keep looking out at the garden and at our neighbours' homes and wondering what it's all going to look like in a few days' time... if you want to track the hurricane, CNN has a map here.

Anyway, we're remaining calm about it, and hope to weather this with minimal damage! Even so, your prayers would be appreciated.

I'll check in again after the storm is over!