Ike

I am sitting here reading about Ike. It is not going to hit us, but doesn't mean it won't affect us. But, I do have friends and family (not on the coast) that could be strongly affected.

One thing I have learned in the week and a half following Gustav, though it has stopped being shown on the national news, our area is far from over it. We still have like 40+% of the state without electricity. If you drive around there is blue tarps on roofs ALL OVER. There are trees lining roads (that have been cut up and are awaiting trucks to pick them up). All week last week, there was no "normal" television. It was news 24 hours a day ALL week. Hurricane news.

Katrina was such a different devestation from the flooding that it is STILL being shown/talked about. I read today that there were 25 deaths from Gustav in Louisiana. From what I have heard on the news, few of those are from the hurricane itself. There was a death DURING the hurricane that was a person who was at a "hurricane party" that decided to leave. They were drunk. You should not drive drunk EVER, but really, in the MIDDLE of a hurricane? The majority of the deaths, though, were from AFTER the storm. From clean-up. People cutting down trees and not knowing what they are doing. Trees fall on people. Trees also don't always fall DURING the storm. But the wind blows them and they lean. They only lean so long before they fall. Not really something you would think of!

This has been such a learning experience, and all I can say is that we are blessed!! My prayers are with all in Ike's line of fire - from the coast and beyond!