BRING IT, IKE.

**Ike, courtesy of wunderground.com

So we're prepping for the latest hurricane badness here. We live about 200 miles from the Gulf, so there's not really that much prepping to do. (I was thinking of finally posting my "Creatures of Elgin" entry--I've been collecting pictures of the at-least-moderately interesting fauna here in Elgin--but coming right on the heels of my "Roses of Avenue F" entry it just seemed like too many lists.)

Wunderground gives us an 80% chance of rain Saturday (down from 100% as of yesterday, darn it). They're predicting 23-mph-ish winds. Ehn. Elgin's a windy place--if it's not over 35 mph, I'm not impressed. We'll drag the half-completed porch glider into the garage, I suppose, and Matt will batten down the greenhouses, but I think we'll both feel like mugs doing it.

I also went to Costco today, where I sheepishly filled my mongo-sized Costco cart with orangina, almond butter, Luna bars, extra-sharp cheddar, and other traditional hurricane necessaries. Despite growing up in New Orleans, I have no idea what to do in the way of hurricane provisions (nothing, you gullible nitwit! You live two hundred miles from the coast! You don't need any hurricane supplies at all.). One case of bottled water, or two? Which atrocious form of potted meat is least repellant when served room temperature on stale water crackers?--salmon, turkey, tuna, or "roast beef"? If I buy canned soup, can I heat it to palatability over a candle? Do I need to buy ice? (why ice? I don't know--it's like boiling water for women having a baby. I have no idea what it's for, but I have a strong impression it's essential. To keep the orangina cool if the power goes out?).

All I know for sure is that I'll be serving a cheese fondue at the height of the storm, since you cook fondue over a little gel-based burner that provides heat and light. We can lose all our utilities, but the fondue will carry on, unhindered.

I remember wanting to pick up a case or two of bottled water for Rita, but when I went to Target and Albertson's, the places were demolished. Nothing but a few forlorn packages of whole-wheat pitas in the bread aisle, and as for water, I had to content myself with a case of Gatorade. Which would have been very unsatisfactory for brushing one's teeth. This was, of course, right after Katrina, and everyone was feeling very vigilant. The intervening years seem to have taken the edge off (or else it's just that Costco stocks an absolute assload of stuff) because they still had bottled water up to the rafters. There were a few other paranoics and survivalists stocking up, though, so at least I was a doofus with company.

In other news, by 5:30 traffic had stacked up east of Manor on 290, and the unfortunate evacuees were just crawling along. I'm going to take back roads in to work tomorrow morning (Littig Rd to 969), although since Galvestonians are every bit as able to read maps as I am, they may fill up the side roads, too. None of my family are evacuating (which, given the state of the caulking in our shower, is probably just as well.) Mattchew & Bianca are closing on their new house in west Houston on Friday, so they naturally want to savor the joys of home ownership, hurricane or no hurricane. And Mom, Dad, and Grandpa are planning to ride it out, too (perhaps they peeped behind the shower curtain last time they visited and decided that no force of nature could compel them to face down that caulking?) They've never had any flood issues out in their neck of the prairie, so the greatest concern is presumably high winds and tornadoes.


**Holy Coriolis effect, that thing's big! I added the picture after writing the blog, just to have some eye candy. I don't think I'd looked at any radar pix in a couple of days, and it came as a bit of a shock. It's practically filling the entire Gulf! Er, Mr. Ike, sir, just kidding with the taunting and all. I think you're a very manly hurricane. Please don't throw a tornado at me. Although a little rain would be appreciated.