Eye on Irene!

Evidence of our worst damage on the driveway. Notice the weeds in the cracks are thriving ....

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NOTE: If you want to read this in chronological order, start at the bottom .....

UPDATE: 10:00 p.m. Sunday -- I hope this is my adieu to Irene. It is still gusting with gusto outside, but our worst damage is shredded leaves and clusters of small twigs and branches in the yard and driveway.

I only hope Irene has treated my friends as gently as she has us ...

... In fact, our driveway is a notoriously difficult target. Just ask anyone who has ever backed out of it. The problem is its subtle curve. Imagine the challenge if your name is Irene and you are spinning counterclockwise. Even if you're not, if you back out with wheels straight, you will hit at least one of the vehicles parked there. If you turn your wheels, you will hit at least one of the vehicles parked there. Your only hope is to use a combination maneuver which avoids the vehicles but runs over the landscaping, curb, and/or garbage cans ....

So really, Irene, if you meant to take out major population centers of the East Coast and my driveway, you failed on both counts ....



... One unexpected but pleasant consequence of the weekend: Husband is delighted and charmed by the mini-flashlight I bought and has been entertaining himself with it all weekend even though we never lost power.

This particular model, made by Energizer, features LED illumination powered by a single AA battery. Its appeal -- beyond the fact it was one of the last left on the shelves on Thursday -- lies in its single AA battery. We usually spend a fortune on D's for an isolated situation, then the next time we need a flashlight they are all dead. In contrast, we use AA's by the gross, so theoretically we can always rob some other gadget for light if necessary.

I was also astute enough to buy a second, battery-free crank flashlight. It's chunkier, clunkier, and dimmer, but the next time one of the kids is looking for a flashlight, Husband will be able to offer them Cranky instead of  AA-LED. I am hoping this strategy will translate into hours if not days of further enjoyment for him, even though it is likely to be lost/buried somewhere when the next storm strikes ....

Whatever; now I know what to get him for Christmas ....


Adieu Irene! Hello sunny skies!







UPDATE: 3:15 p.m. Sunday -- As you can see from the photo, we were quite fortunate in not sustaining any damage nor losing power (yet). Irene tracked further west from us than I originally feared -- unfortunately for the western part of the state. However, it's probably best the state's east coast was spared the brunt of Irene's punch ....

The downpours have dwindled to a drizzle and the weather vane is behaving indecisively. Our rainfall total thus far is 6 inches. Reports of local and area power outages are sporadic. The worst we experienced was a few seconds of flickering lights.

The cat is deliberating venturing outside after being cooped up all day.

My thoughts and prayers go out to those less fortunate than us.



 UPDATE: 9:20 a.m. Sunday -- Irene has just been downgraded from a Cat 1 hurricane to a tropical storm -- as expected. At this time she is poised to visit NYC before chugging north towards us.

We have recorded over 3 inches of rain in the last 24 hours. Our neighbor's weather vane is pointing unequivocally east. We don't see that too often, and it always signals bad news here because it's the same direction as a nor'easter. The good news is it's not snow; the bad news -- to come .... I rely on another neighbor's flag to estimate wind speed, but this time of year our view is blocked by a maple tree ....

The cat is pestering to go outside. You gotta be kidding! One of those relentless red bands of rain is moving through right now. It looks like a moving wall that sometimes slants to 60 or even 45 degrees.

So we are soldiering on with a ceiling leak in one bathroom and a clogged toilet in another -- neither of which we can blame on Irene!


UPDATE: 4:16 p.m. Sat. -- Weather Channel correspondent talked about the possibility of Wall Street being underwater.

What a metaphor!


... First of the rain came and went. I've been washing all my vegetables so at least we can eat vegan if the power goes out ....

Ok, Irene is predicted to drop from a Cat 1 Hurricane to a Tropical Storm, but losing electricity is still a real possibility. I fear losing my gadgets ....

Saturday, Aug. 27, 2011, 1:15 p.m. 

SHREWSBURY, Mass. --  We are finishing our preparations before the rain starts ... It's a calm, humid 77 degrees here now, but the first band of showers is closing in on us. I have moved half of the 10,000 potential projectiles on our property indoors. I have moved 'That Big Old Oak Tree Out Back Will Hit The House If It Falls' to No. 9 on my Top 100 List Of Things Contributing To Insomnia .... More later as long as the power doesn't go out.

Here in progressive Shrewsbury, we have our own power company. In our neighborhood, utilities are underground. That's all great, but we still have no control over what happens farther up the grid ....

Doncha hate it when you have an earthquake and hurricane in the same week?












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