Irene, What a Fickle Broad You Were

I have no complaints.  We were so lucky that she downgraded from a Category 3 to a Cat 1, buy the time she reached us. 

I had talked to Terry twice on Friday morning while he was at work at the Marine Base.  Some of the guys there were planning a Hurricane Party for Saturday.  Oh, yes, I remember being 20 something.  His first words to me were " I think we'll just hunker down and ride it out."   Has my mother possessed his body?  Terry, in all 30 years we have been together, has never said "hunkered" once.  This weekend I heard it at least a dozen times.  He said that's what the guys on base were saying.  I, for one, did not want to hunker down.  I wanted to get the heck out of Dodge.  He finally agreed with me so I was relieved that I wouldn't have to have a screaming "hissy fit", another southern expression I was glad to employ.

We were in out hotel room watching our corner of the world get pummeled by winds and rain.  I mostly feared flooding.  I prayed the downspout channel would work and it did.  We were dry.

On our home we saw a lot of downed trees, a lot of billboards that were destroyed, and some down power lines.

Downed power lines near Havelock, where The Cherry Point MCAS is, where Terry works.

This is the line to cross the intercoastal waterway bridge from Morehead City to Atlantic Beach.  You needed to  prove residency to cross.

Just yesterday this was the story there.  

                                       I have no idea where you start on something like this.

                                                        This is a street behind us.

This guy says it all doesn't he?  He seemed in a daze looking at this huge tree he had probably just finished cutting up.

One of my neighbors had a beat up Crepe Myrtle and another had a downed Ornamental Pear.  We were lucky.        

I was surprised to see that the Honda and the Ford Dealerships had removed there dozens and dozens of cars from their parking lots.  Where do you put 100 cars?  The Chevrolet dealership held on to theirs.  We saw about 40, easy, Progress Energy Power trucks out on the road.  We arrived home about 10:30am and by 2pm we had power.  A lot of areas still do not, but I am sure they will soon. I was so impressed with all those trucks out.

 
So I have survived my first hurricane.  I don't know if if counts when you run away from it.  I may run from the next one too.  We did all we could and prayed that was enough.  This time it was, for me.  My heart is with those that had damage and faced tornadoes in the midst of this.  I am looking forward to boredom now.