Hurricane Charley sucker punched me, Francis is going for the knockout!

[trumad]

Early this week I finally got the downed Oak Trees out of my backyard ...What a task. Folks...Central Florida/Orlando etc is just digging out of Charley. And now this. If Francis continues on the path they are predicting, it will beat our asses to a pulp. This Cane makes Charley look like a mud puddle. Charley lasted about 3 hours....this one is expected to last 20.

This agnostic is on his knees praying to the Almighty female God, (God's a female and probably a lesbian) to please turn this thing out to sea.....

[redqueen]

1. I'll add my prayers to yours

But I have a feeling we're getting our payback for what we've done to this planet.

:(

[Misunderestimator]

2. This fellow agnostic is right on her knees beside you on that one, tru

[demnan]

3. I hope it goes out to sea too.

This is a bad one. I'm sending all my good thoughts to my friends and family in Florida. Get safe and stay safe.

[strategery blunder]

4. I think it's God's judgement against Jeb bu$h*

and the way he installed his brother.

I'm still pullin' for ya, but I think you had best get away from there.

[laruemtt]

5. you've got my prayers.

two of my sisters live in jacksonville. where are you? just hunker down, have plenty of water and provisions, and a couple of good books. all the best.

[Stew225]

6. Ah, it's the proverbial Nine One One prayer!

Well, although I'm up north, my prayers and thoughts are with you.

[RubyDuby in GA]

7. Come on up

You can stay at my place.

She's lookin' like she's going to be a doozy. I really do hope Florida makes it through this ok. No matter how stupid your governor is, you don't deserve this.

[Flagius]

13. Well...

Thats not really true, we did elect him twice...

[RubyDuby in GA]

14. Ok you're right

You do deserve a category 5 for that.
Jeb Bush and hanging chads.......

Go ahead Francis...level the state.

[silverlib]

8. My prayers for all of you that are having to endure this.

Are you leaving the area?

[Misunderestimator]

12. I have no plans to leave...

I'm far enough towards the west coast that it will probably not be as intense if it comes through here. But given what happened in Orlando with Charley, you can't ever be sure. And if or some reason there's an evacuation of my area, my first thought will be of those people evacuated from Tampa last time and ending up in the middle of the hurricane in Orlando. I have no idea what I'll do.

[silverlib]

16. Keep us posted

and let us all know how you are doing.

I lived on the Gulf Coast - lost one house in Celia and swear I'd always leave

and then spent the night in a station wagon in Cuero City Park while evacuating for Allen cause there were no hotel rooms and the shelters were full - swore I'd never leave again.

Now I don't live on the coast, but I can certainly empathize with those who do.

[X_republican]

9. I wish you well.

Just an hour or so ago we were able to get in touch for the first time with friends of ours who live in Naples.

Edited for grammar.

[fishnfla]

10. Its Frances with an "e" goddamnit!

this is the third time mispelled.

sorry pissy because Francis with an i is my middle name

[trumad]

19. LOL...Sorry

[Flagius]

11. Yeah...

I'm in Palm Bay and it looks like this is where its supposed to make landfall. We dodged a bullet with Charley, but looks like our number is up now...
Before we all die though, I move that we officially rename Charley "Bush" and Frances Cheney"!

[Samurai_Writer]

18. I'm in Fort Pierce...

and I'm making plans to leave. OK, I was going out of town this weekend anyway (to Houston). But now I'm taking my cat with me.

[GoddessOfGuinness]

23. I used to visit there every summer

when my grandparents lived there. I hope it changes its mind and heads back out to sea...

[serryjw]

15. I evacuated when Hurricane Georges

was SUPPOSED to hit Largo Florida in '98........We missed it but it played hell on Gulfport MS.....I will light a candle and meditate that it goes out to sea

Namaste

[cmf]

17. I'm keeping you Floridians in my thoughts

It would be awful to have such a big storm on the heels of the last one.

[Heyo]

20. Thanks...

I'm basically at the Broward/Palm Beach county line.. barely on the north side, in Boca Raton...

I'm expecting maybe tropical storm force winds here, going to make some prudent preparations, will have some ice, bottled watter, batteries.. basically stuff I need in case I have to go without power.

Other than that, I'm more scared for my dad than for me, he's in the Sebastian area a hundred miles North of here or so, plus he lives in an old house built in the 1920's that's made of all wood. (It's an absolutely gorgeous, ornate house, but I dont know how it will fare in a category 4 hurricane.)

As for me, I will have my little bar-b-que grill going on the screened in patio (which is pretty sheltered) and battery operated radio and my girl and I will have a candle-light dinner and listen to some music and weather reports.

There are a few different breeds of us Floridians when it comes to hurricanes. One breed is the "panic, go buy plywood and water when the storm is 1,000 miles away and very little chance of impact, unless of course you still have so much stocked up from last time you did that" (these people tend to eat alot of canned vegetables all year round and always have plenty of batteries... their motto "well, yeah I know it doesnt look like it's headed this way... but you can't be too careful"

.. then there are those Floridans who have been through a few hurricanes and are somewhat hardened to them. We will probably just make sure we have what we need and then may or may not go over to a friends house who has a really sturdy reinforced concrete house and have a hurricane party. For those of you who have never heard of a hurricane party, they do exist, for sure...personally I don't do them. I need to be home with my stuff and family.

.. also sometime you'll come across the typical midwesterner or Californian, generally someone from the interior, who has no concept of what a hurricane can do, and, okay, he's going to take his surfboard to the beach and watch the storm come in... crazy how sometimes we find the bodies of those people all the way like a mile or so inland from the beach....

Best of luck to all.. especially those who get the direct hit... remember.. your life is more important than your stuff!

Heyo

[Flagius]

21. Palm Bay

I live in Palm Bay and wee seem to be the area they think its gonna hit. There are allot of people where I work who are literally making fun of the people with brains who are preparing for this thing. I finally told one of them that if they were alive on Sunday morning they shouldn't bother asking me for any batteries, or ice, or water... retards.

[Lorien]

22. As a fellow Orlando resident

I'm praying right along with you. I'm freaked! :scared:

[strategery blunder]

24. Updated track info

<>

[Lorien]

25. Still bad, bad news

for Trumad, myself, and other Florida DUers. :-(

[strategery blunder]

26. Bad news for my dad, too

But not as bad as Charley--he lives in Tampa.

He was told to evacuate and went to Cocoa Beach, which got tropical storm winds. He called it "good entertainment" when I finally was able to contact him a week later.