Prepare for the worst, and hope for the best. That’s where we’re at this morning. As Hurricane Helene made landfall in Northwest Florida last night, weather advisories went out across most of the Southeast and into the Ohio Valley. This storm is large enough to simultaneously cover most all of Florida, Georgia, Alabama, both Carolinas, Tennessee, Kentucky, Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois. While Florida and Georgia will see the worst of the storm, heavy winds with gusts up to 60 mph and plenty of rain are likely across the rest of the region.
What you need to know right now: If you’re flying Delta, you’re going to be delayed. Atlanta already has numerous cancellations that will affect much of the nation. Don’t expect that situation to get any better until Monday. Friday night football? Just stay home. Make up the game next week. If you have any lawn decorations, they probably should have been brought in last night. At the very least, get them in before noon today. Make sure your phones stay charged as power outages are expected all across the region. Localized flooding is pretty much a certainty; don’t drive into high water. If you can stay in all day, do that.
That being said, G has a school field trip to Fort Wayne today. The good news is that Ft. Wayne is outside the weather-affected area. Barely. The bad news is that they’ll be coming back home when the winds are at their worst. Would I rather they reschedule the trip? Yes. Is that my call? No. Will I worry? Duh, of course. I think Tipper is planning on spending the night with a friend. That makes me anxious because she’s not all that good at keeping her phone charged. If power goes out on that side of town, will she be able to let us know?
This is likely to be a rough day for the dogs as well. Ours don’t particularly like going out in the rain. The rain was rather light when I took them out earlier, and even with that Belvedere was quick to do what needed to be done and run back under the carport for shelter. In the hour since then, rain and wind have both picked up. They’re huddled down, curled up, and under covers. Of course, they won’t go out at all unless I go with them. They’ll just stand there under the carport and whine. So much for having big, brave guard dogs.
Locally, we’re not expecting the really heavy winds until around noon. Once they get here, though, they’ll stay until somewhere around 11:00 tonight. That’s going to make the evening commute something close to a nightmare. Rain is likely to continue most of the weekend. If you have small children, you have my sympathy.
As if that wasn’t enough to worry about, Russia’s Vladimir Putin has extended the list of scenarios in which he is likely to authorize the use of nuclear weapons. No, that’s not good news. Yes, it pushes the planet closer to WWIII. No, there’s not a damn thing you or I can do to stop it. I’m not convinced anyone can at this point.
Matters aren’t looking good in the Middle East, either. Israel’s Netanyahu is saying he’s planning on hitting Lebanon as has Gaza. This comes even as negotiations for a cease-fire are supposedly continuing. I find it difficult to believe that any progress is being made as long as politicians keep shooting off their mouths. Be sure, if Netanyahu was the one at severe risk, he’d be singing a different song. Politicians only care about their own power.
Yeah, things could be better. At the same time, they could get a lot worse. You can still register to vote online in most states. Do that.
Me, I’m pouring another cup of coffee and keeping my eye on local radar. I’m old. This is what I do.