FaunaClassifieds - View Single Post - Hurricane season

07-07-2021, 02:48 PM

Moving is something I would only undertake with a cattle prod poking my butt to make me do it. I remember when I was down here by myself unloading a rented moving truck. It was raining, the ramp was slick, I was tired, wet, and really stressed out. The thought crossed my mind that I wondered what was going to kill me, slipping on the ramp and breaking my neck, catching pneumonia (it was November) and dying, or just the stress making my head explode. I believe I STILL have a couple of boxes that I have never unpacked since moving. Lordy, just thinking of all the work I would have to do now just to get ready to have movers come in and haul the stuff makes me break out into a cold sweat. I would love to sell off my herp book library, but just the work involved to photograph, offer for sale, and ship the books and publications out makes my head hurt. Take them all to a show? Lordy...... I've watched book sellers at shows breaking their backs bringing in all those heavy boxes. Then when the show was over, breaking their backs hauling most of them back out again.

Nope. I will probably die here.

One thing I did check out before we moved down to this area was the actual frequency of hurricane landfalls in this particular area. It is on par with what used to be called Cape Canaveral. Meaning it was about the lowest incidence in the entire state. In the 30 years we have lived here, there has only been one storm that chased us out of here, and that was Michael. We have had power out a few times, and some trees snapped off we had to clean up, but all in all it is not all that bad. And we had a few of the most threatening trees removed recently before this new roof install. But trees surrounding the house can be beneficial. They keep the most damaging winds aloft so that they don't get to ground level and maybe lift your roof off of your house. Those trees I mentioned that snapped? Well they sacrificed themselves with those high winds snapping out the tops of the trees instead of having the winds do damage to the house and buildings. Yeah, one might fall on the house or a building, but I would rather have a damaged roof rather than having no roof at all after a storm.

And to be perfectly honest, no way in Hell I am ever moving north. For any reason. I do NOT ever want to see snow again when I look out my front door. And I do NOT ever want to see the thermometer in the 30s during the daylight hours. Heck, I won't even visit up north in the Winter months. When we moved down here I told my mom that I was NEVER coming up north in the Winter and she said "Do you mean that if I die in the Winter, you won't come to my funeral?" I just told her, "Make sure you die in the Summer months.". As it turned out, she moved further south and died near Englewood Florida. So yeah, I went to her funeral.

So what would be my options? Move further south? Yeah, leaning into a punch by doing that. Moving east? Wouldn't be gaining anything there, either. Moving west? Would have to go inland to get away from the Gulf of Mexico, and that would put us right along the Mexican border. Thanks, but no thanks. It's bad enough having to shoot squirrels around here, and that is legal.

And then there is the state wide and local political climate to be considered. Some places are just going to be better than others in the coming years. There is talk of Biden ordering people to go door to door with compulsory vaccinations. Yeah, just talk, I know. But in the county I live in now, that would be a real stupid thing for people to do. You just don't threaten rednecks with needles.

A while back I actually toyed with the idea of moving to Central America. So I looked into it. A lot of things we take for granted in the USA just do not exist in a lot of other countries in that region.

Anyway, Elsa made landfall between Steinhatchee and Perry, Florida, well East of us. We are getting a little bit of wind here and we have gotten just 0.02" of rain so far. So pretty much a non event. Seriously, in this area, that is pretty much par for the course with these tropical storms. A whole lot of worry and preparation, then a big sigh of relief afterwards.

No place will ever be perfect. But what we have here is likely as close to it as I could realistically ever hope for. Basically, 364 days of semi-paradise, one day of a landfalling hurricane in your front yard. Just deal with it.

07-07-2021, 02:48 PM	#23
WebSlave	Moving is something I would only undertake with a cattle prod poking my butt to make me do it. I remember when I was down here by myself unloading a rented moving truck. It was raining, the ramp was slick, I was tired, wet, and really stressed out. The thought crossed my mind that I wondered what was going to kill me, slipping on the ramp and breaking my neck, catching pneumonia (it was November) and dying, or just the stress making my head explode. I believe I STILL have a couple of boxes that I have never unpacked since moving. Lordy, just thinking of all the work I would have to do now just to get ready to have movers come in and haul the stuff makes me break out into a cold sweat. I would love to sell off my herp book library, but just the work involved to photograph, offer for sale, and ship the books and publications out makes my head hurt. Take them all to a show? Lordy...... I've watched book sellers at shows breaking their backs bringing in all those heavy boxes. Then when the show was over, breaking their backs hauling most of them back out again. Nope. I will probably die here. One thing I did check out before we moved down to this area was the actual frequency of hurricane landfalls in this particular area. It is on par with what used to be called Cape Canaveral. Meaning it was about the lowest incidence in the entire state. In the 30 years we have lived here, there has only been one storm that chased us out of here, and that was Michael. We have had power out a few times, and some trees snapped off we had to clean up, but all in all it is not all that bad. And we had a few of the most threatening trees removed recently before this new roof install. But trees surrounding the house can be beneficial. They keep the most damaging winds aloft so that they don't get to ground level and maybe lift your roof off of your house. Those trees I mentioned that snapped? Well they sacrificed themselves with those high winds snapping out the tops of the trees instead of having the winds do damage to the house and buildings. Yeah, one might fall on the house or a building, but I would rather have a damaged roof rather than having no roof at all after a storm. And to be perfectly honest, no way in Hell I am ever moving north. For any reason. I do NOT ever want to see snow again when I look out my front door. And I do NOT ever want to see the thermometer in the 30s during the daylight hours. Heck, I won't even visit up north in the Winter months. When we moved down here I told my mom that I was NEVER coming up north in the Winter and she said "Do you mean that if I die in the Winter, you won't come to my funeral?" I just told her, "Make sure you die in the Summer months.". As it turned out, she moved further south and died near Englewood Florida. So yeah, I went to her funeral. So what would be my options? Move further south? Yeah, leaning into a punch by doing that. Moving east? Wouldn't be gaining anything there, either. Moving west? Would have to go inland to get away from the Gulf of Mexico, and that would put us right along the Mexican border. Thanks, but no thanks. It's bad enough having to shoot squirrels around here, and that is legal. And then there is the state wide and local political climate to be considered. Some places are just going to be better than others in the coming years. There is talk of Biden ordering people to go door to door with compulsory vaccinations. Yeah, just talk, I know. But in the county I live in now, that would be a real stupid thing for people to do. You just don't threaten rednecks with needles. A while back I actually toyed with the idea of moving to Central America. So I looked into it. A lot of things we take for granted in the USA just do not exist in a lot of other countries in that region. Anyway, Elsa made landfall between Steinhatchee and Perry, Florida, well East of us. We are getting a little bit of wind here and we have gotten just 0.02" of rain so far. So pretty much a non event. Seriously, in this area, that is pretty much par for the course with these tropical storms. A whole lot of worry and preparation, then a big sigh of relief afterwards. No place will ever be perfect. But what we have here is likely as close to it as I could realistically ever hope for. Basically, 364 days of semi-paradise, one day of a landfalling hurricane in your front yard. Just deal with it.