When hot and cold meet

Last Thursday on the beach. Cape May, New Jersey.

Because, underneath all of this is the real truth we have been avoiding: climate change isn’t an “issue” to add to the list of things to worry about, next to health care and taxes. It is a civilizational wake-up call. A powerful message—spoken in the language of fires, floods, droughts, and extinctions—telling us that we need an entirely new economic model and a new way of sharing this planet. Telling us that we need to evolve.

~ Naomi Klein, This Changes Everything 

Another world is not only possible, she is on her way. On a quiet day, I can hear her breathing.

~ Arundhati Roy

It’s funny how short the distance seems when there’s a tropical storm on the map.

Michael, who came ashore in Florida yesterday as a hurricane, is headed this way.  He’s converging with a cold front that is also on the way.  There are all kinds of watches and warnings issued for tonight.  As of the time of this writing, there were five active warnings.  One, a small craft warning, doesn’t concern me since I won’t be going out on the water in a small craft today or tonight.

Gathering on a sunny day.

Because of my fascination with weather and storms, either in spite of or because of my fear of storms, I watched the live coverage on television yesterday as Michael made landfall.  It’s a scary thing to watch the weather reporters get rattled.  Thankfully, they came out of it okay.  From the photographs I’ve seen in the online version of the newspaper this morning, Michael caused a lot of destruction and (so far) two deaths.

Cape May waves.

It is hot and humid here today.  The heat and humidity will be meeting up with the colder, dryer air heading this way from the north and west.  That will be the main cause, they say, of the wild weather tonight.  Autumn will be clashing with the remains of Summer.

Splash and curl.

We’re in the 5-7 inch range when it comes to the rainfall prediction.  Wind speeds expected are in the 25-35 mph range this evening switching to 30-40 mph later when the wind shifts.  Some 55-60 mph gusts are possible.  The wind will cause the usual coastal flooding.  In other words, it’s going to be quite a bit like the nor’easters we experienced this past winter.

Wanna play?

We have battened down the hatches, so to speak.  M and I closed up the pool yesterday, which was kind of late in the season, but it’s been hot late in the season.  Outdoor furniture has been moved around before it can get blown around.  We’re always stocked up when it comes to water and food in case of power outages.

Getting a little crowded out here.

It is highly likely that the wind will keep me awake tonight.  I have plans to hunker down in a comfy chair or on the couch and read.  I just bought the October selection for the Now Read This book club and I’m looking forward to starting it.  It’s another non-fiction pick: American Wolf: A True Story of Survival and Obsession in the West.

Joining the crowd.

I’d better get out and have another look around.  Looks like we’ll start getting some rain soon.  Thank you for dropping by today.  We’re not going to see much other than clouds at sunset today so we’ll skip the jaunt down to the Point unless we get a break in the clouds before the real rain and wind arrive.  Sunset is scheduled for 6:33 PM.  If it looks worth the trip, I’ll see you at the Point.

Be good, be kind, be loving.  Just Be.  🙂

On the rocks.

A few of the 10,000 reasons to be happy:  861)  Meteorologists.  They do the best they can with the tools and technology they have.  862)  Shelter from the storm.  I often wonder what the outside critters do and think when storms blow by.  863)  Being prepared, as best we can.  864)  Meditation.  It keeps my anxiety levels down to a manageable level.  865)  Books and comfy chairs to help me through the windy night.

Zooming by.

A Walktober reminder and update:  This year’s dates are October 14-28.  I hope you’ll find the time to walk and participate.  (If you need more time, all you have to do is let me know.  If you’re unfamiliar with Walktober, you’ll find a link to a post about it in the sidebar, over there to the right.  Or, if you’re using your phone, maybe it’s at the bottom somewhere.)  I will put up (publish) the official “link to this post” on the 14th. If anyone wants to walk earlier, all you have to do is wait for that post to put in your link or pingback.  I will probably do the round-up of the posts/walks on November 1.  That date depends on whether or not anyone needs and asks for more time.