...then along came Jeanne!
 

The 4th hurricane in 6 weeks. Two for the west coast, two for the east. Unbelievable.

I was running yesterday in South Tampa and was surprised at the number of people who still have their windows boarded up. Those that have taken the plywood down just piled it near the windows it came from, ready to go back up.

We've left our boat hurricane proofed...the sail damaged in Frances still has to go to the sailmaker. Our dock at the hotel is still missing the front and rear portions and pilings were pulled up creating a hump...the estimates for repairs are just in. You begin to wonder if it's worth putting anything back together again until the season is over!

I'm so glad Scarlett and the Yankee left their boards up! Our best to her DD and the Pup, holding down the fort while Mom and Dad take a break from this, and to all others on the east coast.

Statia...are you still coming?? @-)

Yes, OO, we're still headed to MIA provided the airlines are still flying. We are due to arrive Sunday afternoon, and the circumstances are honestly not looking to be too good around that time. I wonder if we'll be able to drive anywhere to get any business done or just be holed up in the hotel room?

We are just afraid that if we postpone, MIA will end up not having any effects from Jeanne and we would have cancelled for nothing. I hope we're making the right decision.

Welcome home Statia. I'll bet you had a high time last night in St Maarten! :)

Hopefully by the time you are ready to leave for Miami you'll have a good idea of where Jeanne is headed. If we can count on anything, we can count on the current track changing! We were touch and go for our trip to Dallas last week, deciding the day before that Ivan was going to be enough of a miss that we'd be OK leaving.

Have a safe trip, and if worse comes to worst...head to the spa. :D When do you get back?

Yes, OO, hubby and I had a wonderful reunion in St. Maarten last night.

I have to go back to St. Maarten tomorrow night because I have the first flight out to San Juan the next morning. So, I don't think I'll know too much more about Jeanne before I head over there, but will hope for the best.

I already have a spa appointment this week, so if I can't do business, perhaps I can do the spa two days! :)

I'll be back here on Friday night, so I'll be in touch then, if not before. I'll also be keeping an eye on Jeanne's effect on Tampa, as well. Stay safe!

Jeanne seems to be an east coast hurricane, so far, and from West Palm Beach northward.

So, here we are in WPB hoping the damage is small and the power outage is short.

Good luck, everyone

PS, all you power guys, come back !!!

My parents are from Fort Myers Beach but are on a cruise right now. They were supposed to go to Nassau today and return to FLL tomorrow, instead my mother emailed me this morning that they "were hiding behind Cuba" and they get an extra 2 free nights on the cruise-- not returning until Monday.
I told her it's probably good, Alligator Alley will be packed with evacuatees.

Ugh...it doesn't look good, Statia. :( They are calling for landfall near Vero again around 2 AM. Maybe you can delay your departure a couple of days?

The track has been moved further west into the state as well. DH was scheduled to leave tomorrow for DC, but has cancelled. The hotel has been booked solid by people from the east coast and tropical storm force winds are expected here. Deja vu all over again--we've been this exact route with Frances. We had to toss out all the food from our freezer after 40 hours without power from her--and I just replaced much of it. :(

Yeah, OO, after watching TWC this a.m. and seeing that it isn't moving northward at all, we've decided it might be best to try and postpone until next week. I'll keep you updated.

Well, OO, change of plans again. After talking to friends and suppliers in Miami, they say that it will be business as usual and we should continue with our plans to come in. Guess we'll see what happens.

Can't say I'm thrilled about the thought of landing at MIA tomorrow morning, much less driving around in that storm. :(

Well, here she comes. My daughter's college (UCF in Orlando) is being evacuated by 9 pm tonight (Sat) and classes cancelled for Monday. Are they evacuating on the east coast yet?

There's still time for Jeanne to turn north. OO let's all get outside and blowwwwww!

Joan, it's hard to get the hang of the empty nest syndrome if she keeps getting evacuated home again, huh? :)

Statia...geez! You know, so many businesses have been severely impacted with this spate of storms, now no one will back off "business as usual" until the very last moment! Stay safe, and really, I hope you make it out of Puerto Rico. I worry about BTilke too, who was scheduled to fly into Orlando from Paris.

The 11 AM track shifted it west again and increased it to a category 3 now, saying it's possible that it could be a 4 by landfall. :(

Yes, everyone blowwwww! Maybe if you all blow hard enough, she'll go back out into the Atlantic. :)

I've thought of BTilke a few times today, as well. I hope she makes it into Orlando before the storm gets there.

Stay safe everyone!

No, OO, Li'l Miss Independent is spending the 'cane at her roommate's parents home in Orlando! The mom is home alone and the girls are going to board up the windows and stay there... so the nest will remain empty for now (and momma bird worrying 'bout baby bird of course). I invited them all to come here... weird that the beach house is inviting the inlanders for shelter, isn't it?

Thanks for the good wishes, Statia! Best to you too.

I'm BLOWWWWWwwwwwwwwwing, Statia, wishing you all a safe end to this weather madness.

I live on the east coast of Fl. and my sister lives on the west coast of Fl. It seems that every week or so we call each other and say "Tag, you're it".

My gracious you all! We still have that
guestroom if any one is looking to de-
stress! Comes complete with cats, a home gym, TV, patio, and this PC
:)
Many spas are nearby.
Your nerves must be steel and we
admire you all!
Vaya con dios
@};-
The R5's

To Statia, OO, and all the rest of you anticipating Jeanne--prayers winging your way! If all this weather(the hurricanes this season and Ivan returning as a TS) wasn't so devistating, it would be absolutly fascinating. What has made conditions so favorable this year for so many storms?!

Orlando airport is closed or closing shortly (forgotten what time they said). I'm so sorry for BTilke. :( Just what she didn't need. I saw on the Europe board that she doens't have a valid drivers license so she can't even rent a car to get to her mother's.

Statia...wonder if you made it out? Who knows, Miami might be high and dry by tomorrow. Beach weather.

Joan I know you can't be too happy about your DD being in Orlando for this! We spend their youth trying to raise them to be independent, self-sufficient adults...then when we have succeeded...we worry more and wish they weren't quite so independent. I have one too...she worries me to death sometimes...tent camping in Africa, beaching in Mozambique.

What we can at least smile about, is that we're getting real good at the drill. Preparation time for this is about cut in half. We know the jobs that need to be done and do them automatically. And I sure have a spic and span frig and freezer. All the food in there is brand new...no more surprise freezer burn. :) Oh...and the biceps from carrying the wrought iron patio furniture back and forth, into and out of the house. LOL You'll know Floridians by their ripped arms!

Thanks for good wishes too. Your guest room sounds perfect Razzle5. All the comforts of home, including the cats.

I don't know why there are so many this year, but they all seem to be heading to FL because the Bermuda high is out of place, keeping us from sharing the wealth with states to the north. The storms are tracking along the southern ridge of the high, right into FL. That was the explanation I heard a couple of weeks ago anyway, but don't hold me to it.

Poochie.... you made me laugh out loud at your "tag you're it" comment. I'll have to use that with my west coast friends.

MzPossum.... I heard earlier that one of our local So. Fla. weathercasters ran into a friend from the Hurricane Center this past May and they were concerned because it was so dry. They commented to each other that, historically when it was this same weather in So. Fla in May, the worst hurricanes have hit. He didn't go into the particulars, though.

Now, here's a South Fla update as of 6:30pm:

MIA closed down this afternoon, FLL closed down before MIA did. I am looking outside my 3rd floor condo window about 8 miles due west of FLL and while we've had gusts, it's about the same weather we had with Frances. The worst of the hurricane is expected between the hours of 10pm tonight and 2am. Check with your airline before you leave for the airport to fly to MIA. The flight might be postponed until MIA is accepting flights. Barring any bad damage to MIA (unlikely) the airport will open up sometime Sunday. What time does your flight arrive? Until the storm has passed, there is no possible way to know when the airports will reopen.

If you will primarily be in the Miami area, you might not have too bad a problem getting around. Just drive safely because you never know where vegetation will be. Loads of vacationers in the coastal area and cruise ship passengers who are stuck in So. Fla. are taking up most of the hotel rooms in Miami-Dade County. You may want to double check to see if you still have a hotel room tomorrow. No sense getting here if you don't have a place to stay! I hear it's much better in Key West! LOL

Just do your homework and you might find you can make your trip tomorrow after all.

Take care. And to the other Floridians ... HUNKER DOWN!

Gosh this is just de ja vu for the Floridians all over again. I feel so bad for all of the Floridians and Fodor Floridians. Your in my prayers. Maybe Jeanne will decide to turn away last minute.

Heartburn I hope Ft.Lauderdale will be safe and sound! We were even considering coming back to vacation in Ft. Lauderdale in November. We really enjoyed ourselves in Ft.Lauderdale. Beautiful place.

Stay safe!

TandooriGirl or OO....
I am in Maine right now, and haven't been able to get through to the people that were looking after our home. What are they saying for our area? The only real news I can get is from the internet and it looks like it will be a tropical storm as it heads through the Lakeland area.
I live on the coast, so I am sure they had mandatory evacuations. (More specifically...in Hernando County.)

If you have any additional info, I would appreciate it. Thought I could leave these worries at home when we left.
Thanks!

Highbay:
This is a really good graphic that is updated when the National Hurricane Center issues it's updates.
Copy and paste and then click on the maps for a real good look:
http://www.skeetobite.com/weather/

Thanks hibiscushouse, I actually have been looking at Skeetobite, but the last update was the 5pm advisory. I was wondering (with the last storms, there was 24hr coverage on the local channels) if there were any mandatory of voluntary evacuations in our area.
I live at Bayport, which only gets publicity if a storm comes around!

Heartburn3...this has been the strangest wet season, hasn't it? We no longer had daily thunderstorms. We had days of heavy rain, then days and days of dry weather.

We are so close to TIA that when the wind comes from the east (which fortunately it rarely does) we can smell jet fuel. Planes are coming and going as if it's a busy weekend in-season, one after another, either taking off or landing every few minutes. My guess is that flights have been added spur of the moment to get people out of here--not only people scheduled to fly from Tampa, but those scheduled to fly from Orlando too. We ran into some at our pool this afternoon who had been shuffled from Orlando to Tampa to get out.

I found a really interesting link on www.weatherunderground.com, I'd never seen before. It takes all the computer models from the initial tracking of a storm, includes the NHC forecasted track as well as the actual path in time lapse, showing how well the actual path correlates with the computer models and the NHC model. This would probably only be of interest to those of us in areas who are frequently affected by storms, who actually look at computer models and care what they are trying to tell us. Go to www.weatherunderground.com, click on <b>tropical/hurricane</b>. Under Hurricane Jeanne, click on <b>storm history/verification</b>. Click on <b>forecast/verification</b>. It'll take a few seconds to load. The black line is the actual track Jeanne has taken since inception, the silver line is the NHC forecasted track, and all the others are the computer models we've followed for each of the storms. The divergence is really interesting, as is the (very) occasional agreement.

I need to preview before posting, that was suppose to be mandatory OR voluntary evacuations!

Have you looked at www.TBO.com? They have evacuations listed.

Highbay...sorry, I was eating dinner between writing the above and posting, so did not see your note. There hasn't been a mandatory class A evacuation for our area (Hillsborough or Pinellas). Mobile homes and low lying areas are voluntary evacuations.

They continued to anticipate a northward turn, but it has yet to happen and continues to track due west. As a result, the track keeps shifting a bit to the west. If it makes the anticipated northward turn, we should only have tropical storm force winds as it will pass north of us with the strongest winds on the northern side. The forecasted track puts it further north than Frances was, as a point of reference.

We haven't had much rain at all, but the winds are picking up in Tampa, sustained at 22 mph now. They are out of the north, and will gradually shift to northwest later. Channel 8 keeps hinting that they expect the next official track will shift west.

You lucky thing in Maine! I think we will be fine, so find some wild blueberries and enjoy. Eat a lobster for me...lots of butter of course. Come home when this is over and done with...if it ever will be!

_OO____OO Shoot! can't figure out how to underline, but OO I want you yo know that lots of Northeners are thinking of all of you.

Thanks so much hibiscushouse. I see that they issued a voluntary evacuation for zone A in my area. It looks like it will be tropical storm weather when it reaches my area.
Thanks too, OO. We have been indulging on the wild blueberries and lobster. Maybe I am experiencing a little &quot;guilt&quot;. Gotta check on home syndrome. Whatever it is, I will be glad to have this season over with!

Sorry, I misspoke. Mandatory evacuations in our area (most all surrounding counties) for mobile homes and low lying areas. Eat more lobster...all for me of course. :) I'll work off the calories for you.

Thanks Mimi! Do you know how to make a word bold or to italicize on Fodors? Underline the same way, but substitute &quot;u&quot; for the &quot;b&quot; or &quot;i&quot; in the brackets.

I've done a dark and light wash, changed the sheets and run the dishwasher--not going to get caught this time wishing for electricity and water.

Last flight leaves TIA in a half hour, and airport will reopen around 5 PM tomorrow.

Sigh!! no, I'm completely inept. I can do smileys but thanks.

OO:
Please tell my husband that I don't have to run tomorrow!!! I usually run 4 out of 7 days. That's my profile. I am am L&amp;D nurse and have been for a long time.

I sure made it sound like we couldn't be invaded by a damn thing. I really love this barrier that we have established. I really love everything that we have been through.
PLEASE,advise me

If I'm certain of anything, highbay, it's that I'm <u>not</u> running tomorrow, so if you eat lobster, it'll be all your baby! :D

Hurry home, the Susan G Komen is next weekend!

So much for a lazy Sunday morning sleep! It is windy...new track shows Jeanne passing over Hillsborough County (Tampa area) as a category 1 hurricane later this morning, much further south than they thought last night. Where is that darn northward turn they keep promising?

Highbay...it puts you on the north side of the hurricane I believe, hope you can reach the people looking out for your house...are you away from the water?

I had white noise and fans running on high in my bedroom last night to keep my pets (and me) from being afraid. They miss their &quot;daddy&quot; and are easily spooked right now. Even with all that I was awakened about 3 a.m when a particularly heavy band of wind came through. We have had virtually no rain or maybe the wind dries it as it hits.

I'm supposed to go to Boca Raton Resort next weekend for a conference (need CEU credits for my license). The event was already moved from the Ritz on Palm Beach due to Frances. Looks like Boca has just be getting the outer bands like Fort Myers.

Jeanne is hopefully going to move on quickly and let us get on with our neverending clean up. LilMsFoodie

The power is back on in my neck of the woods!!!
Heartburn3- Thanks, My sis and I think
that's such a funny line. I live close to you. I'm between Griffin and Stirling, just east of Flamingo.