OT: Hurricane Frances

Thanks Kathy!

Those are all really good suggestions. I especially like the body cooler mat, but it's actually his head that's not supposed to get hot. Maybe I could order a small one and sew him a little helmet. LOL!!! And like I mentioned to Cheryl, I think the pressure from the storm could have been partly to blame. But just to be safe, I have one of those soft ice packs in the freezer. And I'll be paying much closer attention to him. Believe me, this will not happen again. I realize because of his condition (Feline Meningioma) the end is growing near, but I never would have forgiven myself if I had lost him that way. He's my big fuzzy love.

Dawn

PS ...Re: > but after a childhood experience trying to dress a cat, I can't say I

LOL!!!...Been there...done that! When I was eight years old I had a bunch of doll clothes and the most tolerant cat in the world! I think she actually liked dressing up.

LOL!!! But it's the one place I can put a fan and not have it blow my torch flame or pull the fumes towards my face. Now it has become my personal serenity unit! Maybe I should give it a name....I know...I think I'll call it...PRECIOUS!! ROTFLMAO!!!

Dawn

Jerri, why is it I can see Butterbean in a little yellow slicker, rainboots, and sou-wester? SHEESH My eyes, my eyes! ~~ Sooz To live a creative life, we must lose our fear of being wrong. ~~Joseph Chilton Pearce

Oh, poor sweeties! (him & you)

~~ Sooz To live a creative life, we must lose our fear of being wrong. ~~Joseph Chilton Pearce

Frozen peas in a ziploc, inside a damp, folded rag. Works beautifully. ~~ Sooz To live a creative life, we must lose our fear of being wrong. ~~Joseph Chilton Pearce

Precious, the Hoochie Coochie Cooler. SHEESH ~~ Sooz To live a creative life, we must lose our fear of being wrong. ~~Joseph Chilton Pearce

Basically, variations on the old standard, the swamp cooler.

Tina

"Kathy N-V" wrote...

Dawn,

You must be in W. Palm Beach. You and your family got very lucky that you didn't get any damage, especially to the mobile home!! I live in S. Broward County, right on the Dade/Broward line in a mobile home and we had to evacuate. Went down to the hospital in Coral Gables where my father works...they let employees families stay there during the storm, and there was a lot of gusty winds at times, and sporadic rain. I was worried sick to come back home, because I had heard that about 14 blocks from us, a tree fell over onto a car, and we have a few big trees around us...I was worried one of them had fallen over onto our house, or the contruction debris that the neighbor in back of us left out after re-doing their porch, would have caused some damage, but thank God it didn't! Before we evacuated, I actually went and moved some stuff that they had left out...they left out one of those pocket type knives, and a screwdriver...I shoved both under their porch door, because I knew if a good wind came along, it would pick either or both of them up and they would be flung right into the side of our house. I also put some things under their mobile home so it wouldn't blow around. They were in the process of moving, so they didn't really care what they left out or who's house it hit.

Anyways, we got home Monday around 11:30am, after staying at the hospital Sunday night, even though the evacuation order was lifted on Sunday. We were afraid that we might not have any electricity, and with my grandmother's broken leg and her having to use the bedside commode, we figured it would be better to just stay at the hospital an extra night. When we got home, we had electric...we might have lost it for awhile, but not long enough for anything to spoil, and we also found our front door awning had blown off. The only way to secure it was by tying it down, and that didn't work because the tie that we used didn't hold...it just broke and in the process the awning was blown off. We called one of the men from our Church and he came over yesterday and reattached it, along with drilling holes in the awning so it could be attached right.

Oh, before we left I packed my car up with everything important...old pictures, negatives, clothes, irreplaceable videotapes, autographed CDs, other photos, collectable cards, backup CDs of my computer, and all my beads and beading stuff! I wasn't about to leave some of that stuff, because I know what hurricanes can do to older mobile homes!!! Now with Ivan looming out there, I'm leaving the car packed, just in case!!! Oh, I think I'll be SOOOOOOOOOO glad when we move to Texas...no hurricanes out there where we'll be moving to!!!!!

Some of Broward County, especially eastern Broward and along the barrier islands is still without power, so that could be why Linda2 hasn't checked in. I think they said that around 50,000 people in Broward were still without electric as of today.

Valerie

Valerie

Dawn Scannell wrote:

> More later...LOTS to clean up! > Dawn >

I surely would have dunked him in water had the fan not brought him around. He's doing real good now though. He just had a midnight snack and he's happily chillin' in his little muse hut here in the studio.>

that's good to here - we don't want any sick kitties...

we had the edges of it move over us last night and today - mostly just a unseasonally chilly and wet day - with medium breeziness... nothing bad.. just wet.... Youngstown is several hours north of me... I'm in the south end of the state.

Cheryl DRAGON BEADS Flameworked beads and glass

Valerie,

I'm so glad you were somewhere safe during the storm. And please be careful if the next one heads our way. Actually, I live in Port St. Lucie, which is about 50 mile north of Palm Beach and just below Fort Pierce. It's pretty bad here. Instead of counting the fallen trees, cause there's too many, we count the few left standing. But when we drive 5 miles north to Fort Pierce, the whole town looks like a landfill, and that's where my parents have their mobile home. There was very minor damage to the three mobile homes that belong to our family, while others around them look like they just exploded! We were so incredibly fortunate. My Dad says he's going to buy my Mom a house after this. I was born in Miami and lived in Hialeah until I was eight years old, so I had family down there when Andrew came through. Seeing damage like that gives you a healthy respect for what Mother Nature can do. I won't be surprised a bit if the damage from Frances exceeds Andrew. Fort Pierce was the hardest hit by Frances and that's why I'm just amazed that my Mom's mobile home made it through with very little damage. Someone was definitely watching over us.

Dawn

> > More later...LOTS to clean up! > > Dawn > >

Dawn,

I grew up in South Miami Heights, which was right in Andrew's path...the house I grew up in was actually condemned...don't know what ever happened to that house. My mom grew up in Hialeah and now lives in Texas, where we're planning on moving to early next year. I live in Miramar, and before the Miramar/Pembroke Pines area was developed, we used to do all our shopping in Hialeah...Westland Mall, Kmart on 49th St., etc. That whole area has changed so much that we don't even go down there...and besides, Pembroke Lakes Mall and Pembroke Pines is so much closer than Hialeah. It's amazing that your parents mobile homes survived while the others were practically demolished. I'm worried that if Ivan comes along, ours will be demoloshed, also. Is your parents mobile homes newer ones (built after Andrew) or older ones (pre-1976?) If they're newer ones and the others were older ones, that could be the reason why theirs are still standing. We had ours re-tied down back in the late 1980s I guess it was, so hopefully they're still tight, which I would assume they are, because we've had some pretty good T.S. force winds and it's held up. I definately think that I want a house now when we move to Texas, and not another mobile home!!!

Anways, take care of yourself and your family, and I hate to say this, but start preparing for Ivan! It's already a Category 5 storm, and looks like it'll be at least a Category 4 when it makes landfall somewhere in the US! I definately don't want anybody else to be in harms way, but I think us Floridians need a break for a change, so let Ivan go somewhere else. If we're threatened by Ivan, we'll go back down to the hospital again. This time I've asked my father to come up so that I can put my grandmoter's walkers in his car, since mine is practically packed to the rim and I can't get anything else in there. She fell and broke her leg a month ago up in Kissimmee, and they released her just before Charlie hit the area. She's recouperating pretty good. She got up and walked twice today so far and she'll be glad when she gets the brace off and can start more intense physical therapy. Until then, we're doing the best we can with keeping her strong.

Valerie

Dawn Scannell wrote:

> >>>More later...LOTS to clean up! >>>Dawn

Small world! I grew up about 5 miles from the Westland Mall. I miss going to Farrell's Ice Cream Shop. But the thing I miss the most about living down there is the craft stores like "Diamonds" and "Pearls". I used to spend my entire allowance there when I was a kid. My Aunt was the last relative to leave there. We moved her up here 4 years ago, and it gave me such a sad feeling to know we were driving away from there for the last time. I'm wishing your grandmother a speedy recovery with her leg, and please do stay safe! Dawn

> > > >>>More later...LOTS to clean up! > >>>Dawn

That ice cream shop closed years and years ago. I thought that was the neatest place, but also it could be pretty embarrassing when they sounded that siren and all the employees came over and started singing "Happy Birthday."

Diamonds was still there a few years ago...I used to buy a lot of craft stuff in that store, too. I don't have any up here around me. I'm sure you heard that the store that used to be Zayer's in that shopping center where Diamonds is, burned to the ground. Don't know if they ever built another store there or not, it's been so long since I've been down that way.

The whole Hialeah area has changed so much in the past several years, that I don't even think there's one English speaking person left in that whole area down there. I do know that when you go into a store down there, the first language they speak to you in is Spanish.

Do you remember the roller skating rink that used to be in back of Kmart, and the Bar-b-Q restaurant in the front of Kmart there (can't remember the name of it), and also Ranch House that was in that shopping center. My stepfather used to be the manager of that Bar-b-Q restaurant until he got a job teaching ROTC in Texas in 1986, and that's when they moved out there...they've been out there ever since, and my mom just loves it. We're finally going to move out there early next year when my father retires...he's going to move out there also and get an apartment...he's tired of working and his boss is driving him crazy...plus he's also sick of having to worry about these hurricanes. He works in the Lab at Doctor's Hospital in Coral Gables and can retire in December.

As for Ivan, it looks like it's on the same path as Charley was. Not that I wish this storm on anybody, but like my Aunt said this morning, spread it out! Florida has been like 'hurricane alley' this year or something!!!

Valerie

Dawn Scannell wrote:

> >>>>>More later...LOTS to clean up! >>>>>Dawn

I saw something on television where they were experimenting with some kind of chemical or something, that they could drop into a hurricane and it could cause it to break up. I'm thinking it was something like dry ice. Why don't they just go sprinkle Ivan and make him go away!!!

Dawn

I like that idea! I don't know if they've actually tried it or not, but Ivan might be the perfect time to give it a shot!

An internet friend of mine has friends who live in Port Charlotte, and

*they* told *her* that they were told that they *must* evacuate the *state.* I think somebody is exaggerating, because I've lived here all my life (born here) and I've *never* heard of them telling people to leave the state because of a hurricane. They tell people to stay in their own counties with friends/relatives or in a shelter. Can you imagine what the traffic would be like if they told everybody in a hurricane's path that they *must* leave the state???! People would be stuck in their cars during the hurricane and there would be thousands of casualties. Heck, the only evacuations there have been so far has been the Keys, and they're being asked to go stay with friends/relatives on the mainland or at the shelter at FIU South. That's why I don't believe her friends, because I know what they say every time there's a hurricane threat.

Valerie

Dawn Scannell wrote:

Check out that site. I think it tells you about what you heard, the C5 section is where you need to look. HTH! Valerie

Yes, I believe it was the silver iodide they were talking about. Too bad it didn't work. Maybe we could all blow our collective fans at it and keep it out in the Gulf until it dies!

Dawn