Back in Time to Batten Down

Okay, in spite of the fact that I stocked up on water yesterday and non-perishable food products, especially Pop-Tarts, which are easily portable and don't require cooking to be enjoyed, I really wasn't expecting this impending storm to be worrisome. I went shopping because the pantry was empty and we needed to fill it.

So should it concern me that they're canceling events around us? Should I be worried?

See, if I had started out by being worried (other people, specifically my spouse, have been known to call me paranoid), then Hanna would certainly have dissipated by now. So clearly it's my fault that the storm is heading this way, because if I had just worried a little harder, it would be down to about 5-mile-an-hour-winds by now. I'm sorry, everyone in the path of the storm, I am really sorry.

So my transition back to work has been proceeding more slowly than expected, pretty much because I've been cleaning the house, doing laundry, and battling crowds -- crowds -- at the commissary, while looking at empty water shelves. Yes, that was disconcerting. I have never seen that happen before, and it's not like we haven't had storms since I've been here. But that water was going fast. I am so glad I went shopping yesterday instead of procrastinating, because today, the stores must just be mayhemish.

This all does mean I still have a lot of emails to answer and blogs to visit and people to contact, and if you're one of them, please bear with me while I bring my brain back around.

Today, I am getting reacquainted with my artist self, drawing up new maps, reminding myself what it is that I do, after all, and putting first things first. I love drawing on gray days, because it feels so cozy. There might be tropical temperatures and humidity outside, but looking out the window, it feels like fall to me. Hot chocolate just might be in order.

Maybe Hanna would like some too, since she's apparently coming to visit. Then again, maybe she'd prefer some whiskey, as my new Mariner's Miscellany suggests the gods and goddesses of the sea prefer stronger beverages, and if a tropical storm/hurricane trainee isn't a goddess of the sea, then what is? But since I think we're all out of whiskey she'll have to settle for hot chocolate. If she's a courteous guest, I could throw in some marshmallows.

Ike, on the other hand, he's not invited.