So! Do you know what today is?

(Besides Friday, June 1st, smart-asses!)

Today is the first official day of hurricane season!

And it’s off to a good start; there’s already a “hazardous weather outlook” bulletin posted at the National Weather Service website that includes: isolated tornadoes, heavy rains with possible flooding, 20mph winds with 25mph gusts, and tornadic waterspouts. I have a feeling it’s going to be a fun summer on the Atlantic coast.

Which is a particularly exciting prospect when you have an outdoor wedding in twenty-two days! On a beach, no less! Followed by a week on a boat floating through the Caribbean!

Not that I am having any sort of doubts or insecurities, no. Not at all.

(Attention, wedding guests: be sure to bring a raincoat to wear over your linen shirts and sundresses!)

I miss the days when summer just meant afternoon rain, 98% humidity, and temperatures hovering near 100F. Ever since the 2004 hurricane season, when four high-level hurricanes slammed into Florida, the state’s inhabitants are expectedly nervous; news channels mention hurricane preparedness at every chance and many retailers will no doubt find their shelves cleared of water, batteries, and other items that are part of the sales tax holiday. All eyes are anxiously on the Atlantic and Gulf coasts, not an easy feat when most of the state is coastal.

Me, I just hope the power stays on this entire season.

During the 2004 hurricanes, our apartment complex lost power for almost a week while the rest of the city had power within days. (The transformer for our building was destroyed, though nobody knew it at the time.) The apartment we lived in had, like, three tiny windows, none of which caught a breeze. It was sweltering, humidity was through the roof thanks to the rains, and the candles just made the evenings even more unbearable so we’d drape ourselves on any available surface and sit in the dark, trying to move as little as possible.

It was the most miserable week ever.

(How’s that snow, AW?)

“They” say this will be another active year, thanks to El Nino of course. Ten storms, people. Ten! Then again, it really only takes one bad hurricane to ruin your life. Just ask anyone who lived in New Orleans two years ago.

In the meantime! I’m going to gloat about the cloudless skies and balmy temperatures at every given opportunity while prancing around in my flip-flops and tank tops! (With rain boots and an umbrella stowed nearby, naturally!)

Filed under: florida, weather