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« A little rain, a little wind. | Main | This Blows .... (that's a Hurricane joke ... get it?) »
So Gustav is swinging way south of us at this time. As a matter of fact it looks like it's going to dodge all of Florida.
Of course this doesn't stop all of the panic phone calls that I am getting. The fact that I have to explain to people that they can't cancel a trip to Key West just because of a little rain. In fact, we might not even get that much from this storm. It's going to pass HUNDREDS of miles away from us. One woman, called me whining.... yeah, whining like a 4 year old. I hate to say that it worked. I canceled out her reservation because after talking to her... I HAD NO DESIRE TO EVER MEET HER!
If the Weather Channel likes to pump these damn things up, I think they should do a disclaimer on what they are really like.
Things I have learned about hurricanes since I have lived in Key West:
* When they are talking about the nasty wind speeds that classify a hurricane, that is the wind speed around the eye of the storm. Once you leave the eye, wind speeds drop drastically. Don't get me wrong, a Cat 3 storm will have Cat 1 Level winds that extend out quite a bit. But most people think that if you're being touched by any of the clouds associated with a hurricane, then you are going to be blown away. If the eye of a hurricane misses you by 30 miles, that can be a huge difference even though it's less than a lot of people's commutes to work.
* If a duck farts in Cuba, they might evacuate the tourists here. People are entitled to a full refund at my properties if there is a mandatory tourist evacuation placed on the Keys. I try to tell people that this isn't something they really mess around with. If it's a danger, they kick the tourists out of town fast. If it's a threat, they kick the tourists out of town. If it's going to be a little rainy ... I'm sorry.
* It's not like they give you a refund if you see that the 5 day forecast is going to be rainy while you are in Disney world. It rains, get a poncho and deal with it.
* If you happen to be caught in a Hurricane STAY INSIDE!. They pump up the deaths in Haiti and Jamaica. I'm not making light of the situation. It's a shame that anyone gets injured or killed in these storms. Decent structures will protect you from most storms. When looking at the poverty level of some of these countries, it begins to make sense that any sort of weather can have a great effect on these people. Homes are lean to shanties, boxes, or not even that at times.
I've been pretty unmotivated since I have come back from North Dakota. A little depressed too, and I'm not really sure what about.
Oh well.
Hope all is well out there with everyone else. Come and visit the Keys this weekend. We need people!
Posted by landon at August 28, 2008 11:13 AM