Tuesday, September 2 6:49 AM CDT

The local newspaper has pictures of our area here

The birds are singing this morning. I'll put the bird feeders out for them later.

We slept well and are ready for today.

Thanks for standing with us,

St.Casserole

UPDATE 7:48 PM CDT

Gusty winds and rain. I suppose we'll have this all night.
Took a quick nap and feel good. My stomach doesn't hurt anymore.

Thank you for your prayers and company during Gustav.

I'll go check on Hanna.

St.Casserole

4:14 PM CDT

Nothing going on. The winds slowed. Rain stopped. Very quiet here.
We are under a hurricane watch and tornado watch but radar shows activity west of us, not much here.

I am praying for Louisiana and Hancock County(Mississippi). I don't know what is going on in Louisiana. I am worried. Big hearty wind gusts blew here. Wished I had a hand-held wind gust meter to catch the speed of several spectacular blows.

We are under a curfew until 5 AM tomorrow. People will get itchy to get out of shelters and homes to see what is going on. I had good company today with Mr.C. and LD who watched Netflix with me while I sewed. I'm surprised we have power.

Thank you for your prayers. Let's see what we can do to help the storm affected in the next few days.

I'll check in again later today.

St. Casserole

September 1, 2008

6:08 AM CDT Very windy, some rain, cats are alarmed. Sister, the dog, is staying close by. I slept well until I heard the wind increase. I'm grateful for several hours of deep sleep.

Gustav is about 30 miles from landfall near Houma, Louisiana, west of here. New Orleans, on the east side of Houma, will get misery. Hurricanes spin counter-clockwise so the worst wind and force is to the east of the Hurricane eye.

Jim Cantore, of the Weather Channel, is in Houma. Not.Good. We have a Weather Channel guy I've never heard of. Good.

God keep all safe in the Storm. God be present in the darkness of night. God be present in the early light and through the day. Holy Spirit, calm and defend the hearts of those in the Storm. Jesus, hold all those whose fears seek to overcome them with despair. Protect those who come to help and protect. May all wee creatures find safe haven. In Christ's name I pray. Amen.

3:15 PM CDT

One brief, hard thunderstorm, then nothing. Sky is overcast. It is hot outside.
We drove around the neighborhood noticing that few of our neighbors boarded up windows/doors. Most yards are freshly cut and porches are bare of chairs and rockers.

We drove downtown. I kept thinking, "Holy Ravioli! Katrina's damage shows everywhere and we are preparing for another one???" We saw National Guard and Army vehicles moving to staging areas in parking lots. Most grocery and drug stores are closed now.
We ran to the grocery for vanilla ice cream and root beer to make floats over at P. and C.'s Tasted great. Their home is littered with storm supplies like our home.

Our neighborhood has many homes not repaired from Katrina damage. People don't want to wait three years but insurance, etc. etc. slows them down. I saw a few homes finished almost. I know those owners are thrilled with Gustav.

I'll update, every few hours, until the power goes off.

So glad for your prayers and company.

St.Casserole

UPDATE 6.02 PM CDT Thunder heard in the distance. It's raining now. I can see the tops of our neighbor's trees blowing in the wind. I saw the small turtle, who visited us last week, making his way on the courtyard bricks. I hope he will be OK. I want all of us in Gustav's path to be OK. Waiting for misery is dreadful. No wonder people drink too much and get in fights. Here we are calm, well, Mr. C. is watching TV, LD is napping and I'm getting fidgety.

UPDATE 9:43 PM CDT Very light rain. Frogs singing. Watched the second season of "Heros". Sewed some. Ate cookies. I'm tired and going to bed. I'll update as long as we have power. Thanks for your prayers.

MSNBC has this graphic for Gustav.

5:52 CDT, Sunday August 31, here.


We are on the Eastern side of the storm.


The sky is clear and filled with stars.

I slept until Sister the Dog decided I need to get up.

My body is sore, not from use but from worry.

I don't want to go through this again. I lost myself in Katrina. I found myself, too, in the faces of family and friends but the search took months.

An Elder at Little Church will lead worship today. I'll stay here to avoid the traffic from New Orleans and Coast evacuations. The contra flow of the interstates began at 4 a.m. today.

More later. Thanks for your prayers.

St.Casserole

UPDATE 7:52 AM CDT
I hear Sarah Palin and John McCain will be in Jackson, Mississippi today. While I appreciate their concern, I am not comfortable with their visit. Gov. Barber's energy needs to be directed to emergency management, not politics. If the McCain Palin ticket would pray for us and send supplies, we would be happy. I am concerned many people will say the Presumptives' visit is political and cynical.

UPDATE 11:18 AM CDT
The sky is overcast. The wind has picked up. The temperature is cooler with the breeze. The Presbyies across the street cancelled worship, so did everybody else in town. Some of us gathered at Church anyway so the Pastor read scripture, prayed and led singing of hymns. Just what I wanted.
Anything moveable outside is inside. I miss our greenhouse from before Katrina. Now we pile up stuff indoors. Those of you who know my home, imagine the family room where our dining table is. That side of the room is piled up with courtyard plants, tools and porch furniture.
Feeling calmer after worship.