Hurricane Earl Veers Sharply West-Northwest, Inundates Illinois!*

Good Morning to my faithful readers among Those in the Know!  I would like to be able to say that the morning so far has been an unmitigated success,  but due to laziness circumstances beyond my control,  I have not yet accomplished anything, as usual as much as I normally do!

I blame the weather,  if the truth be told.  How can one be expected to perform at one's normally high level of productivity when one is anxiously preparing for a hurricane?   Even as I type,  the sky is darkening ominously and I am pretty sure I spied a flutter in the leaves outside the kitchen window a moment ago.  Skeptics insist that the hurricane will not or can not affect us here in the midwest,  but I am here with a word to the wise:  always be prepared.

In view of the current weather situation,  my To Do list for today has been adjusted accordingly:

To Do
1. Prepare for hurricane (obviously! batten down hatches, etc.)
1. Laundry (although, with a major storm brewing, one wonders if there is any point)
2. Start supper (we will have to eat,  even if we are hunkered down in the basement riding out the storm)
3. Blog post (neither rain nor sleet nor hurricane shall stay this scrivener from the swift composition of her blog post!)
4. ?

I am sure there must be a number 4 (or more!),  but no doubt the threatening weather has driven it from my mind!  I am nothing if not cool under pressure,  but this is a hurricane we are talking about here!

In other news,  I have just returned from St. John's where I spent a whirlwind week attending to various, vexing chores involving the sale of our house there and disposal/distribution of my mother's treasures.  Lucky for me,  my sister and brother-in-law were on hand to do practically everything help out! Naturally,  I whisked through a long list of Things To Do with my trademark chaos and complaints speed and panache,  but it is only fair to note that I flaked out often, leaving my sister and brother in law to pick up the slack, as usual  did more than my fair share and returned home this week quite worn out.  I was saying to Scott last night as he made supper and was pouring me a glass of wine - sometimes I think I am just too good.  Alas,  we are what we are,  and my giving nature is just one of the many burdens that everyone around me I must bear.

So closes another chapter in my life.   At the risk of bringing my faithful readers to tears,  I confess that the emotional punch of the past few weeks,  indeed of the past several years,  has sometimes threatened to set me back on my heels far enough to knock me over.  But,  I am nothing if not resilient!  Like a willow tree which bends gracefully 'neath the howling gales of fickle fate,  I am always able to spring back upright,  usually lashing and strapping any and all other life forms in the general vicinity so to forge ahead and greet the new day.

It took me two days to finish this post,  which is not really up to my usual high standards,  but from time to time,  even talent like mine is difficult to tap!  I notice that Earl barely glanced at North Carolina last night -  the disappointment of the weather reporters was palpable! - but I am,  nevertheless,  remaining on high alert.

Good Day to All!


*  Intelligent people agree:  it could happen!  Two words:  climate change!