Rita is Arriving

Throughout the rest of today and into tomorrow, I 'll be blogging on Hurricane Rita's travel until/if we lose electricity. The forecast at 18 hours before landfall says we'll get 65 winds with gusts to 85. We will be on the clean side of the storm, fewer tornadoes. Already, blue sky is covered by Rita's skirt tails. Where yesterday was a sweltering, no-breeze 102 degrees, the bushes and tall pines are already beginning to sway and Rita has several hundred miles before estimated time of arrival.

All the potted plants, bird houses and such are "hunkering down" in the garage. My larger wind chime I brought indoors and hung it in a double doorway. I thought it might be a good indicator of how much the house is shaking. The house is brick, built in 1960's with a hip roof.

I have a birthday cake in the oven for my 35-year-old son. Today's his big day. He's still moving medical equipment, but is through now and is about 60 miles from our home. He said Interstate 45 is almost deserted.

The other big news is we had pork chops and gravy for lunch today. If worse goes to far worse, at least we had an old southern dish for our final meal.

I'll check in later today...Cathy www.cathymessecar.com