Cat 2!!

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When we stopped by the little produce shed to buy tomatoes, the woman behind the counter said excitedly, “It’s a Cat 2!!!”

For once, I heard and understood a message that John missed. As he started to ask about it, I said, “The hurricane is now a category two.”

With weather apps, we watched this storm change course, slow down, get stronger, and dither about in the ocean. Its projected landfall was about 350 miles (563 km) from us. A week ago, we watched a reporter dramatically walk in the tiny waves breaking over his toes, trying to scare us. It was too much too soon. We cleaned our house and put clean sheets on all the beds in case friends or family needed a place to stay. I even had time to clean up the garden! I estimate we had enough food on hand to feed eight people for two days. It would have been a great way to clean out the refrigerator. Though no clouds were in sight, grandson Nathaniel’s classes were canceled in Charlotte, 200 miles from the coast.

I was on that woman’s wavelength, ready to hear news of a storm on the move.

We were so ready for the storm, that John said it might be a good day to drive on the Blue Ridge Parkway among fluffy white clouds. He was right.

091318 Blue Ridge Parkway view.JPG

We are home again and will wait another two days for the rain to begin.

Published by Anne Mehrling

I'm a retiree who loves to write about life in the mountains of North Carolina.

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55 thoughts on “Cat 2!!”

  4. That’s a beautiful view and I’ll rejoice along with you with news of “Cat 2” … Evelyn sent me pictures yesterday of her tarped-up chimney. Apparently they tarp over the chimneys in Charleston in case the surge causes the water to go into the chimney and saves water damage. They might have premature doing this, just as you made all the preparations as well … but, as the old adage goes “better to be safe than sorry.” Stay safe Anne, and to all your family as well.

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  5. Ah, and if no-one comes you have enough food for two people for eight days. That should save you some shopping. Your picture of the Blue Ridge Parkway is stunning. Now you put me in mind of the Laurel and Hardy song about the Blue Ridge Mountains.
    xxx Massive Hugs xxx

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    1. I don’t know the song you mentioned by Laurel and Hardy.

      I took only one picture today, despite our stopping in several overlooks. It seems to be my rule to try to capture the essence of the mountains each time. Often I bring home the shots and eventually erase them. We were probably half an hour away from home at this point. We are so blessed!

      xxx Mountainous Hugs xxx

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  8. I wonder what is worse or better- to be very prepared or to be taken by surprise. I am glad you have enough food and you are out of the direct path of the storm. From the pictures it doesn’t look like a very dangerous storm is on the way. As they all said above, the scenery is fantastic and John was right- it was a picture perfect day to be out and see things as they unfold- in this case into a CAT 2.
    In Kerala, they warned them of possible environmental disasters a few years ago- everyone said, these happen in other places, not here. And finally it came and everyone was so unprepared. Its almost like the 10 virgins of the New Testament. Some watch and wait, some go to sleep- hoping others will help them out when the time comes. I am glad you are one of the prepared Virgins, Anne.
    Susie

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  12. My daughter is scheduled to fly to NC on Sunday. She will be working in Hickory, NC for two weeks so she has been keeping a constant watch on the storm. These plans might change.
    It’s great that you were prepared to host family members who needed to evacuate. I have heard on the news of those who have no where to go or don’t have the means to leave. Sad.

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      1. She has never been to Hickory before. Her company is opening a new store there and she works on the team that sets up new stores. She loves the job, as she travels to all parts of the country and always takes at least one day for sight seeing.

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  14. So that’s where the blue sky is hiding! Beautiful
    Still raining here.We are tired of waking up to flash flood alerts at night, but some areas south of us are having high water again
    It doesn’t have to have a name or high Cat. number to create damage and flooding.
    Cheers for you being sensible, being able to read the sky yourself – and for just keeping a little preparation/supplies ahead of time just in case.
    Hope that darn Florence isn’t a floozy and moves on quickly so you can enjoy the weekend!

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      1. Well I’m keeping you in my thoughts – just heard on the 3:00 p.m. national news that the brunt of Florence is in North Carolina now and thankfully it is down to a Cat 1 hurricane now. Amazing listening to the whooshing noise in the background while the reporter is speaking!

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  16. My sister wondered if her classes in High Point, NC would be canceled. She’s surrounded by a lot of very large trees and that is a bit of concern in any type of windy weather. You sound well prepared for anything that comes your way.

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          1. There were times we felt the same in our house during a big storm. Our tree had to come down due to disease. I miss it, but not when it storms.

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    1. I hope their home will be OK. That’s great that you will get to visit while the storm is raging, but it won’t be the most pleasant of times for background thoughts. I’m praying for them.

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    1. We had lived through hurricanes and blizzards on Long Island. There were two things we knew for sure — we would lose power, and we would not be flooded. Just the other day I saw a photo of the trees that hit our garage during one hurricane. That was the worst of the damage in all the years we lived there.

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