Rita

As we all watch in horror (those with empathetic souls anyway) as Rita literally crashes into Texas, we skeptics can't help but wonder why Global Warming isn't a more accepted theory. I can't remember ever getting to the R's in the list of Hurricane names, can you?

Texas is responding very different than LA did, but TX has also learned from LA mistakes. Over 1million people were told to evacuate and this time, buses were used to take people out of Galveston and other parts of lower TX. Go figure.

NO and other cities effected by Katrina in LA cannot stand the reaching effects of Rita. They are going to be devastated yet again.

It heartwrenching to watch as Rita bounces between a Cat4 and Cat5. We can only hope that the Weather Service is right: it will decrease to a Cat3 before the eye hits land. Of course this does nothing for the areas who have been through the first half of her power. I'm also saddened when I imagine the number of animals that will die or be affected by Rita because their owners can't/won't take their pets with them.

Of course, at the rate the evacuation is going, there might still be a line of cars sitting on the interstate by the time the outermost reaches of Rita will be felt. What people are being told is the storm is still 48 hours out and there is plenty of time to get out before then. What do you tell the idot's who have turned around and headed home then?

Mayor White of Houston has said there will be no shelters open in the city, which means all those in the Astrodome had to evacuate also. He also reiterated that there will be no central place to go in the city and that 911 services will be inoperable for quite some time, even after the storm passes.

I've been through a Cat2 and seen what such a little storm, comparatively speaking, can do to a shoreline. When I used to live in Virginia Beach, northeasters and Cat2's were the norm. After the last Cat2, I decided that if a hurricane larger than a 2 headed our way, I was leaving. Even here, 150 miles inland, I'd have to leave if a 4 or 5 hit us. Hell, when tropical storm Gaston dumped nearly 12" of rain in just 1 hour, traffic here halted because downtown Richmond flooded so bad. It took me 3 hours to get just 5 miles because so many ways out were flooded completely.

Back to Global Warming. Here in Virginia we used to have very distinct seasons and periods of extreme weather conditions. We haven't had that in at least 5 years which worries me. April/May used to be our months were we worked into spring. Through the end of May/June we started working toward summer. In July we got lots of rain and heat. August has usually been our cooling off month and by the end colors were beginning to change. Hardly ever do I remember September having 95 degree days like today and tomorrow. And we're no longer at the beginning of the month either. Halloween, for the last 3 years, has been in the mid-70's.

Every once in a while we had the weeks of 75-80 degree heat in December, but not consistently.

Over the past 2 or 3 years I've noticed our seasons coming later. Not by a lot mind you, but noticebly different for those who've payed attention. Take this week for instance: we've set record highs everyday (I think).

The thought of not having an earth worth living on in Peanut's generation gives me the chills and sends out giant red flags. The thought of our current administrations reluctance to sign on with Kyoto and to actively work toward a greener earth ('cause you know they are doing just the oppoite) infuriates me. I think it's been painfully obvious that the Earth won't be here forever. It's about damn time we all start paying attention to what she's trying to tell us.

I had to make myself stop reading/watching news on Katrina because I wasn't getting any sleep. Now I read updates on blogs and a few articles here and there. I don't know about you, but my head and heart can't handle another reaction such as that to Katrina.