And waiting on deck…

Number 4 you’re up to bat! Fresh from the NHC is news about Tropical Depression 4 getting warmed up in the eastern Atlantic.

AT 11 AM AST…1500Z…THE CENTER OF TROPICAL DEPRESSION FOUR WAS LOCATED NEAR LATITUDE 12.2 NORTH…LONGITUDE 22.7 WEST OR ABOUT 275 MILES… 445 KM…SOUTH-SOUTHEAST OF THE CAPE VERDE ISLANDS.
THE DEPRESSION IS MOVING TOWARD THE WEST NEAR 14 MPH…22 KM/HR… AND THIS GENERAL MOTION IS EXPECTED TO CONTINUE FOR THE NEXT 24 HOURS
MAXIMUM SUSTAINED WINDS ARE NEAR 35 MPH… 55 KM/HR…WITH HIGHER GUSTS. SOME STRENGTHENING IS FORECAST DURING THE NEXT 24 HOURS… AND THE DEPRESSION COULD BECOME A TROPICAL STORM LATER TODAY OR TONIGHT.

This one will definitely require some watching for those on the East coast.

Nature’s laying the smackdown on us

Ok, it’s not a really big smackdown. At least not yet. I hope it isn’t anyway. Maybe a slap upside the head or a smack on the wrist.
Just in case we’d gotten complacent over the past few years, Bonnie and Charley are our little reminder that yes, this is hurricane season, and just because it’s been quiet the past few years doesn’t mean it’ll stay that way.
The current track for Bonnie has it going through the western part of SC and will probably bring heavy rain and winds. Charley on the other hand will come much closer to Charleston, and I think we’ll be in for a rainy and windy weekend.

It’s a double whammy!

And then there were two. There is Bonnie, which I don’t expect to have much impact here except for making it a rainy end of the week. The 11 AM 10-Aug-04 NHC discussion says

A SECOND AND STRONGER SHORTWAVE TROUGH IS FORECAST TO MOVE INTO THE
WESTERN AND CENTRAL GULF OF MEXICO. THE INCREASING SOUTHWESTERLY
FLOW AHEAD OF THAT TROUGH SHOULD ACT TO ACCELERATE BONNIE TO THE
NORTHEAST WITH LANDFALL OCCURRING IN THE FLORIDA PANHANDLE IN 48-60
HOURS. THE OFFICIAL FORECAST TRACK IS JUST AN EXTENSION OF THE
PREVIOUS TRACK THROUGH 36 HOURS…AND THEN FASTER AND TO THE RIGHT
AFTER THAT. A 96-HOUR POSITION WAS ADDED FOR CONTINUITY SINCE THE
BONNIE CIRCULATION MAY BECOME A SIGNIFICANT EXTRATROPICAL LOW CLOSE
TO THE U.S. EAST COAST AFTER 72 HOURS.

And then there’s Charley (I keep wanting to say Clyde). This might end up being a double whammy for those eastern Gulf coast states, particularly Florida.
Definitely time to make sure the hurricane kit is up-to-date.

Let the unpacking begin!

Ok, after a bit of a scheduling snafu with carpet installation, we finally moved into the new apartment on Sunday. Movers came by Sunday morning and carted everything over. As one of the movers put it, we scored high for being well organized, but lost them all because of all the boxes of books.
The kitchen is largely unpacked, most of the books are shelved again. Just need to finish unpacking dishes, clothes and do masses of laundry. Also need to do some grocery shopping. Our fridge is complete bare except for an unusually high number of condiments. You’d think all we ate were hamburgers and hot dogs with all the bottles of ketchup, mustard and relish we have.
It’s nice having the extra space. We turned the second bedroom into an office, which gets all the bookshelves and the computer out of the living room. Makes it look much less cluttered. On the downside, there is a heck of a lot of carpet that needs to be vacuumed.

Moving day!

Today the moving process starts. Won’t be moving as much stuff as I had planned since the carpet is supposed to be getting replaced first thing tomorrow morning. But I figure I should be able to get kitchen/bathroom/closet type stuff moved over reasonably easily.
This is going to be interesting because the movers are also supposed to be coming in first thing tomorrow morning. By the time I found out about the carpet, the moving company had closed for the day so I had to settle for leaving a message seeing if the moving could be rescheduled for the afternoon. Hopefully I’ll hear back from them tomorrow morning, but with my luck there will be no rescheduling until Monday which will be too late. Well, maybe the carpet guy can be worked around.