Hurricane du Jour

My brother's family is currently evacuated from their home in Houston, which is bracing for Hurricane Ike.

Only a few days before, my sister's family evacuated from Lake Charles, Louisiana, to avoid Hurricane Gustav. And they had to almost immediately turn around and flee from Ike.

Wow.

At least they have lots of notice of what's coming their way.... And then accordingly agonize over whether they should hunker down or hit the road. All the time second-guessing themselves and wondering if they're doing the right thing.

Hey, if you're in the "cone of uncertainty" as the weather channel calls it, it puts you in the position of being a gambler. Are you going to fold or let it ride and take your chances? In the words of Clint Eastwood, "Do you feel lucky, punk?"

Oh my gosh, I totally just quoted Clint Eastwood. Anyhoo.....

Living in Kansas, we don't fret much about hurricanes. Mostly because the most significant body of water around here, um, the puddle at the bottom of our driveway.

Now granted, we have our weather issues too. Maybe you've heard of "Tornado Alley"? Perhaps "Twister" rings a bell? Us midwesterners inspired that flick. We've had our share of close calls with tornado warnings, but I've yet to see a cow fly past our mailbox.

Tornados don't give as much notice as hurricanes. They're not ones to call ahead and let you know they're on their way. They're not very considerate come to think of it, or maybe just more spontaneous. We don't even have time to name them.

If it's spring or fall time and you live in Kansas, it's just a given that you're in the "cone of uncertainty"!

I will say that the technology here is amazing, pinpointing any tornado activity. The weather men are literally able to spout off intersections where the tornado is touching down. Practically saying things like, "Hey you in the white Dodge minivan with the McCain bumper sticker -- take cover"! "Someone tell the girl in the Bobby Jack t-shirt and seersucker shorts to check her mail AFTER the storm"! And so on and so forth.

I'm convinced that no matter where you live, there are "pros and cons". Whether it be the weather, earthquakes, or other things like scorpions or poisonous snakes, we all have our local stuff to deal with.

So, what's the "thing" you deal with, where you live?