Dean has passed, and Arrecife is INCREDIBLY lucky to have escaped the storm's wrath. All day yesterday I was glued to weather reports online and on TV, dreading what would happen to the island. I'll be honest - I was not a fun person to be around yesterday. All I could think about was what was happening a few hundred miles south of here while I spent the day relaxing in the Florida sunshine. (By the way, I'm also a little worried about the fact that I'm getting cold in 95 degree weather. September at home is going to be downright nippy.) Fortunately, Dean dodged the island, veered south, and disaster was averted for our little neck of the woods. It should be noted, though, that I feel so bad for the Yucatan. They will not be so lucky.
I spoke with Boss-Lady tonight and she's asked Kristal and me to return to the island as soon as possible, so I'll be flying back tomorrow night. We expect to be operational again by the 24th, so there's a lot of work to be done in the meantime and they need all the bodies they can get. There has been such a flurry of emailing, instant messaging, booking and canceling of plane tickets, and just general worrying and fretting during the past two days that I think I'll be needing another vacation after this vacation.
And let it be known that I will not leave the island for a hurricane again. I know, this was just a fluke that Arrecife dodged a bullet, but I was so overwhelmed with worry for the people living there that I know I wouldn't be able to do it a second time. I would much rather deal with the conditions of any storm and its aftermath than feel so helpless again.
And besides, then you'll be able to see all the cool storm photos and hear all my cool storm stories. And I'll have hurricane survival bragging rights to add to my shark attack ones - can't forget about that!
On Being in the Path of a Hurricane
Hurricane Dean is on its way. Current forecasts are calling for it to be a Category 5 storm, which is about as strong as these things get. My roommate Kristal and I are packing up the house as we speak, putting everything on the second floor in hopes that it'll escape water damage. The landlady came around and locked all of the storm shutters this evening, so we're about set to make a quick getaway.
We locked up the CAOS House this morning. Honestly, we are somewhat resigned to the fact that it will not survive. The house is lower than sea level (pretty common for our island, actually), in a floodplain, and made of little more than wood frame and drywall. We put as much stuff in a room in the main hotel and the rest at least three feet off the floor, but even that will most likely not be enough. We've done all we can at this point. All of the windows and doors are boarded shut and sandbags are barricading the doors, but we still said our goodbyes.
After that we moved to the other side of the hotel to help the Pool & Beach guys move all of the big, heavy pool chairs into the nearby watersports shop and the neighboring restaurant. After about four hours of lifting heavy wooden chair frames in the hot sun, I'm a little tuckered out.
Speaking of the weather, the past three days have been the most beautiful weather you have ever seen: crystal clear water, clear blue skies, and not a breath of wind (which is not that great when one is carrying the aforementioned pool chairs). It truly is the calm before the storm... but the storm is coming...
When I started writing this post last night, the plan was for me to stay in the Winchester-Swann's Grand Ballroom with the rest of the guests and employees hunkered down for the storm, but late last night I got the call from my boss that I really really should leave the island. REALLY. So I gave all my emergency food, water, and other supplies to a friend staying nearby, then at 1am we checked our hurricane shutters one last time, flipped all the breaker switches, and closed our apartment door. We dropped our cars off on the Bypass, one of the very few hills on the island (artificially made by the Winchester-Swann, of course), and Boss-Lady dropped us off with a teary farewell at the Winchester-Swann's front door for transport to the airport. We eventually made it to the airport around 2am, got our boarding passes by 3am, and were on the plane by 5am, which is a far sight better than those who were not signed up for the Winchester-Swann's charter flight. Arrecife residents were jammed into the airport in lines that snaked around for miles, all of them knowing full well that at some point the storm would be too close for the aircraft, that they would be turned back, and that they would have to quickly seek shelter. As the plane was flying across the Caribbean toward safety, I could see the very start of a sunrise in the distance - a very deep, blood red. Sailor's warning indeed.
We flew into Miami, got through customs, and met Kristal's brother at the airport. At first I was too tired to notice, but I'm definitely all switched around again as to which side of the road I'm supposed to be on. Anyway, we had breakfast and got all set up at his house, I shot off a few emails to let people know my sudden change in plans, then finally went to sleep for the first time in 27 hours. So now I'm in Ft. Lauderdale, looking for flights that will send me home to California in the next day or two, officially a refugee.
I'll admit there's a voice in the back of my head saying that I'm a quitter, that I cut and run, that all my friends are still stuck on the island, and that it's not fair that I left. Still, the island is about to be wiped off the map. I downplayed the seriousness of the storm in my assorted emails and posts, but Arrecife is in for some big trouble. The island rode out Hurricane Ivan, a similar storm, three years ago, and damage is still evident all over the island. As I was driving through the empty streets last night on my way to the Bypass, I saw plywood and hurricane shutters over stores and houses that stood next to other buildings still with holes in their roofs or only partially rebuilt from Ivan. Arrecife is mostly below sea level. The storm surge from Hurricane Ivan was 8 feet in some parts of the island; a foot of water in the ground floor of your house was considered "minimal damage". While many people learned their lessons about complacency from that storm, there is still only so much you can do when a Category 5 storm is bearing down on you. Had I stayed, I would have been safe in the Winchester-Swann's ballroom, but utilities will not be back up for days after the storm passes, if not a few weeks. Most employees will be sent home as soon as the airport is functional again, as conditions will be unsanitary, looting will be rampant, curfews will be set, and the air will be full of mosquitoes and the smell of effluent and dead fish. Despite all of that, part of me wishes I had stayed. Could I have done something to help? Are my friends going to be okay? When will I be able to get back onto the island? What will be left when I do return? For now, though, all I can do is watch and wait as the little swirly mass of clouds on satellite photos inches closer and closer... Stay safe, Arrecife.
We locked up the CAOS House this morning. Honestly, we are somewhat resigned to the fact that it will not survive. The house is lower than sea level (pretty common for our island, actually), in a floodplain, and made of little more than wood frame and drywall. We put as much stuff in a room in the main hotel and the rest at least three feet off the floor, but even that will most likely not be enough. We've done all we can at this point. All of the windows and doors are boarded shut and sandbags are barricading the doors, but we still said our goodbyes.
After that we moved to the other side of the hotel to help the Pool & Beach guys move all of the big, heavy pool chairs into the nearby watersports shop and the neighboring restaurant. After about four hours of lifting heavy wooden chair frames in the hot sun, I'm a little tuckered out.
Speaking of the weather, the past three days have been the most beautiful weather you have ever seen: crystal clear water, clear blue skies, and not a breath of wind (which is not that great when one is carrying the aforementioned pool chairs). It truly is the calm before the storm... but the storm is coming...
When I started writing this post last night, the plan was for me to stay in the Winchester-Swann's Grand Ballroom with the rest of the guests and employees hunkered down for the storm, but late last night I got the call from my boss that I really really should leave the island. REALLY. So I gave all my emergency food, water, and other supplies to a friend staying nearby, then at 1am we checked our hurricane shutters one last time, flipped all the breaker switches, and closed our apartment door. We dropped our cars off on the Bypass, one of the very few hills on the island (artificially made by the Winchester-Swann, of course), and Boss-Lady dropped us off with a teary farewell at the Winchester-Swann's front door for transport to the airport. We eventually made it to the airport around 2am, got our boarding passes by 3am, and were on the plane by 5am, which is a far sight better than those who were not signed up for the Winchester-Swann's charter flight. Arrecife residents were jammed into the airport in lines that snaked around for miles, all of them knowing full well that at some point the storm would be too close for the aircraft, that they would be turned back, and that they would have to quickly seek shelter. As the plane was flying across the Caribbean toward safety, I could see the very start of a sunrise in the distance - a very deep, blood red. Sailor's warning indeed.
We flew into Miami, got through customs, and met Kristal's brother at the airport. At first I was too tired to notice, but I'm definitely all switched around again as to which side of the road I'm supposed to be on. Anyway, we had breakfast and got all set up at his house, I shot off a few emails to let people know my sudden change in plans, then finally went to sleep for the first time in 27 hours. So now I'm in Ft. Lauderdale, looking for flights that will send me home to California in the next day or two, officially a refugee.
I'll admit there's a voice in the back of my head saying that I'm a quitter, that I cut and run, that all my friends are still stuck on the island, and that it's not fair that I left. Still, the island is about to be wiped off the map. I downplayed the seriousness of the storm in my assorted emails and posts, but Arrecife is in for some big trouble. The island rode out Hurricane Ivan, a similar storm, three years ago, and damage is still evident all over the island. As I was driving through the empty streets last night on my way to the Bypass, I saw plywood and hurricane shutters over stores and houses that stood next to other buildings still with holes in their roofs or only partially rebuilt from Ivan. Arrecife is mostly below sea level. The storm surge from Hurricane Ivan was 8 feet in some parts of the island; a foot of water in the ground floor of your house was considered "minimal damage". While many people learned their lessons about complacency from that storm, there is still only so much you can do when a Category 5 storm is bearing down on you. Had I stayed, I would have been safe in the Winchester-Swann's ballroom, but utilities will not be back up for days after the storm passes, if not a few weeks. Most employees will be sent home as soon as the airport is functional again, as conditions will be unsanitary, looting will be rampant, curfews will be set, and the air will be full of mosquitoes and the smell of effluent and dead fish. Despite all of that, part of me wishes I had stayed. Could I have done something to help? Are my friends going to be okay? When will I be able to get back onto the island? What will be left when I do return? For now, though, all I can do is watch and wait as the little swirly mass of clouds on satellite photos inches closer and closer... Stay safe, Arrecife.
On Sinks, Scars, and Storms
CAOS is officially understaffed. Between people leaving permanently, going on vacation, and checking out sick, we're scrambling for people to cover programs and activities. As a result, I've been pulling a lot of overtime lately with one to two days a week of "triple shifts" - 14 hour days that juuuuusssst keeeeeeep goooooiiiiinnnnnnggggg. You get the idea. Between that and our already-standard 6-day workweeks, we're a bit tired here, and definitely ready for the kids to go back to school.
So I came home from work yesterday evening and wandered into the bathroom to find this:
This little guy had been living in our room for over a week before he made the mistake of jumping into the sink. After taking a few photos for posterity, I herded him up my arm to my elbow, where he perched as I took him downstairs and out into the yard.
Not all animals have been so understanding, however. Last week, for example, I was snorkeling the North Reef as part of a program when the local nurse shark came around to investigate. Now it should be noted that nurse sharks are about as harmless as they get - their mouths are about 6 inches by 2 inches at full gape, and they don't have any teeth. We see and swim with this particular individual almost every day and have never had a problem with her. So last week I was waiting for the last guest to get on the pontoon boat so we could go to our final stop of the tour, so I decided to dive down and hang out with the shark. I pet her on the head and body as I always do, then watched as she turned and swam away. I turned around to climb into the boat and saw a chunk of squid floating down from the surface of the water. The boat captain and captain-in-training had been throwing the squid left over from our stingray visit into the water, and for some reason I felt the need to reach up and grab this one piece. That's when the shark darted out from behind me and snatched the squid. Unfortunately, she also snatched a few fingers along with it. She bit down, realized very quickly that I was not food, and spit my hand out. After seeing a little bit of blood flowing out of my fingers underwater, my first thought honestly was, "Waaaaait a minute... I thought you guys didn't have teeth!" Sure enough, one of her non-teeth had done a little slicing and I now have a very small half circle mark on the side of the knuckle on my left ring finger. It's actually healing so well that I don't think I'll even have a scar, which is somewhat unfortunate because there goes any cool scar-related bragging rights I may have had. Just think - with that one little nip, I can now say I've been bitten by a shark AND I've survived a shark attack! Okay, that last one is a little bit of an exaggeration, but I could probably get by on a technicality. It should be noted that I don't hold a grudge toward the shark at all. In fact, I swam with it again the very next day, joking to the boat captain that, "Uh-oh... she's back for seconds. She's acquired a taste for human flesh!"
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So after that week or two of excitement, it's nice to have a few days off coming my way. Granted, those days off will conveniently coincide with the arrival of Hurricane Dean, but I'm sure I'll get plenty of rest as it passes... right? So yeah, we've got a storm on the way. At this point it's forecast to be a Category 3 or 4 when it hits us head-on at about 2am Monday morning. I've already penciled it into my day planner. I'll be spending the next couple of days getting my own things ready along with helping to empty out the relatively flimsy CAOS house and put all our stuff in the Big House. With preparations taking up most of my time, plus the fact that all power will be cut a few hours before the storm hits, I probably won't be able to give any more advance updates, and I guarantee I won't be able to give any updates via internet for quite a while after the storm hits. For updates after the storm passes the island, I would refer you to my parents, one of whom in particular will probably be making good friends with the people staffing the Winchester-Swann hurricane call center hotline. In the meantime, sit tight, don't worry, and I promise I'll take plenty of pictures of my little hurricane adventure.
So I came home from work yesterday evening and wandered into the bathroom to find this:
This little guy had been living in our room for over a week before he made the mistake of jumping into the sink. After taking a few photos for posterity, I herded him up my arm to my elbow, where he perched as I took him downstairs and out into the yard.
Not all animals have been so understanding, however. Last week, for example, I was snorkeling the North Reef as part of a program when the local nurse shark came around to investigate. Now it should be noted that nurse sharks are about as harmless as they get - their mouths are about 6 inches by 2 inches at full gape, and they don't have any teeth. We see and swim with this particular individual almost every day and have never had a problem with her. So last week I was waiting for the last guest to get on the pontoon boat so we could go to our final stop of the tour, so I decided to dive down and hang out with the shark. I pet her on the head and body as I always do, then watched as she turned and swam away. I turned around to climb into the boat and saw a chunk of squid floating down from the surface of the water. The boat captain and captain-in-training had been throwing the squid left over from our stingray visit into the water, and for some reason I felt the need to reach up and grab this one piece. That's when the shark darted out from behind me and snatched the squid. Unfortunately, she also snatched a few fingers along with it. She bit down, realized very quickly that I was not food, and spit my hand out. After seeing a little bit of blood flowing out of my fingers underwater, my first thought honestly was, "Waaaaait a minute... I thought you guys didn't have teeth!" Sure enough, one of her non-teeth had done a little slicing and I now have a very small half circle mark on the side of the knuckle on my left ring finger. It's actually healing so well that I don't think I'll even have a scar, which is somewhat unfortunate because there goes any cool scar-related bragging rights I may have had. Just think - with that one little nip, I can now say I've been bitten by a shark AND I've survived a shark attack! Okay, that last one is a little bit of an exaggeration, but I could probably get by on a technicality. It should be noted that I don't hold a grudge toward the shark at all. In fact, I swam with it again the very next day, joking to the boat captain that, "Uh-oh... she's back for seconds. She's acquired a taste for human flesh!"
.jpg)
So after that week or two of excitement, it's nice to have a few days off coming my way. Granted, those days off will conveniently coincide with the arrival of Hurricane Dean, but I'm sure I'll get plenty of rest as it passes... right? So yeah, we've got a storm on the way. At this point it's forecast to be a Category 3 or 4 when it hits us head-on at about 2am Monday morning. I've already penciled it into my day planner. I'll be spending the next couple of days getting my own things ready along with helping to empty out the relatively flimsy CAOS house and put all our stuff in the Big House. With preparations taking up most of my time, plus the fact that all power will be cut a few hours before the storm hits, I probably won't be able to give any more advance updates, and I guarantee I won't be able to give any updates via internet for quite a while after the storm hits. For updates after the storm passes the island, I would refer you to my parents, one of whom in particular will probably be making good friends with the people staffing the Winchester-Swann hurricane call center hotline. In the meantime, sit tight, don't worry, and I promise I'll take plenty of pictures of my little hurricane adventure.
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