Report from Florida

Orange Park, just southwest of Jacksonville, our back yard yesterday morning.  Very happy that the house, unbelievably, did not flood, and that we got both power and Internet back this afternoon.  Millions of people are in such terrible situations. 

Irma coincided with when the doctor said I could use my big lens again, so I sat on a stool out back this afternoon and got some shots of some of the wading birds.  There was even a Green Heron, but I couldn't get that one.  It could see me looking at it through the bushes and kept flying away. :)

Didn't want to go in the water even with boots for several reasons, the main two of which are its extreme degree of yuckiness and the fact that right now the alligator could be anywhere.  It was at our neighbor's back door yesterday morning.  Oh, and I know we have Water Moccasins, too, since I relocated a very feisty juvenile one from our back porch far, far away a few years ago. :)

Glad to hear that you made it fine!! I had to smile at the comment about THE alligator - sounds like a good old "friend". We got more wind than I thought we would here in NE Georgia, we were worried about some of the pine trees in the yard coming down on the house but we made it unscathed. Did not even lose power, that about half of the county is still without a day later.
Cheers!
Alberto 

Alberto, glad you made it through too!

Glad to hear all is well Barbara.  Snakes and alligators would be my main concerns too.  In Texas I guess they have to worry about chemical pollution too.  Hope that is not the case where you are.

Thanks for posting - I've been wondering about the NPN'ers hit by Irma. That loooks like a lot of water!

Nice to hear about being able to use the big lens again.

Great to hear about you getting better, and you and your house coming through relatively unscathed.  (I have relatives that had to be rescued from their roofs in other floods, so I have a little bit of feeling for how you can feel thankful when your yard and surrounding land are underwater.  Some neighbors volunteer for the red cross, and our State is sending a power company crews and a bunch of first responders; But most of us can only send prayers, good wishes, and money for the Red Cross, and other organizations.)  I hope you can enjoy your yard soon without getting bitten by dangerous reptiles!

Thanks, Eva, Rich and Wayne.  Wayne, I'm laughing out loud at your last sentence.

Wow Barbara!  So very glad you are reporting the house didn't flood.  No doubt a stressful time and I hope things are starting to reverse and recede.  Thanks for the update and the not-so-comical description of "The alligator."  ;-)

My sister lives on the eastern side in Stuart by Port St. Lucie.  the evacuated to NJ several days ahead of the storm.  Now they're having fun trying to return home.  Fortunately, minor patio screen damage for them.

Hope you and millions of others are back to normal as possible as soon as possible. 

Stay out of the yucky water!  

Lon

Glad you're still on the mend and keeping your feet dry out of the mess there Barbara. 

Thanks for the report, Barbara.  I'm glad you came through ok and your wrist is healing so well.  My wife has a very good friend in Miami (who evacuated) and we haven't heard how her home came through.

Barbara, it's great to hear that you avoided the worst of a very bad situation and that you're recovering nicely from your surgery.  It will be a long slow recovery for both Fl and south TX. 

Thank you, Lon, Ed, Paul, Dennis, and Mark.  I really appreciate the kind words for me and the words of hope for the people in the devastated areas.

Great to hear you and your place came out essentially unscathed. Wading with the alligator and water moccasins is best left to the more adventurous (read that as stupid). :)  Thanks for posting the picture and the update. Be safe.

Thank you, Harley.

Good that you and your home are safe, Barbara. And that you can use the big glass again.

Some of my friends in the Keys weren't so fortunate. But they survived; everything else is a secondary consideration.

Thanks, Jim.  I'm very, very sorry about your friends.  Everything else is secondary, but it's looking very, very hard for a lot of people to feel hopeful and start over again.

Thank goodness, you survived, too!   We were one of the few houses, it seems, that did not flood with Harvey.  I live in Richmond, Tx, which is in the county adjacent to Harris co...Houston.    We evacuated to my daughter's house in San Antonio, when they told us the Brazos river would be 59' high!!!  That would put about 4 feet of water into my home!  

But, luckily, the storm waxed and waned enough for the Brazos to get it out to the Gulf in spurts.  But, we got 40" of rain, here near my home!!!!!!  We, normally, only get 50'/ year!   My God!  What a mess.

We live on the high side of the Brazos river, and the water came up to our porch steps!   I cannot imagine me, being as sick as I am with lyme, Epstein Barr Virus, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and still fighting a c difficile infection ....coming back to a flooded home!  It is enough to give me PTSD for the rest of my life.  And, I've lived through hurricanes all my life...born and raised in Pensacola, lived 12 years in New Orleans (pre-Katrina) and 30 years here.   I've never seen so much rain in my life!

But, I'm so glad you made it through too, although your garage took a beating.....at least, it's not your home!  The horror of torn up sheetrock all over Houston is so sad...and folks are getting mold growing quite fast!   So, that's a health hazard...besides snakes and alligators!   

Lucy, I'm so glad you didn't flood.  We are very lucky.

Lake Apopka Wildlife Drive, one of my very favorite places, and a favorite place of people who live hundreds and even thousands of miles away, will be closed for the foreseeable future.  People (who also care a great deal about other people and other situations, just to make that clear) are heartbroken.  It is hard to imagine not being able to go there.  Here is a picture of what used to be one of the roads.  A lot of it, including this part, is just part of Lake Apopka now.



 

So glad to hear that you and others here are safe after the hurricanes.  I was very concerned.  I have been out of town for a couple of weeks, so missed seeing this till now.  Glad to hear that you can use your big lens now too! 

Thanks, Shirley!

Barbara,

Thank you for your comment to me, I hope to be back soon. And I am so glad you made it through Irma. And I'm very happy you are recovering as well. I never heard how you broke your arm but it sounds painful. I've been to Lake Apopka 3 times and just loved it. Hope to go back in February. Take care!