Photos and Thoughts on My First Evacuation...

Hurricane season is killing me.


Growing up in tornado alley, I never understood all the fuss over hurricanes. You see them coming while they're still days away, and have plenty of time to pack up all your things and get out of the way. Compared to the 2-5 minute warning siren you hear before a tornado starts tearing down your block - Hurricanes seemed like a breeze.

Needless to say, I have adjusted my opinions on the matter. Seeing a hurricane coming while its still days away is like having a psychic tell you the day you're going to die. As soon as you hear about it - it consumes your whole life.

With Gustav, we had a whole week to listen to meteorologists guess which way it was headed. (Read: Inform us of all the most terrible things that could happen, and remind us over and over about our weak levee system.)


And then, once we were decidedly in the "cone" - we began the tedious, frustrating and expensive process of evacuating. (Read: Getting the hell out of that cone with whatever we could carry with us.)


And then once you're evacuated - You spend the whole time glued to CNN watching it slowly and devastatingly approach your home, while you keep remembering things you left in your house, friends who didn't leave, etc.

And Lord, is evacuating expensive. I'm lucky enough to have a very generous family in Texas who took me, my roommates, and a co-worker into their home while we waited it out. So Gustav only cost me a few hundred dollars for gas and evacuation supplies.


Most folks end up staying in hotels for 2-3 nights, paying for all their meals, gas, evac. supplies, etc... And all that expense is before you even consider what you might come home to...


Living on the Gulf Coast is a commitment... Let me tell you.