It's A Love/Hate Thang!

I have this love/hate relationship with hurricanes. On the one hand, I hate the destruction they bring. I do not wish calamity or sorrow on anyone. On the other hand.......I love the weather it pushes up to our neck of the woods! We live in the best place for good hurricane weather. We started getting the rains last night from our little friend, Gustav. We were able to enjoy a nice cool Labor Day cookout thanks to this little guy. It was even cool today. Are you ready for this? I turned the air conditioner off today! I never turn the air conditioner off (well, almost never). It was wonderful.

The wind has been blowing. I mean really blowing. Whenever I look outside the trees do a little curtsy for me. I can hear a "whoooooooosh" whipping around the corners of the house. It's kind of freaking Ya Ya out a little. She keeps thinking someone is lurking around outside, popping her window with branches. I tried to tell her that if someone were outside they wouldn't announce themselves by hitting on the window first. She hasn't grasped the concept of stealth yet.....kids.....ya gotta love the way their minds work.

It has been raining all day. Not the wimpy drip drip kind. The hard gusts that turn the rain sideways with the force of the wind. When you are at home it is great. I did, however, encounter two auto accidents on the way to school this afternoon. That's the hate part of the relationship. Two different cars hydroplaned. One ended up against a tree upside down. The other accident happened on the freeway. Let's just say it is not a good idea to swerve to avoid a little thing when the roads are that wet. Sometimes it is easier to just run over the little thing and risk a flat tire instead of doing pirouettes in a suburban and find you are suddenly going in a northerly direction on a southbound lane. It's not the pirouettes that cause all the damage, it is that silly little car that insists on going in a southerly direction in direct opposition of your notherly direction. Let us just say that fenders and front ends are a lot harder to fix than flats.

The best part of today was dinner. It has been so hot lately that I just hate cooking. Why heat up an already hot kitchen? Isn't that why General Mills created cold cereal? It is the dinner of choice during the hot summer months! Right? Well, tonight I surprised the family with steaming, fragrant chili. It is a favorite of ours on a cold day. Of course, if you were to ask my kids they would tell you that any day in my house is a cold day. I gave up trying to explain that hot flashes make people hot.....it is easier to cover up than it is to have me walk around our house uncovered! Ewwwwww!!! I digress. The chili was delicious. The fragrance was heavenly. It is just what we needed. A good semi home cooked meal with all of us eating at the same time and practicing Spanish in between bites. BB and Ya Ya have a big test in Spanish class tomorrow.

Life doesn't get much better than this. Nice, edgy weather outside; Cozy, cuddly family safe inside. Who wouldn't love this? Don't spoil this by asking the people of Cuba and Louisiana how they fell about Gustav. Let a girl have her moments!