Sippi Lovin'

Well, Ivan turned out to be something less than terrible. Now that I think about it, I should probably call my parents and let them know we're alright down here. I spoke with them the day before Ivan was predicted to hit, when the so-called "experts" were still predicting the fierce winds I spoke so longingly of. As it turned out, we had nothing more than a good old fashioned rainstorm. I stayed up until4 AM Wednesday night in anticipation of getting blown around a bit in the elements, but the strongest winds we experienced here in town were around 45 mph. Some of the folks in town experienced power outages, but the vast majority of Hattiesburg's residents have remained largely unaffected. Preparations for the storm were, of course, rather extensive. (On the part of business owners and worrisome homeowners, not for myself.) Many store owners either duct taped or boarded up their windows and practically the entire town shut down on Thursday. I won't go into detail about the damage inflicted in regions east of here, as I'm certain those more interested will already have searched that information out for themselves. While watching television that Wednesday evening, I saw the coast guard had recorded a 52 foot high wave 4 miles off shore. Talk about keen surfing conditions!