Hurricane Irene Heads North

Today is Saturday, a week before Labor Day weekend. This is prime time to prepare for the arrival of the UMsss students later this week and the beginning of classes the day after Labor Day

I had planned to go into the office this weekend and move my things into my new space but Irene has changed all that. On Friday UMass announced that the campus would be closed all weekend due to Hurricane Irene, who is making her way along the east coast and looks to be following a more westerly route than usual. Although she is "only" a Category 1 hurricane right now (and may decrease to a tropical storm, before hitting New England) the winds and heavy rain are expected to cause significant damage and power outages.



So, instead of prepping for Fall semester today I "secured" my lawn furniture, re-filled my oil lamps and caught up on the laundry. Overall, it feels like prepping for a winter N'easter, when we get hit with 2+ feet of snow, except it is hot and humid.

Honestly, I'm hoping it will largely fizzle out before it gets to the Pioneer Valley of Massachusetts, but I'm not counting on it. I'm also hoping that on Monday my garden (house, neighborhood etc) all look pretty much like they did today.

If you are in the path of Irene, stay safe!