AT THE BEACH WITH ERNESTO..

Miami- Went to the Beach, waves picking up..

Beautiful day at the beach. Took the morning off and took my youngest son to the beach. He's 12. It's one of those things you just "HAVE TO DO" while the waves are small and it's safe and it's beautiful. Just to touch the storm and really see it blowing in.

Wow. Unreal. Went over to Haulover Beach by the Pier and got something to eat, drink and sat by the bar and watched the television coverage that was on.. as it is everywhere. Rosemary, really RORO who works there was warm, friendly as always and talked to my friend Smith who was busy closing down the pier. Everyone working there was in tie down mode... people visiting were in watching mode.

Tourists, construction workers from nearby condos... it was nice. Really nice.

And, the water was mild, just a few white caps and blue skies. In the hour or so we sat there the seas picked up and a roaring, wild surf began to pound it's way in onto the shore. A shore where a few families sat together on the sand watching the waves come in while surfers played at surfing nearby.

We walked down.. hung around... It was amazing but mostly so amazing because I have never been at the beach when you could visibly see the difference occurring before your eyes. We were there about three hours. By the end you could barely stand in the waves ankle high. Pounding rollers began to pound the shore and the undertow got so strong that you could see the waves break in rollers... curving, crashing beautiful rollers hitting the shore and spraying foam up all over my little Hawaiian skirt and tank top. My son's Redsox hat safely tucked in my beach bag he ran up and down the sand where the water barely hit enjoying himself like.. like.......like a kid. No swimming in such water, it was a day for watching.

I interviewed a few people and a few of the guys working there. Most don't like rain, they are beach types who like sunshine. One admitted he loves storms and enjoys hurricanes. Surfers just wanted to see better waves and yet.. they said it was getting so choppy that he was hard to surf and the slope of the beach was getting bad with the undertow.

So we watched.

There were no squalls coming in, just a storm somewhere out in the Straits getting it's act together.. you could feel it. It might not show on recon stats or with advisories but I am telling you.. it is slowly going to gather some strength. On the TV you can see banding occurring.

Otherwise, Sharon and I did breakfast. I went to Walgreens and bought some batteries to have and some water to have and maybe I'll use them for this storm and maybe not.. or the next storm as Florence is out there hiding somewhere in the Atlantic and showing herself in models that we watchers are watching.

The kids are off school. People are off work or going home early. Ran into Magda at the store and she asked me if I wanted to come over and keep her company for a hurricane party as her kids are away and her husband is on duty at the hospital. Told her maybe I would if she had the right supplies :) and leave the kids at my brother down the block for a while and we can talk in the storm. Roberta, my sister-in-law and I got donuts and coffee at Krispy Kreme.

We are ready for the storm.

What do I think? I think like everyone I spoke to thinks.. that you don't underestimate a tropical storm because all it takes is one strong pocket of storms within a band and your house can get walloped, lose power, a tree can fall on your car or your street could get flooded. 2005 Hurricane Season taught Miami about underestimating tropical storms.

But... we do love them. They provide all of the excitement and wind and rain and beautiful surf without the terror of a huge Cat 5 storm out there terrifying the hell out of us.

So... going to check the loops and read some boards and hope my power doesn't go out but in this house we lose power at the first big gust so if I am not here I am begging my son to please post for me something I will send him.. if there is something to post about.

Fun... I'm sorry, it is fun today. Will it be fun tomorrow if I have no electric and trees are down and some window is broken? No... but.. you got to live in today, live in the moment, hope for the best and prepare for the worst and you got to go to the beach and feel the wind in your face when there is a storm out there.

If you read the preface of The Perfect Storm you will see that the tree trimmer from New Hampshire got the idea for writing that book when he was at the beach during a hurricane.. Bob maybe or another one... it is where the muse calls us, writers and poets following their muse like surfers looking and searching for that one good wave.

Storms out on the Gulf Stream, big storm coming soon... :)

later.. Bobbi
and btw.. I think they should upgrade Ernesto to at least 50 if not 55mph. Just my opinon. You can see very developed bands moving in..