Day Two of Ian

 The day started like it ended.

With no power.

But that didn't last.

Pretty soon the sun was up,

the power was back,

and we went out for a farm tour.

Kyle's banana tree took a beating!

He had already cut lots of the branches

to make it a little more aerodynamic.

But it still looks rough.

We cut a bunch more off.

And his little cherry bush to the left

lost almost all the blossoms.

He was really sad about that!

Our moringa trees look pretty sad too.

They got all blown over.

I'll wait until the storm is actually over

and then see if I can stand them back up

and maybe tie them to the fence to keep them

upright until the roots grab hold again.

A couple of the privacy panels came down off the fence.

When I went out to check,

Red was happily standing on it.

Sheesh.

It was way too muddy to go out there today and fix it.

Maybe by Saturday it will be better.

The beans took a hit.

Lots of broken stems.

Blown flat.

We are hoping that when the sun comes out

they will perk back up.

Fingers crossed.

Don't know if you can tell, but the tunnels were twisted to the side a bit.

Nothing terrible, but interesting to see.

The cucumbers seem to be ok...

we'll have to wait and see.

There is a LOT of water.

A pine tree on the neighbor's side fell over

and landed on the fence.

Kyle used his big equipment and ground it down

on our side.

Then Rod went over and used his new chainsaw

and cut it off at the bottom to get it off the fence.

Kyle Clean Up

(click to watch him work...)

All-in-all we did really well.

And we figured we were done.

We came inside, sat on the couch, and I actually

took a much needed nap!

And then we got the "back door".

Wind gusts way up over 40mph - the EQ Pres

said he clocked it at 50-60.

It definitely felt like it!

The wind was actually whistling.

And the french doors were trying to blow open.

Luckily just doing the dead-bolt took care of

that issue - and then came the rain.

Sideways.

More power flickers.

It cooled way off!

Once that settled down a little (we are still pretty

breezy, but it's much better) we actually

opened all the doors and windows.

And it actually got REALLY COLD in the house!

The weather station said we were down to 71!

(Brrrrrrrrr)

So, here I sit, on the couch, wrapped in a blanket.

We closed all the windows.

But it has been a nice opportunity to air out the house.

I'm getting ready to cook some dinner.

And then we will try to get an early night.

Rod and Kyle have to go in to the airport

early tomorrow (7) to get all the planes out of

the hangars - they put some in a neighbor's

and they want them OUT.

And I have to teach another "double",

both tomorrow and Saturday.

My friend in Tampa ended up with less

damage than originally thought, but she has

no internet with no real end in sight.

ALL the towers were destroyed.

Verizon is bringing in temp towers,

but that only gives you cell / hotspot.

It's risky to try to do a 4-hour zoom on a hotspot.

I've done it, from my hotel room, and it was

definitely not optimal.

So I'll be covering for her for the next week or

so until she's back up and running.

And then I'll probably let her teach my classes

so she can get a paycheck.

We'll see what the next few weeks look like.

But anyhow.

That's where we are.

Blessed, as always, to have a new roof,

a safe house,

minimal damage,

and the opportunity coming up to go and

provide service to others in the state

who didn't fare as well.

They are already trying to organize

teams to go to the west coast this weekend.

So,

thanks for praying for us.

We are always grateful.

And yes, we still love living in Florida.

Until we move to Kansas.