Obviously, I can't show you any pictures of the aftermath of our big storm. Too bad, because there's a LOT of aftermath. Not surprising when you realize it lasted a full two and a half days with constant high wind with regular power-gusts that got downright scary at times. (I don't have verification yet but have heard rumors of some in the 90+ mph range -- and I believe it.)
I came through here relatively unscathed. My poor landlord's hard work on the roof took some damage and I now have assorted containers set at strategic locations throughout the building. It isn't nearly as bad as before, though, so I'm certainly not complaining. What I wasn't aware of until I finally broke cover and went to the grocery store today, is the structural damage to the front of the building. Bonnie will remember the balcony with its nice railing all the way around and a good view of the traffic on Highway 101. (insert smile) Well, there's not as much railing today. Both the south end and the north end were ripped out. The south section is lying on the balcony floor but the north section was flung to the cement below, right in front of where my shop space was. On the way down, it connected with the power line and, while the line wasn't pulled completely loose, it looks like a long section of it was jerked right out of the building. Of course I didn't hear it. You would not believe how noisy that wind was. It sounded like a huge, demented cat, yowling and howling and growling. Thought I'd go nuts.
Everywhere I went today, there were downed trees, most of which had previously withstood winds for a long time -- some of the old cypress trees have been around longer than I have. The sustained high wind and the frequent power-gusts, however, either ripped them out of the ground or split them the length of their trunks and tossed the pieces aside. The sound most commonly heard today was the roar of chainsaws, trying to clean up the mess and clear the roads.
Probably the hardest hit locally was the dock in Port Orford, 15 minutes south of here. Rather than try to describe it, I'll just point you to the article in today's paper. Cleanup and repair there is really going to be a long, hard job.
I was particularly frustrated by the fact that phone service was out from just before noon yesterday (Monday) until around 2 pm today. That means I couldn't log on to the Internet, of course. Very traumatic. The curious thing was, we could call each other within the Langlois area but calls to or from anywhere else just got you a rapid busy signal.
The major gripe about that was that I was hot in the middle of researching a replacement digicam. I'd just about decided to go with the Canon Powershot A570 IS -- until I found the Panasonic Lumix DMC-LZ7. What tipped the scales for me was the superior quality of the pictures the latter took.
One of the great online sites for camera reviews and tests is Imaging Resource. They have a neat little system called a Comparometer, wherein you can compare the pictures from one camera with identical pictures from the other. Up until that point, the Canon was a clear winner over the other cameras I checked. Then I matched it with the Lumix and was blown away.
If you'd like to do some testing yourself, go to Imaging Resource. This link takes you to their Comparometer page. The most dramatic photo to use for comparison is the one with all the different objects in it, from the big box of Crayola's to the skeins of embroidery thread and swatches of textured fabric and assorted bottles and jars and such.
Below is a picture of the little guy. I hope Amazon and Panasonic don't get upset with me for snitching it. I think they should consider it as free advertising. Now all I have to do is try to pry out the Yankee dollahs to buy the durned thang. There's always something, isn't there?
I came through here relatively unscathed. My poor landlord's hard work on the roof took some damage and I now have assorted containers set at strategic locations throughout the building. It isn't nearly as bad as before, though, so I'm certainly not complaining. What I wasn't aware of until I finally broke cover and went to the grocery store today, is the structural damage to the front of the building. Bonnie will remember the balcony with its nice railing all the way around and a good view of the traffic on Highway 101. (insert smile) Well, there's not as much railing today. Both the south end and the north end were ripped out. The south section is lying on the balcony floor but the north section was flung to the cement below, right in front of where my shop space was. On the way down, it connected with the power line and, while the line wasn't pulled completely loose, it looks like a long section of it was jerked right out of the building. Of course I didn't hear it. You would not believe how noisy that wind was. It sounded like a huge, demented cat, yowling and howling and growling. Thought I'd go nuts.
Everywhere I went today, there were downed trees, most of which had previously withstood winds for a long time -- some of the old cypress trees have been around longer than I have. The sustained high wind and the frequent power-gusts, however, either ripped them out of the ground or split them the length of their trunks and tossed the pieces aside. The sound most commonly heard today was the roar of chainsaws, trying to clean up the mess and clear the roads.
Probably the hardest hit locally was the dock in Port Orford, 15 minutes south of here. Rather than try to describe it, I'll just point you to the article in today's paper. Cleanup and repair there is really going to be a long, hard job.
I was particularly frustrated by the fact that phone service was out from just before noon yesterday (Monday) until around 2 pm today. That means I couldn't log on to the Internet, of course. Very traumatic. The curious thing was, we could call each other within the Langlois area but calls to or from anywhere else just got you a rapid busy signal.
The major gripe about that was that I was hot in the middle of researching a replacement digicam. I'd just about decided to go with the Canon Powershot A570 IS -- until I found the Panasonic Lumix DMC-LZ7. What tipped the scales for me was the superior quality of the pictures the latter took.
One of the great online sites for camera reviews and tests is Imaging Resource. They have a neat little system called a Comparometer, wherein you can compare the pictures from one camera with identical pictures from the other. Up until that point, the Canon was a clear winner over the other cameras I checked. Then I matched it with the Lumix and was blown away.
If you'd like to do some testing yourself, go to Imaging Resource. This link takes you to their Comparometer page. The most dramatic photo to use for comparison is the one with all the different objects in it, from the big box of Crayola's to the skeins of embroidery thread and swatches of textured fabric and assorted bottles and jars and such.
Below is a picture of the little guy. I hope Amazon and Panasonic don't get upset with me for snitching it. I think they should consider it as free advertising. Now all I have to do is try to pry out the Yankee dollahs to buy the durned thang. There's always something, isn't there?
7 comments:
I was going to try and call you but had a suspicion you would be without phone or browsing the net. lol
Glad you are OK. Did it wreck any havoc at Annie's? Where was poor Ralph during this?
Okay, I know *this* anonymous is Bonnie (smile) but please, folks, sign your name to your comments so I'll know which anon I'm speaking to, okay? I wonder why Blogger changed stuff like that?
Anyhoo, yes, there was some damage at Annie's -- some fencing by the street is down and the sign by the highway looks like it's in a drunken lean. They were over there working this afternoon but I don't know what all they had to do.
Ralph? He has his kingdom under the building, with the entryway just to the left of the stairs. He looked just fine every time I went down to feed him so I guess he dealt with things okay. Besides we cuddled a lot to make up for the lousy weather.
That sounds like some storm, Dee. I hope the damage to your house is fixed quickly and in the meantime doesn't make living too uncomfortable. Most of all, though, I'm glad you and Ralph came through unscathed!
That camera is a good pick!
John Bailey aka OGP
:-)
Thanks, John. And Ralph thanks you, too. (smile) Frankly, I think he was far more comfy under the building than he would have been up here, with all the shaking and the noise. Maybe I should have joined him!
No wonder you west coasters are such movers and shakers. Forty-foot swells are a little difficult to picture even with a camera, at least for landlocked Ohioans. We're glad you're still there, posting as unusual.
Bill, compared with some of the reports I'm reading today, we were very fortunate in this little village. Sure wish I could have snagged some pictures of that surf, though!
There's where you are. I'me very glad to know that you are still warm and dry.....with pots, and back with us again. The newspaper here reports that 5 is still underwater in some spots, but I hope you can get everywhere you need to. Yup too, miss your images. There's are ok, yours are wonderful.
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