My Hurricane Experience!

[farna@xxxxxxx]

I'm back in the states for a couple weeks! I go back last Tuesday, just in time to get away from the Gulf Coast for hurricane Ivan! Looked like it could hit Mississippi, so my wife decided to leave. I arrived in Seattle last Tuesday morning and called. I thought we'd determined that we'd wait until I got there then leave Wednesday morning if it looked like it might be necessary. Well, my flight into Gulfport from Memphis (TN) was cancelled! The airline called her around 12:30, but I had no idea until I got in Memphis around 6 pm! A flight was going into Hattiesburg MS (a little over an hour north of Gulfport), and one into Mobile. Since there was one to Mobile, I suspect they cancelled because there were only four of us really wanting to get to Gulfport! The military delayed all official orders moving into the area for a few days. The Hattiesburg flight left 20 minutes after my original flight, but there was a seat open. I didn't get to call until I got to Hattiesburg. My wi!
 fe was just getting into Hattiesburg after leaving Gulfport! She thought I'd be stranded in Memphis so took off! Traffic was backed up so bad it took her four hours to get to Hattiesburg, so she was there just in time to pick me up. What a coincidence! I'd thought about taking the Mobile flight since it would have given me another half hour to call before leaving!! On hindsight (I just thought of this), she should have called and had the airline leave me a message at the counter to stay. She figured I'd be stuck in Memphis so she'd drive up to get away as well. 
How she would find me at a hotel in Memphis I have no idea! 

AMC content" Why yes! She left her 97 Volvo in Gulfport and drove my 63 Rambler to get it out of the storm! We'd talked about that before I left. The Volvo can easily be replaced, I had to work damned hard to replace the wrecked Rambler a year ago! Speedo and gas gauge don't work, but she drove it anyway. It ran beautifully the entire way also, I might add. Need to raise the rear end just a little, but the car rides and drives great! We had to drive up I-59 then across I-20 to just past Tuscaloosa, AL, before we could find a hotel! The only reason we found one then is there was a hotel that was being remodeled and didn't really look open. The first place we stopped at on the east side of Tuscaloosa told us about it or we'd have never stopped! Since we were so far we drove on to my dad's in SC and spent the weekend there. I'd intended to go later anyway! 

Of course Ivan tore up Gulf Shores AL and Pensacola FL instead of MS. We had no damage whatsoever. Lucky for me, but I hope the AMCers in the areas that got hit bad made out okay!! I won't be real disappointed to leave the Gulf area! Nice place to visit, but a PITA to live here!! I'm going to try and get diverted from Dover Delaware I think. Don't really want all the damned salt under my car!! 

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