Tag: tropical storm
Fay-zed out
OK, it was cute leading up to the week how worked up people were getting about the storm. It was a tad annoying being told Armageddon was upon us and we had to be prepared, but it was cute in it’s anxiety breeding ways.
But here we are, Friday, and Fay still hasn’t left the state of Florida. Oh, she’s finally over the ocean again but technically? She’s still here… I mean, those are Florida waters.
And I must say: as a 20 year resident of Florida, following the likes of storms both tropical, non-tropical, frontal, and just standard summer storms… I have never seen a storm take such an abrupt, hard turn before:
Fay -- on Radar -- from Monday (August 18) thru Firday (August 22)
Dry and true
So there has been rain in the Tampa Bay area the last few days, yay rain…
…Whoopty friggin’ do.
Anyone in Pinellas County that wants to think we’re in the clear with drought conditions need only look at the official Pinellas county rain gauge on their web site. It feels sick and cruel that the tally through today (July 2nd) is 10.59 inches of rain for the year.
2007 is half way finished and we’re only about one fifth of the way to the average rainfall total (Clearwater, Florida’s average yearly rainfall total is 49 inches according to Florida Living Network. The St. Pete Chamber of Commerce lists the city of St. Petersburg’s annual rainfall total at 48+ Inches).
We haven’t hit the Fourth of July yet, nor the peak of the hurricane season (two sub-tropical storms and only a bit of rain from both) and I’m fearing how our water outlook will come November.
Oil Dependence and national drilling
So there is that contingent of closed minded individuals who think drilling nationally is going to save us from foreign oil… More local oil will lower costs long term and what not…
And yet one tropical storm comes through the Gulf of Mexcio – with another on the way — and prices skyrocket. The gulf is where they want to do more drilling in addition to doing more drilling in ANWR…. And yet if one storm reeks havok on domestic oil prices, can you imagine how bad it would be in the future if we were more dependant on gulf oil?
Of course, the solution is alternatives and alternatives escape the logic of those in power — so we remain screwed as a nation because of little minds and little logic.
