Red Cross: Back

[bkdelong]

I'm back from another day at Red Cross. Drove down to Otis ANB base at 7am, arrived at 8:45am. Helped load up the previously boxed "Mass Care" supplies including baby diapers, clothes, packaged snacks and drinks as well as all the cots into 3 vehicles and 1 trailer - one of the vehicles being the Suzuki I bought from Megan (arabellasq) which happens to be red and fits right in. They're even talking about getting me magnetic red crosses that I can stick to my car while working. Not sure if that was a joke or not ;)

After we filled up the vehicles, (about 2hrs), we dropped a few off at the New Bedford office and brought the ERV to the Boston HQ and unloaded it.

Until Monday.....other non-ARC posts to come...I swear. When you do this much driving you listen to a lot of NPR and do a lot of thinking.

Be well.

Got more exposure to the ERV. I think I've going to get Red Cross Driving training which will let me drive any of the 3 vehicles we had today - a van, a suburban tricked out with GPS and the ERV. I believe I need "ERVs: Ready, Set, Roll", "Defensive Driving", and even Logistics Initial Response Vehicle (LIRV) Driver Training while I'm at it.

We are on "Stand Down" from Ophelia - it all but dissolved about 9am ET this morning several hundred miles off the coast of Massachusetts. However Tropical Depression 17 is headed roughly for the Mid-Atlantic states and there's a tropical wave northeast of the South American continent that's targeting Miami. But hell....the computer models are only accurate for a few hours and if you watch the past tracking paths they're all over the place. I have a feeling I'll be more needed in the winter when the No'reasters hit.

Comments

[floppsy.livejournal.com]

there's a tropical wave northeast of the South American continent that's targeting Miami

Thanks for the heads up! I didn''t hear about it yet, but I'll be sure to pick up my board from the shop ASAP! Monster rips, horizontal hard rain, being blown over by wind ... WOOOOOOO-HOOOOOO! Weeeell, as long as it stays in Cat1-to-2. Otherwise I'm packing up SoBe & bailing BACK to NYC till Hurricane season is over ;~/

[bkdelong.livejournal.com]

Let's not pack up yet. Like I said.....it's not even a Tropical Depression yet. But NOAA has it covered and provided Santorum doesn't get his way we'll continue to get detailed info.

Here's the detail on that wave I mentioned, which NWS is now calling a "Special Tropical Feature":

A 1010 MB LOW IS CENTERED ABOUT 145 NM E OF GRAND TURK NEAR
22N68.5W MOVING NW 5-10 KT. THE LOW-LEVEL CIRCULATION OF THIS
SYSTEM HAS BEEN IMPROVING AND STRENGTHENING THROUGH THE DAY
ALTHOUGH THE ASSOCIATED AREA OF TSTMS HAS BEEN A LITTLE RAGGED
AND DISORGANIZED. THE LOW SITS ABOUT 400 NM E OF AN UPPER LOW
WHICH IS CENTERED BETWEEN THE BAHAMAS AND CUBA AND UPPER
DIFFLUENCE IS SUPPORTING NEW TSTM DEVELOPMENT. SCATTERED
MODERATE CONVECTION FROM 21N-25N BETWEEN 67W-70W. TROPICAL
CYCLONE DEVELOPMENT IS POSSIBLE WITHIN THE NEXT 36 HRS FROM JUST
N OF HISPANIOLA TOWARDS THE CENTRAL BAHAMAS...ESPECIALLY IF
CONVECTION CAN PERSIST AND BECOME MORE ORGANIZED AROUND THE
CENTER. MODEL GUIDANCE BRINGS THE LOW THROUGH THE BAHAMAS OVER
THE NEXT 48-72 HRS AND IT IS ADVISED THAT ALL INTERESTS IN THE
BAHAMAS AND SOUTH FLORIDA REMAIN ABREAST OF FUTURE DEVELOPMENTS
ON THIS SYSTEM IN THE COMING DAYS. REGARDLESS OFF TROPICAL
DEVELOPMENT...HEAVY RAINFALL WILL SPREAD FROM THE SOUTHERN
BAHAMAS WWD TOWARDS THE NORTHERN BAHAMAS...S FLORIDA...AND CUBA
THROUGH MID-WEEK.

...the note also mentions two more tropical waves...

[floppsy.livejournal.com]

Cool! At this point, I'm used to everything up to Cat 4 -- & I really, really hope I don't find out what that's like since I live on the beach -- & SoBe has nightly storms with cool lighting over the ocean & "gusty" winds (@30-40mph). Last weekend for a lil' change of pace, we had 2 tornado touchdowns & hail ...

Sick as it sounds, I'm jonesing a tight Cat 1 or the outerbands of a Cat2 to surf before I have to head back to NYC for school.

[bkdelong.livejournal.com]

For school? Did I miss something??

[floppsy.livejournal.com]

Didn't I tell you??? ... I'm a flake with too much sun ::G::

But, yeah, I got invited to return to my old grad school for 2 practicums. Should be slightly better then my plan B ... "shop some more" ::G::

Anyhoo, classes start September 28 & I have a benefit for Russian orphans on Sept 27, so I'm about to go back to NYC till after Christmas ;~(((( ... weeeell, with lots of fun trips in between.

[bkdelong.livejournal.com]

Awesome! Practicums are nice....since in many cass all you have to do is write about what you've already done.

They'll definitely be visits to the city then! I want you to meet my boss and hear about the new company. I think you may have an interest - Definitely some intersection.

[floppsy.livejournal.com]

This is a smidge different ... my 'prof' is uuuuh ... smidge different ... actually, I'll tell you off line. & YES! You SHOULD come visit NYC!!! (Just been bugging you for ...ooooh ... how many years???).

Just, uuuh, 1 teeensy other lil' thing I might have forgotten to mention ... M is going back into MSK (Sloan Kettering) for an operation on Sept 30 to take out a lymphoma from the base of his skull/ neck. Doc says it'll just be this surgery, so my fingers are crossed for this next round of "fun with cancer." In all seriousness, he seems ok (he's busy in LA right now & not coming back to see me till the 23rd & he has his docs blessing to postpone surgery these 2 weeks, so I guess it really is nothing much) ... but the first 2 or 3 weeks of October are probably no goes for me in terms of visits, cause he'll be in the hospital for a few days, then I'll have to help him with the drain in his neck.

Anyhoo, give me a call & we'll catch up next week! You'd mentioned (if this is the same former & potential future boss) something in tech that sounded interesting ... & I hope all is well with the ARC work!!! Ooooh, & almsot forgot to say CONGRATS on pushing your way through the quagmire & getting some important work done! --told you I'm a flake from too much sun ::G::
;~))