Monday Meanderings - 8.28.2017

The weather pattern in Texas for July through September is very predictable. "It will be very hot and very dry - unless there is some kind of disturbance in the Gulf."

There has been a disturbance in the Gulf.

ATX is on the outer fringe of the impacted area, but since this storm was seriously underestimated, even being on the outer fringe has been somewhat eventful. As of late Sunday night my gauge has measured nearly 9 inches of rain, and since the wind sort of knocked the gauge out of alignment, I suspect the actual measurement is somewhat higher. They tell us that it will rain steadily until Thursday.

The wind has been a constant companion to the rain, and there are a lot of smallish limbs, debris and such scattered up and down the street. Some big trees are down in the area and there have been numerous power outages across the area. Our recycling cart was last seen in a neighbor's yard. I hope it's still there when I can get out to retrieve it. Stepped on a squishy patch of carpet in front of the patio door this morning. The wind is blowing rain under the door, so we will have to keep soaking that up for a while.

All that that is nothing, of course, compared to what is happening to the east and in the Houston area.

Pray for those folks.

It has been very interesting to look at the pictures on Facebook of the damage in Port Aransas. That has been our get-away spot for years now, and we recognize most of the houses and buildings that are featured in those damage reports.

There's a large chunk of Trout Street Grill missing; Virginia's On the Bay seems to be quite a bit more open to the gulf than when we last ate there. The high-dollar boats that are normally moored on the bayou side are scattered all over town - the mooring itself is empty, except for a boat that seems to have tried to take cover inside Virginia's.

We have not seen a picture of the Sand Castle, the high-rise condo where we stay, but it's pretty obvious that we won't be going to Port A any week-end soon. Or, for that matter, to North Beach in Corpus, or to Rockport, or to Port Lavaca. However, based on the rainfall expected down-river from us, the beach may soon be a lot closer to us than in the past.

And all this from a little tropical depression that popped up in the Gulf and in just a few days time became the storm described as "unprecedented - all impacts are unknown and beyond anything experienced."