Hurricane Matthew Watch by Kristin Wallace

So as I write this, South Florida is bracing for Hurricane Matthew. It looks like it will hit north of where I live in Miami, but could still experience power outages, flooding and some damage. The worst thing is, some of the forecast models have the storm making a loop and coming BACK to Florida next week!!! 

WHAT?????

I don’t think I can handle this storm prep again…not to mention the possibility of another landfall.

I lived through Hurricane Andrew many years ago. I had just graduated from college and I was living with my parents on Brickell Avenue, which has a lot of high rises and condos. We had to leave and ended up staying with friends further west. The storm ended up coming in south of us and the devastation was incredible. Destruction everywhere. After the storm my family tried to drive back to the condo to check things out. Trees were down, debris everywhere, street signs gone, traffic light missing. It was hard to even tell where we were. At one point we realized we had left the road and were driving in the middle of a golf course. The recovery from that storm went on for months.

While the threat is real and possible damage nothing to laugh, there is humor during these times. Seeing the news coverage reminds me of how really stupid some of the reporting gets. The news channels down here live for these storms. We don’t get a lot of wild weather. Most of the forecasts consist of “Partly sunny with storms in the afternoon.” It’s pretty boring. A tropical storm or hurricane is exciting. It gives them something to talk about endlessly. Probably the most entertaining thing about a storm are the ill-fated reporters who are assigned the duty of standing outside so they can tell us that, yes in fact, it is raining and the wind is blowing…HARD! I think we can hear that is pouring and that the wind is roaring, thank you. Still, they like to do it for the drama. Here are some examples of the stupidity for your pleasure.

But seriously, this hurricane is no joke. When this blog posts, hopefully the storm will be out of here and will NOT BE COMING BACK. Also be praying for those in the South Carolina where the storm could head after Florida.

Kristin Wallace is the USA Today Best Selling Author of inspirational and contemporary romance, and women’s fiction filled with “Love, Laughter and a Leap of Faith”. Check out her latest release, Sweet Christmas Kisses 3, a box set with 17 holiday romances for 99 cents. (Which just happened to hit the USA TODAY bestseller list this week!!!!)  Kristin’s contribution is FALLING FOR YOU AT CHRISTMAS, part of the Shellwater Key Tales series. For more info visit her website at Kristin Wallace Author.

If you haven’t gotten your box set, here are the handy buy links, AND for a limited time you can also get Sweet Christmas Kisses 1 & 2 for only 99 cents.

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Sound The Alarm...It's Hurricane Season by Kristin Wallace

Tis' the season for much alarm and hand wringing. At least in my part of the world as we're still firmly entrenched in Hurricane Season. It's been some time since we had a storm here. The last year of any activity was the year of Katrina...and Rita...and Wilma. We just had a big anniversary as Hurricane Andrew struck South Florida 23 years ago on August 24, 1992. And a couple weeks ago we had a slight scare as a storm named Erika threatened Florida. Actually, that storm (I don't think it ever made it to hurricane status) was impossible to predict as the "Cone of Uncertainty" swung from one direction to the other like a drunken college frat boy. No one knew where she was going and in the end, she just fizzled out.

Erika gave the news reporters a chance to practice the drill, though. This is a great time to be a weather person, you see. Our local new channels become absolutely giddy with excitement at the prospect of wall-to-wall news coverage and a chance to show the viewers how committed they are to "bringing you the story". I’m talking about the annual ritual sacrifice of the poor hapless reporter who gets to stand out in the storm and tell us how hard the wind is blowing. I’m not sure when this practice started, but the stations here have perfected the art of standing in the howling wind, rain coming down like sheets, and pretending that all that drama really helps anyone. 

Here are some awesome examples of stupidity...

Joe Scarborough of MSNBS doing his level best to get blown away. What makes this awesome is that it's shot by another camera, not his "on-camera" one so you can barely hear him. Although you can catch that the wind is blowing 108 mph, which should be his first clue to go inside.

Here's another one of reporter getting blown over during Hurricane Ike & is saved only by the quick action of a hearty shrub.

Even as I speak, there are no less than 5-6 storms churning out in the Atlantic. Thankfully, most seem like they won't threaten anyone. And surely the poor reporters will be spared the necessity to go out in the howling wind and tell us...that the wind is howling. (All joking aside...praying there won't be any storms this year. They're actually no joke.) 

Kristin Wallace is the USA Today Best Selling Author of inspirational and contemporary romance, and women’s fiction filled with “Love, Laughter and a Leap of Faith”. This holiday season you can find her newest release FINDING YOU AT CHRISTMAS as part of the Sweet Christmas Kisses 2 box set. 19 holiday romances by some fabulous authors. Pre-order it today! Visit her website at: Kristin Wallace Author