islandboat
Petty Officer 2nd Class
- Joined
- Apr 10, 2004
- Messages
- 127
'Twas the night before the hurricane<br />>>>When all through the state<br />>>>Not a gas pump was pumping<br />>>>Not a store open late<br />>>><br />>>>All the plywood was hung<br />>>>On the windows with care<br />>>>Knowing that a Katrina <br />>>>Soon would be there<br />>>><br />>>>The children were ready<br />>>>With flashlights in hand<br />>>>While bands from Katrina <br />>>>Covered over the land<br />>>><br />>>>And mamma with her Mag-Lite<br />>>>And I in my cap<br />>>>Had just filled the bath tub<br />>>>For flushing our crap<br />>>><br />>>>When out on the lawn<br />>>>There arose such a clatter<br />>>>I sprang from the closet<br />>>>To see what was the matter<br />>>><br />>>>The trees on the fence<br />>>>And the neighbor's roof torn<br />>>>Gave the fear of us dying<br />>>>In this terrible storm<br />>>><br />>>>With a little wind gust<br />>>>So lively and quick<br />>>>I remembered quite clearly<br />>>>Our walls weren't brick<br />>>><br />>>>More rapid than eagles<br />>>>Her courses they came<br />>>>And she whistled, and wafted<br />>>>And surged all the same<br />>>><br />>>>Off shingles! Off sidings!<br />>>>Off rooftops! Off power!<br />>>>Down trees! Down fences!<br />>>>Down trailers! Down towers!<br />>>><br />>>>In the Gulf Coast <br />>>>She continued to maul<br />>>>Screaming Blow Away!<br />>>>Blow Away! Blow Away All!<br />>>><br />>>>As wind ripped and tossed<br />>>>The debris through the sky<br />>>>I peeked out the shutters<br />>>>At cars floating by<br />>>><br />>>>So go to the safe-room<br />>>>My family did do<br />>>>With a portable radio<br />>>>And batteries too<br />>>><br />>>>And then, in a twinkling<br />>>>I heard on the set<br />>>>The end was not coming<br />>>>For a few hours yet!<br />>>><br />>>>As I calmed down the kids<br />>>>And was turning around<br />>>>Through the window it came<br />>>>With a huge crashing sound<br />>>><br />>>>A tree branch it was<br />>>>All covered in soot<br />>>>The wind blew it smack-dab<br />>>>On top of my foot<br />>>><br />>>>A bundle of twigs<br />>>>Now lay in a stack<br />>>>And my living room looks<br />>>>Like it was under attack<br />>>><br />>>>The wind - how it howled!<br />>>>The storm - very scary!<br />>>>Myself and the family<br />>>>Were all too unwary<br />>>><br />>>>The dangers of hurricanes<br />>>>Are serious, you know<br />>>>They are taken for granted<br />>>>As Katrina did show<br />>>><br />>>>With the winds dying down<br />>>>And the danger beneath<br />>>>I noticed my tool shed<br />>>>Was missing its sheath<br />>>><br />>>>So I grabbed my last tarp<br />>>>And nailed it on down<br />>>>Then I got in my car<br />>>>And I headed to town<br />>>><br />>>>The traffic was awful<br />>>>And stores had no ice<br />>>>My five gallon cooler<br />>>>Would have to suffice<br />>>><br />>>>Generators were scarce<br />>>>Not one left in town<br />>>>There were trees on the roads<br />>>>And power lines down<br />>>><br />>>>FEMA wasn't ready<br />>>>With people to work<br />>>>Electrical companies<br />>>>Came in from New York<br />>>><br />>>>And in the midst of<br />>>>This peculiar routine<br />>>>Another storm emerged (Willma) <br />>>>Just out in the Ocean<br />>>><br />>>>I sprang to the car<br />>>>And gave my family a whistle<br />>>>Then away we all went<br />>>>Like a Tomahawk missile<br />>>><br />>>>You could hear us exclaim<br />>>>As we drove out of sight<br />>>>"The hell with this place,<br />>>>Vermont seems just right!"
