Thursday, August 23, 2012

High Anxiety

Every late winter, I blog on the aroma of skunk.  The critters get active at that time of year-- looking for food and love.  I always found it to be a better sign of approaching spring than the robin.

Conversely, I've noticed an increase in skunk activity lately.  They're digging in lawns for grubs.  They're ripping open garbage bags in search of a snack.  They're fattening up for winter, and they seem to be doing it earlier this year, possibly signaling very cold and snowy days are ahead.

I think I said the same thing last year, and we had one of the mildest winters on record.  Maybe skunks aren't as smart as I thought.

Thankfully, it's been a quiet hurricane season so far, but that might change next week.  Some forecasts have a big storm moving toward Florida and the gulf coast.  It looks like it will happen.  The Weather Channel even blew off one of its horrible "reality" shows to talk about it Tuesday night.  That's big!

I was on the anchor desk for Irene, and I was on vacation for Lee.  I'm out of the flood plain.  Still, there's a nervous feeling in my stomach when a hurricane or tropical storm bears down on the U.S.

We'll be watching the storm track.