Hurricane Gustav

As it was this week three years ago I come out of sleep with my stomach clenched, in a state of anxiety.

Hurricane Gustav's trajectory appears to be heading for New Orleans at the end of this week, or start of next. It's already creamed poor Haiti, and is likely to smash into eastern Cuba. I have much love, much connection to both those islands, just as I do with New Orleans.

Like with Hurricane Ivan, like with Katrina, again this is just at the start of the new school year and fall semester. Lesson learned: end of August, start of September, is the most dangerous time to be in New Orleans. A good friend -- TR, he who is the host DJ for the Afropop Shout Out to New Orleans that Vaquero produced recently -- gives some hope. I'm paraphrasing here what he said last night:

"The extensive flooding from the midwest this year poured rivers of colder water into the Gulf, thereby reducing its temperature some degrees, which has an effect on the power of the hurricane, and even its directon. I think it may go to Texas, not here. In any case I think there is going to be mandatory evacution, and that it is going to organized and will go more smoothly than we fear. In any case we won't have to wait for the National Guard and the army. They're still here."

Here's another friend in New Orleans discussing Gustav.