OT: Hurricane Irene

[amos]

Again, to all our friends in the path of Irene: Stay Safe! And do keep us up to date and let us know what is happening.

amos

[GumbyCT]

Amos I would like to ask another Q?

Do you know how NC became known as the "Tarheel State"?

[Vader]

Amos I would like to ask another Q?

Do you know how NC became known as the "Tarheel State"?

I don't mean to answer for Amos, especially if he's another fellow North Carolinian, but according to our Museum of History, "the most widely accepted version of the origin of Tar Heel comes from the Civil War period. During one of the fiercest clashes of the war, a unit of North Carolinians fought
alone after its supporting column had been driven from the battlefield. A group of
Virginia soldiers who had retreated asked in a condescending tone, “Any more tar down
in the Old North State, boys?” The victorious troops responded quickly, “No, not a bit;
old Jeff’s bought it all up.” “Is that so? What is he going to do with it?” the Virginians
asked. “He is going to put it on you’ns heels to make you stick better in the next fight,”
came the reply. General Robert E. Lee, upon hearing of the incident said, “God bless the
Tar Heel boys.” Whatever the origin of their nickname, Tar Heels across the state are
proud of it. And so is the basketball team!"

[amos]

Vader,

The saying maybe older than that. It probably goes back to the early days of sailing. Ship were sealed with tar. Someone stepping into fresh tar would be called a "tar heel." "Tar" is also an old name for a sailor.

amos

[GumbyCT]

aha - I certainly appreciate learning both versions. I have heard the expression for so long now.
I don't know about sailing but they sure do make some good BBQ

Lexington style prob has some story behind it too

[Vader]

I don't know about sailing but they sure do make some good BBQ

Amos probably won't disagree with me when I say that the best barbecue is in Atlanta!

[amos]

Amos wouldn't disagree, but you might get an argument out of Gumby. He says the best barbeque is the one he makes in his back year.

[GumbyCT]

Amos wouldn't disagree, but you might get an argument out of Gumby. He says the best barbeque is the one he makes in his back year.

No no, the best Bareque is one I have yet to taste. But Wilbur's in Goldsboro, NC sure is close.

[GumbyCT]

Before I loose my internet connection I wanted to say to Uncle Amos -

If there is a sliver lining to this event it is that Uncle Amos sent his Aunt Irene on a weekend rather than a weekday or days AND he only packed her enuff to stay the weekend.

Thanks Uncle Amos and Good Night Irene, Good night

[archangle]

The Weather Channel (TWC) is showing its reporter standing on the beach out at Nags Heads, NC..... what a name eh? Nags Heads? But what I wanted to ask is - How would you like to have that job? Or even be on that crew?

After, Mayors and Governors all over the country plead for people to stay home and off the roads then these circus people take to the airways to show us what it's like.....lmao.

I don't have a problem with the news media making an informed choice to put themselves in harms way to inform the public.

Unfortunately, starting with the movie "Twister" and recently with all the cable TV gomer science channels making storm chaser "reality" shows, there are lots of wannabe storm chaser, putting themselves, innocent bystanders, and emergency service personnel at risk by going out and doing stupid things just for thrills.

The real storm spotter guys who actually do some good for the public are really disgusted by the idiots who are getting in the way.

[Bons]

One good thing about cpap is that I'll know immediately if the power goes out.... the ASV alarm could wake the dead.
But it looks like I may need a raft to get to church in the morning.

[wolewyck]

Feeling pretty nervous here... I have an aunt and uncle in NC who have been without power since Friday night. My cousin and her newborn in NJ get hit tonight. My parents in central MA-- both with apnea-- have only one backup CPAP battery between them and a house surrounded by trees. My brother is also in mid-MA with SIL and two young kids, one only three months old. My cousin in MA is expecting a baby any day now. My family and I would be there also, but we happen to be on a planned vacation, although we did leave a bit earlier than originally intended to avoid potential evacuation traffic. Friend near NYC has mandatory evacuation line bisecting her street... she's on the "don't have to evacuate" side, but... ?? Our house has a double-sump with battery backup-- just installed this spring(!)--but our neighborhood tends towards flooded basements, and who knows about this wind? Part of me wishes we were at home, although honestly, I'm not sure what we could do...

If anyone becomes without power, I do have these words of comfort... while driving on the Mass Pike today, and the NYS Thruway, we saw convoy after convoy after convoy of utility vehicles heading east. Friends who passed through this area and onward into Indiana reported continuing convoys all the way into Ohio. Help is on the way... hope it gets to everyone STAT.

[GumbyCT]

But it looks like I may need a raft to get to church in the morning.

Take a "Rain Check".

[archangle]

A few more hints for everyone but unclebob.

Text messages will often get through when cell phone calls won't. If you have trouble making contact into or out of an emergency area because cell phone services are overloaded or damaged, try a text message.

If you've got dear old mom or dad who doesn't really understand how to text, it might be a good idea to see if you can teach them so they can at least try in an emergency.

This works because a text message gets stored, and can wait for a while for a data connection to become available to get sent to the next link in the chain. A voice call requires a continuous data connection. A voice call also requires a lot more bandwidth.

Of course, sometimes nothing will get through.

Facebook, twitter, or e-mail can also be a godsend in these situations. You may get through with them when other means don't work. It can also be a good way to report to the rest of the family on grandma's status.

[BlackSpinner]

Was re-posted by someone on my facebook

URGENT: As Hurricane Irene batters the East Coast, federal disaster officials warned that Internet outages could force people to interact with other people for the first time in years. Residents braced themselves for the horror of awkward silences and unwanted eye contact. FEMA advised: “Be prepared. Write down possible topics to talk about in advance. Remember, a conversation is basically a series of Facebook updates strung together. Hang in there!!!!!