10 Good Things About A Tropical Storm

Arrived home in this ...... wet, wet, wet!

Nails scrabbling on the marble tiles, Sparky dashed inside – his whole body, ears to the tip of his tail, vibrating as he vigorously spun the water from his fur.  A few minutes earlier, we had tried to meet up with Alexis and her dog Perogi for a doggy playdate of carefree running and swimming, but just as we arrived at our meeting place, the storm hit – with a vengeance.  This was the start of a four-day tropical depression with driving rain and stiff winds. 

Alexis and I ran to our respective golf carts, shrieking with laughter as the rain obscured our vision and soaked us to the bone. Both dogs were not impressed, hunkering down inside the open carts, looking for a dry spot - anywhere. By the time I had driven ten minutes, the streets were flooded, rivers of water flowing from the higher elevation of Las Glorias, engulfing the lower-level main road. Golf cart motors struggle in deep water, and I spent the next fifteen minutes searching for dryer streets as I wove my way back to our house.

Oceanside view from our house during storm

“Come on, baby.  You can do it!”  I pleaded with the cart as it threatened to stall at every flooded intersection. “Just a few more blocks.”  I really didn’t want to walk home in the downpour with a short-legged mutt dragging along beside me, and there was no way in hell that any taxi would have picked up two soaking wet passengers, especially when one is a very wet dog.

We arrived home, and as is the norm in a rainstorm, the carport was occupied by people hiding from the onslaught.  They moved aside as we parked, grinning at our bedraggled condition.  

Lawrie brought me two large dry towels, one for me and one for Sparky.  As I scrubbed the dripping water off my hair and then mopped the dog’s fur, I thought there had to be something good about all this rain; there had to be an upside.

Five minutes before the storm hit - hot and dry!

One: Soft hair!  Yep, rainwater is great for my hair, leaving it very soft and curly.  I can save money on hair conditioner.  Now, if I had planned ahead, I would have caught a few gallons in a clean bucket to use later in the week.  

Lawrie, on the other hand, doesn’t have to worry about hair conditioner. He has a nice, smooth head

Two: Soft fur on Sparky. He needed to be walked. He doesn’t know about weather and storm forecasts. When a guy has to go, well, he has to go. Thomas the Cat, on the other hand, was happy to hang around inside and use his clean, dry litter box. He is obviously much smarter.

Three: Clean railings on the upper decks. The aluminum railings are sparkling clean, or they would be sparkling if the sun were shining. The thick cloud cover was grey and angry, so the railings were clean, not shiny. Still, it’s a positive.

Sparky, wet and hiding with all the patio stuff

Four: Clean decks.  When the wind was gusting to 50 km/h, the decks were swept clean of sand, salt, plant leaves and pet fur. 

Five: Less traffic.  The island pretty much comes to a standstill.  Most islanders use bicycles, motos or golf carts.  During storms, these are less than ideal as transportation.

Six: Kids get an extra day or two off school. When the storm hit early Friday morning, some kids were already in school, but a lot had stayed home. The windowless schools are designed for hot tropical days, not tropical rainstorms.

Seven: The rain washes salt off of the electrical connections and wires – reducing electrical arching, and possibly increasing the life of the electrical connections.

Eight: Refreshes the salinas. Salinas are landlocked salty ponds that, at some point in their history, were connected to the ocean. Now they are surrounded by land, houses, and roads.  

They can become quite stinky during the winter dry season. A pounding rainstorm supplies fresh water and allows the excess to exit through the pump houses into the ocean. The wading birds - cranes, storks, egrets, herons and spoonbills - appreciate the fresh water.

Nine: Island cars get a good washing up.

Return to nice weather 

Ten: We meet new people.  Frequently, when a nasty storm rolls in, it catches people unawares, and our carport fills up with islanders hiding from the rain.  We usually put on a big pot of coffee and invite everyone inside to wait for a break in the weather.  Sometimes it takes ten minutes, and sometimes an hour, but everyone is happy to be a little dryer, and we get to meet a few more locals.

Several days later, when our tropical depression made landfall in Texas, it had become Tropical Storm Bill. We hope our American friends don’t get too badly battered.  Our carport is nice and dry if you need a place to hide from the rain, and we make pretty good coffee. 

In the meantime, we are happy with the return of light breezes and warm sunny days!

Cheers, Lynda, Lawrie, Thomas, and Sparky

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