Evening folks! It's....2:18AM on the east coast of the US and I'm home from my "Vacation". We'll come back to why that's in quotes in a moment. First, I wanna just mention that probably Tuesday or Wednesday, I have another, far more interesting entry lined up. But I needed to do this.

As I mentioned in the site report from Monstermania, I was planning the following weekend to head home to Louisiana (where I was born and lived for 15 years.) The plan was to go down for a family members 90th birthday and to see my favorite cousin (also a horror afficionado). This is an account of how that went. Thursday at 545, I hopped a flight out of Newark to Dallas, transfer to New Orleans. Flights werent terrible. No big problems with seatmates or anything. Got to the Louis Armstrong International Airport in New Orleans, and waited for the shuttle to take me to the hotel. And waited. Every other hotel shuttle came once before mine did. I guess I just have bad timing. There was free wi-fi at the hotel, but I mostly used it to follow Hurricane Gustav.

On Friday, the hurricane center didn't know where Gustav was going, and models were pointing everywhere from Texas to Florida. I spent my day...screwing plywood onto my grandparents windows with my uncle and father. Driving around, many stores were already boarded up. One, STUPIDLY, had broken down boxes and taped them to the inside of their windows (oh that'll work REAL good when the 70mph winds hit.) That night there was a minor family reunion where I met up people I hadn't seen in years. I then went outside and talked to my cousin via cellphone for an hour. I never got to see her on this trip...which is moderately distressing since I'm 80-90% sure she didn't evacuate, but I know that was what she wanted. We talked about movies (she liked 13: Game of Death as much as I did) and our lives. I ended up getting a 100% free copy of Dog Soldiers she'd loaned to my grandfather. When I went to bed, Gustav was a Category 1.

When I woke up, it was a Category 4. Saturday we visited my uncle the police officer. The mayor lost his mind, and told his people to "be scared" and "get their butts out". The airport decided to close sunday at 6. My flight was monday at 7. I got on one of the last flight's out. My hotel closed, but we were allowed to stay til the next morning while the national guard and fire folks arrived (nothing is more chilling than a national guard procession driving by in front of you in an average U.S. town). Evacuations were called for in all parishes. And I wouldn't be shocked if we see Katrina level devastation. (We may not, but I don't like the looks of this.)

Sunday, the streets were pretty deserted. We went to the airport which was one of the creepiest places I've ever been. First, we couldn't drop off the rental car as Budget had closed up. No shuttle either. We got it through the gate though because they allowed us too, and, after walking halfway to the terminal, a thrifty shuttle took us in. You couldn't be inside without ticket confirmation. No food or drink or anything was sold. M.R.E.'s were given out if people wanted them though I saw no one eating them. I was waiting at my terminal for 5 hours. Earlier flights going to other places came and went, people got bumped up. But I couldnt' be. So I was there at 330...when the outerband hit quickly. Rain poured down against the windows for a good 5-10 minutes. Short, I know, but I could see OUT that window 2 minutes before, now I could see nothing. I got out on a flight to Chicago O'Hare and connected over to Newark. (on the Chicago-Newark flight I had a spirited discussion of stephen king with a seatmate so that was nice). As we flew out toward O'Hare....and I looked out the window of the relatively empty flight....I've never seen a more empty looking major city than that.

And here I sit. To my knowledge the vast majority of my family is out, and those who aren't...they know what they are getting into. For me, this is nothing new. I lived there during Andrew and other storms from 1985-2000. But it doesn't make the general situation any easier.

I hope this isn't too much of a downer, but I got back early and thought people would like to know what it was like from someone who was down there and not a cnn or weather channel talking head. I'll have something more interesting and amusing later this week, but for now, I just thought I'd "educate" so to speak.