It's the end of the season as we know it...

Today, November 30th, marks the official end of Hurricane Season. And with an absolutely beautiful day, just as yesterday was. Shutters are down, lawn furniture out. Those who were decimated by hurricanes this season continue to repair and rebuild, though lives and land gone cannot be replaced. We on Culebra, who had a near miss with Omar, have escaped the wrath of hurricanes for one more year. And we are thankful.

In the Virgin Islands, where I used to live, there are two special hurricane related days. One is Hurricane Supplication Day in July. and Hurricane Thanksgiving Day in October. Of course, hurricane season is from June 1 to November 30th, but those days represent when the real threat *usually* comes to our area. Oh, factoid, the US Virgin Islands, St. Thomas and St. John, are about 18 miles away from us; St. Croix about 40 miles. It's all a pretty small neighborhood, with the BVI's just a few miles out from there, along with...well, another subject for another day.

Point being, I loved the Supplication and Thanksgiving days. I hear they are no longer official holidays...I hope that's not true, but maybe it is. Of course I could fact check, but that doesn't mean much on islands. Many are the local (PR, VI's) holidays that are NOT federal/official holidays, yet all businesses and the PO are closed anyway. Not so much now as when I first moved to the islands, but there was something about that I loved. On St. Croix you could basically count on no real business being done for about 18 days in the Christmas season. That included the phones. My family got to know that during major holidays the chances of me being able to call them was dicey at best. "All circuits are busy now" was a voice I knew all too well in the frustration of trying to wish my family and friends happy holidays of one sort or another. Frustration gave way to laughter...as it should. I did choose to live here, after all.

So this was going to be a very short post, my own gladness to draw a close on official Hurricane season. Too much. Thus endeth it now!

Unless there is a good view of the convergence...which there was last night but I was busy directing boat traffic...(an hour later)...and there WAS a good view! There was the crescent moon, far below Venus & Jupiter.. I stood in the yard with the camera on the tripod, a coil blowing poisonous mosquito repelling smoke up my shorts (it sort of helped...I live on the edge of mangroves and water...they are BAD here some days) and got a lot of good shots; here is the one I'll share for tonight.