As you might imagine, my mailbox is filled with comments about Hurricane/Tropical Storm Isaac, which just wouldn’t go away:
For instance, Mercedes Doré says, “Like most people lucky enough to have electricity, I felt compelled to watch the Weather Channel during Isaac.
“I was surprised to learn that hurricanes have a purpose — to move hot air from the tropics to the poles.
“Being a lifelong resident of Louisiana, I can think of purposes hurricanes serve for me — answering these important questions:
“What is buried in your freezer?
“Are you better at bourré than your friends and relatives?
“Do you have more friends if you have a generator?
“And, my husband’s new favorite, ‘Why didn’t my wife let me trim that overgrown vine before the storm knocked over the trellis?’
“And life goes on in south Louisiana.”
TV coverage of Isaac got a lot of attention from readers.
Mike Manes, of New Iberia, says some reporters tried too hard to inject drama in their reporting by standing out in high winds or driving rain — to prove it was windy and raining:
“Let’s get real — leave the drama to the soap operas.”
And a reader calling himself “Olde Guy” says, “With a hurricane bearing down on us, I went to check on an elderly friend.
“I asked, ‘Mr. Roy are you keeping up with the storm on TV?’
“He answered in his Cajun accent, ‘Yes I am, but it’s hard to listen to reporters who are not smart enough to get out of the wind and rain. They must not give them any kind of test before they hire them.’”
Years ago at a dinner I sat next to WAFB’s longtime weatherman Mike Graham.
The topic turned to hurricane coverage, and Mike told me he didn’t stand out in the middle of a hurricane to report because he saw no point to it.
Makes a lot of sense. …
Ernie Gremillion says, “After watching TV coverage of Isaac for hours, I would like to propose a new award.
“It would be given to the live hurricane TV reporter who can go the longest without repeating himself/herself.”
(Reminds me of the drinking game in which you down a shot each time a reporter says “hunker down,” “ride it out” etc.)
Mike Eldred, of Tylertown, Miss., says mention of Hurricane Audrey storm news in the ’50s “reminded me that the hurricane news in our neighborhood in Pineville was spread by a small boy, Gary Clark, who for a week ran about, in true Paul Revere style, proclaiming, ‘Hurricane’s coming, we’ll all be killed!’
“I adopted this mantra, and use it every season.”
Derek Glover of the Central Fire Department says don’t burn yard debris from Isaac:
“The green leaves and sticks will put off a lot of smoke. We are still busy running calls, and don’t want people calling complaining of smoke. This will tie up manpower and equipment.
“Please check the East Baton Rouge burn ordinance on our website centralfd.org.”
Lynn Mitchell says the University Acres Civic Association is reprinting “University Acres and Highland School: A History” by Julia Hawkins and Constance Navratil.
Copies are $10, available from Lynn at lynnlsu@gmail.com or (224) 769-2421.
“Julia looks forward to hearing from people who would like to reminisce about ‘The Acres.’ She’s at (225) 766-9421.”
Bruce Scott reminds folks who took down hummingbird feeders as Isaac approached to fill them and put them back up:
“The birds will be very hungry after the storm.”
Beanie says with mosquito season on us, he’s looking for citronella or eucalyptus oil:
“I believe this is what my parents used to keep the ‘little devils’ from bothering us.
“Mother put some on a 2-by-2 gauze square, then ran a string through it so it could be hung from the neck, wrist or ankle.”
“MawMaw Betty,” of French Settlement, says, “During the recent power outages granddaughter Taylor and I were discussing how nice it would be to have electricity again.
“She told me they had been learning about the Stone Age at school the week before, and asked, ‘MawMaw, is that the way you lived when you were a little girl?’”
Joe Guilbeau, of Plaquemine, says, “It’s Labor Day — about time to hose down the lawn chairs and any relatives left sitting in them.”
Write Smiley at Smiley@theadvocate.com. He can also be reached by fax at (225) 388-0351 or mail at P.O. Box 588, Baton Rouge, LA 70821.
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