The GoTo team stayed holed up in our Christiansted office, and didn’t leave unless absolutely necessary (for provisions and coffee). To be honest, we love this weather. It’s cozy and cool and keeps our island beautifully green. Cuddling up to a computer in the office isn’t the same as cuddling up with a book and a cup of tea, which is what everyone wants to do when it’s wet and cold out, but it is close enough. Although, as cozy as we were, when we called a government office around noon, they were frantically getting ready to leave before the floods hit.  We even heard one motorist was stranded in waist-high water in Sunny Isle. Crazy! Fortunately, we only had to endure a small leak.  Rain Days, or Hurricane Days, back when I was in school were actually super fun, if we happened to still be at school when the weather rolled in. Lots of puddle splashing and mud fights distracted everyone from school work, and we went home dirty, exhausted and happy. It’s not a snowball fight, but it’s just as fun and not as cold!

Fortunately, the rain just left us a little damp, and there’s no snow to shovel off the roads, though I did see a backhoe moving muddy runoff from the bottom of one of the steep streets in Christiansted this morning. The sun is shining, we’re drying out, the cruise ship passengers here today can enjoy the Caribbean weather, and the plants are happy. All good things. Hope you enjoyed your Monday Rain Day!

This is the beginning of a famous Beatles Song, but today I’d finish the sentence differently. There are thousands of St. Croix residents, past and present, who lived through the harrowing experience that is now known as “HUGO”. Back in September 1989, Hurricane Hugo swept through the territory with 200 mile per hour winds, destroying 85% of homes and businesses on the island of St. Croix, and 70% on St. Thomas (statistics from the Daily News). Back in those days I was thinking about far less serious things than saving my life, like college and boyfriends and road trips. These days, with my life and livelihood fully embedded in all things St. Croix, I wanted to start my day by acknowledging the hardships that our island residents experienced.

My husband Tom is a 30+ year resident who wears the badge of “Hugo Survivor”, and he remembers listening to the roof being peeled off the house he chose as shelter for the storm. The next night, he slept on the floor of his restaurant, the exact spot he pointed out to me just yesterday. He would live there for a week before the roads were cleared to get back to what remained of “home”. The restaurant fed many friends and neighbors with food that would otherwise spoil from lack of electricity for refrigeration. It would be 2 months until his next hot shower. There are so many stories, like these, and worse, that are still discussed day-in and day-out here on St. Croix, the storm literally became a permanent reference point like the birth of Christ. “Before Hugo.” “After Hugo”.

So, even though the economy is “soft” and money is tight, and jobs are precious, let’s celebrate the survivors, who had to rebuild their lives, homes and businesses. With today’s technology (god bless the weather channel!), stricter building codes, and better materials, we have ample time and resources to be prepared. Fortunately we have never seen another storm as destructive as Hugo come through the US Virgin Islands, but we know that other communities in the world have suffered this kind of loss in recent years. Let us acknowledge how far St. Croix has come, and how the spirit of this island community kept it alive in the aftermath of a most devasting natural disaster. Here’s to those that lived and lost during Hugo. “Twenty years ago today” is a day you’ll never forget, but certainly you deserve to be remembered.

And are they aware they are at the beach way too overdressed?  Is this a small wedding ceremony on the beach at Sandcastle?  I was reminiscing about the fabulous snorkel tour I had yesterday out west and wanted to see if my dolphin friends were waving to me from the Beach Cam.  They weren’t, but I caught these interesting characters.  Maybe they were having a “business lunch”.

They are going to get no-kind-a tan with all those clothes on!

I was downloading some photos from my husband’s boat camera last night, and came across this:

WOW!  Can you believe this?  He said he took it Thanksgiving morning on the way out of the harbor.   Another reason to be thankful, a beautiful St.Croix Sunrise.

Ahhhhhh, I’ll say it again.  Beautiful weather.  THIS is why I love in the Caribbean.  Ask me on a different day and I’ll give you a different reason, but today the cool weather is the reason.

In addition to the glorious weather (have I mentioned it?) St. Croix is bustling with people.  Thanksgiving week is the first big wave of sun-seekers we get on island, and there is lots to do!  Friday morning is also the arrival of our first cruise ship.  I’ll pack the babe up and we’ll go down to Frederiksted to see all the hoopla.  But the fun is just beginning….Jump Up is that evening.  Even though I was supposed to be working today, I secretly was scoping out stores in Christiansted, avoiding my boss & co-workers, so I could make my lists of wants and gift ideas.  Jump Up is a good time to take advantage of sales in the Christiansted stores (couldn’t we all use a little help in saving money?) Look for my top St. Croix gift picks in the coming days.

Until then…for those of you not on island yet, but longing and counting the days, be sure to check our event calendar for fun things to do, and things NOT to miss, like the annual St. Croix Boat Parade.

Happy Turkey Day.  I’ll be at the beach.

Bottom line: our cooler temps mean warmer temps for you who is probably sitting at your desk planning your St. Croix vacation when you should be working.

And my daughter turns one.

So what if you’re on vacation and we are threatened by a hurricane? You have to evaluate your situation, but the safest thing to do is of course leave. If you can’t leave, please have faith that your accommodation is well prepared to protect you to the best of its ability and will do its best to keep you safe until you are able to leave.

If we were to find something positive about hurricanes, it is that they bring a community together. Regular business stops an everyone makes sure their friends and family are stocked with necessities to get them through should we lose power. Neighbors help neighbors board up their businesses and shops. If you live on a boat in the harbor, you surely have a place to go inland.

People are always asking me if I am scared living were there are the potential for hurricanes. My answer is always NO. We can see the storm coming. We know EXACTLY when it will hit land and where. We sometimes have up to a week to prepare. What other natural disaster or un-speakable event is there that gives you the luxury of preparing? Earthquake? Tornado? Landslide? Tsunami? All of these events happen with out notice and usually leave a path of destruction that could of otherwise been avoided had people had the time to prepare. I know meteorologists are constantly trying to predict these things and maybe one day they will. But until then, anything can happen anywhere at anytime, no matter where you live.

We have made the choice to live in the Caribbean. We know we are risking the chance of being in the path of the hurricane. It is a risk that we are willing to take; we just know that when the time comes to get serious we will. We know that at every ten-to-the-hour there is a Tropical Update on the Weather Channel that will give us the most up to date info. We take the advice and warnings seriously. And you should too.

Hmm, according to the latest update, there is another system coming off of Africa. Looks like we will be doing this all over again same time next week.