As an Earth Scientist, I love to examine and explore the workings of our amazing planet - the push and pull of the tides, the grinding of tectonic plates, the formation of fossils, and the endless cycles of water, rocks, and life. However, as I sit here in my 8th-floor hotel room in New Haven, CT, at 1 a.m. on August 28, I am just a bit taken aback by the raw and amazing power of Mother Nature and how she can toy with air, land, and sea as if the three are simple playthings.
I am stuck in Connecticut after completing 5 days of tennis production for ESPN, and it seems that I won't be able to leave the state for another few days... all flights from the eastern seaboard cancelled and most mass transit suspended for the weekend. School's about to begin and there are tasks to be completed, but I am left to listen to the roaring of gale-force winds as Hurricane Irene brings the brunt of her anger into New York and Connecticut. As the morning hours crawl on, she will bring her lashing of wind and rain into the Long Island Sound and the southern coast of the Nutmeg State, where I sit waiting.
These are the times that I am reminded that Earth Science is studied and advanced in a living, breathing laboratory. This terrestrial lab is one of great power and awe in which no white lab coats or goggles are necessarily required. Here safety requirements may include extra D batteries, a few gallons of water, non-perishable rations, and limitless patience. (The patience is needed for multi-day airline delays and power outages, and the rest is required for survival.)
It seems this LA boy has become accustomed to the earthquakes, heat waves, wildfires, and flash floods of Southern California. Now, faced with his first hurricane, he would much rather be home on the west coast, cozied up in the 106-degree August days of the San Fernando Valley. As the wind and rain batter the windows of the Yale/New Haven Omni Hotel, this observer is once again awed by the power of the planet and the frailty of mankind and its habitats. We are no match for the magnificence of Earth's weather and physical strengths. We, like the elements, are simply playthings of our Mother.
As with all storms and various travails, this too shall pass. It's just a matter of waiting, battening down hatches, and - for me - taking notes on the brilliance of Earth's weather, whims, and wonders.
Signing out from the Constitution State and the path of Hurricane Irene... and hoping to see you back in sunny California very soon!
Mr. B
