I’ve been meeting some fantastic bloggers who I now call cyber friends. Some of them ask fellow bloggers to write stories for their websites. Life as a Human (what a great name) is one of those places I happened on to and if truth be told, I asked them if I could submit some stories for their readers. I heard back so quickly I thought it must be a, “thanks but no thanks” reply. Turns out the keepers of this site, had recently visited Roatan for the first time and were thrilled that someone who was on Roatan wanted to write for them.
Here’s a taste of what Life as a Human is all about.
“Life As A Human is a lifezine that explores, celebrates and discusses the weird, wonderful, challenging, funny and poignant experience of being human. We feature a diversity of inspired writing that creatively probes the status quo – and the fascinating nooks and crannies of our human experience.
We are a multicultural gathering place for writing that moves and inspires – a venue for the authentic voice, regardless of age, nationality or perspective.”
I’m happy to report that we worked out the logistics, and my first story was posted Sunday, October 24. Life as a Human – Three Months Ago Be sure to check it out, and leave a comment there. I’ll check in often to see what you’ve had to say.
I would have told you sooner about this exciting new connection I’ve made, but the news started spreading a few days ago that Roatan might be in the path of Hurricane Richard, getting his act together not to far from us.
Since coming to Roatan, next to questions about bugs, I quite often get asked about the weather, in particular Hurricanes. Now it turns out that Roatan rarely is hit by Hurricanes. Although the Island is in the Caribbean, and on CNN tropical weather reports it looks like we are getting Hurricanes regularly. Really we aren’t being affected at all. But then along came Richard.
First I need to clarify that while Richard was directly over Roatan, he never did make it to hurricane status, but he did make it to a category1 on his way to Belize. I can’t give you any details on that specific information though. Our power went out soon after Richard arrived on Roatan around 11 PM Saturday, October 23, 2010.
We spent the hours before getting ready, as did everyone else on the Island. But it still was unsure how strong it would be. And besides, all the others this year, changed direction at the last minute–maybe Richard would too.
Waiting was the hard part, an eerie calm before the storm! We were as ready as we could be for his arrival, now that it was confirmed, Richard was coming for a visit. This is the part where I should be able to use all my big descriptive phrases like, “the howling wind, roaring toward us, foreboding of what would soon be tearing at our Island Cabana.” Or, “the torrential downpour, pelting the door, demanding to be let in.”
Now, the winds did pick up noticeably, and the rain did start to pour down, but not to the extend one would expect from a hurricane. So we slept, anticipating it could turn into something more. By 5 AM, I woke to find the power was out, and the cabana was as secure as when I had fallen asleep the night before.
It was still raining quite steady, and the gusts of wind were shaking the palm trees pretty good. It was strong enough for me to get an appreciation for what it must be like to experience a hurricane. While at the same time be grateful that Richard minded his manners like any good house guest should.
By noon on Sunday, it was evident that Richard was soon going to be done hanging around Roatan. In the direction he had come from was showing hints of clear blue sky. The direction he was going–black and ominous. A few tree limbs were down around our property, my front and back porch had gotten a better cleaning than I could have ever done. Power was still out, and would be until 11 PM Sunday. Special thanks to RECO for working diligently to repair the damaged lines and get power restored as quickly as you did.
Blogger Mona helping out!
So now it is the Monday after Richard. I woke to a glorious sunrise, and not a cloud in the sky. Everyone is breathing a sigh of relief, including Mona, and once again I can say, “Thank You Roatan–You Never Let Me Down!”
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One more thing I want to share. Hours before Richard arrived, I had to go to the airport to pick up vacationers. Who, by the way, were absolute great sports about arriving on the same day that a hurricane was expected. On my way to get them, an unexpected downpour happened.
I had no rain gear or umbrella with me (I didn’t think I needed it yet.) I had no time to return home to get something to cover from the rain. I stepped out of my vehicle, accepting that I would get pretty wet, but I didn’t realize that the puddle I stepped in was not a few inches deep–it was a few FEET deep.
One of my flip-flops broke when I lifted my foot to get out of the puddle. So when I entered the airport, I was a barefoot, dripping rain-water, drowned rat! Thanks for not snickering those of you who got to witness how I looked.
Originally from Ontario, Canada, Genny Ross-Barons moved to Roatan, Honduras in 2007 where she shares a cabana with her husband and island dog Mona in Sandy Bay, Roatan.
She spends her day-to-day life and ‘positive initiatives’ on Roatan, sharing untold stories through her blog ‘Life & Writing, on Roatan’
