Something you don't see every day in Baton Rouge

This is what we woke up to yesterday in Baton Rouge. Very exciting.

It's supposed to get back up to the 50s today, so Winter Storm 2008 was obviously a one-off.

Sorry about the sporadic posting lately, by the way. Life and work have been busy.

I'll get back to some sort of blogging equilibrium within the next couple of days.

I hope everybody is having a safe, happy holiday season.

City at Night

From what I can see, Baton Rouge is a city without light.

Out on the avenue, nothing is visible outside the beams of my headlights. I turn them off for a second, but only for a second. The effect is unsettling. More weightlessness than sightlessness.

This house has a generator running. That store. Then nothing.

At the intersection, a pickup truck has its high beams on. Then nothing. Mayor Holden imposed a curfew from dusk until dawn. If the police stop me, I hope they will accept my explanation that I am on my way home from work.

I drive carefully around the downed tree limbs that drift into view and then fade immediately back into the darkness.

A few hours ago, I entertained the hope that maybe my lights would be back on by the time I got home. I realize now how silly that was. There are 1.5 million homes without power in Louisiana tonight. It would take nothing less than a miracle to put me at the top of that list.

After Katrina, my neighborhood was without light or air for five days. I hope Gustav isn't trying to top her.


I am about to go to bed and try to sleep in a house where I can barely breathe. It's going to be a long night.