Blankets.

Despite a somewhat sleepless night, which followed an hour or two glued to the weather channel (I felt like Dad, except that I was actually less interested in the 'Local on the 8s' section), I am feeling a bit better today.

That Katrina went to a Category 4, though not great, is still an improvement. That it has gone slightly east is also very helpful. It is going to devastate New Orleans, but not nearly like expected. You have to take the joys where you can find them in a situation like this.

It always amazes me the way hurricanes are so far-reaching. Here in Pittsburgh, we are now gearing up for a good bit of flooding as a result of Katrina. Last year, most of us were stuck on one side of a river or the other. In my case, I was landlocked inside all three rivers. Of course, this doesn't compare to what's happening down south, but the disrepair is no less heartbreaking for people who lose their homes here. It's just crazy to me that here, in Pennsylvania...many hours, many states away from the "action," we're seeing the effects.

On a sort of bright note, I got up earlier this morning and have gotten more work done on my paper than I had expected. It's still not finished, but it's more managable now. I'm almost on page 8, and I'm just finishing up the EB IV/MB I period (which, of course, means I still have almost 400 pages of my book to go, meaning this could very well be a 30-page paper or something insane like that. Urgh. I need to work!!!

Prayers for the Homan family, the DuBose family, the Garrett family, the Topp family, and everyone else bearing the brunt of this hurricane...