We appear to be clear of tropical storm warnings here for a while. Meanwhile Galveston seems to have dodged a bullet in that the sea wall, though it was taking a serious battering last night, appears to have been just high enough to prevent a major disaster. Houston, on the other hand, is looking pretty wrecked. Hurricane winds are always stronger high up because there’s generally little to get in their way. That is, until they come upon a bunch of tall buildings with lots and lots of glass windows.

One of the things about being in New Orleans during a storm is that you get to see the great, gray, greasy Mississippi river snarling. Old Man River is actually a wild beast that has been caged up by the Army Corps of Engineers for many years. Right now he looks like it too.