Hello, Rita...

Unless you've been living under a rock the last few days, you've probably heard about the hurricane that's apparently headed for the Texas coast. Rita, as she is known, has been measured as the third most powerful hurricane in terms of low pressure in the recorded history of the Atlantic basin. It's a category 5, which the national hurricane center describes as "potentially catastrophic."

We're pretty far inland here, so it's almost certainly nothing to worry about. But we're taking precautions just in case. They're saying it's possible that the storm comes to Austin and is still at hurricane strength. But that's the most extreme case. More likely it passes to our northeast and we're on the drier side. The odds are that we get a bunch of rain, maybe some wind and a few downed tree limbs.

Of course, in the aftermath of Katrina everybody is taking this very seriously.

I have food and water and a full tank of gas in my car. Becky and I have talked through a few things, and believe we're at least mostly prepared. I may go buy flashlight batteries, just in case power's knocked out. In the event that bad stuff happens in Austin, we will attempt to contact my sister and Becky's parents.

Please pray for our friends and neighbors in Houston and Galveston. This will most likely be a nuisance for us, but is far more serious for them.