this entry was last updated on 09.25.2004 @ 8:36 PM EDT

The photographs at left of the Memorial Presbyterian Church in St. Augustine were snapped on Sunday, September 19, 2004. (Click images for larger pop-ups.) The structure was designed by nationally renowned architects Thomas Hastings and John M. Carrere, according to the Federal Highway Administration. "The copper dome of the building, modeled after St. Mark's Cathedral in Venice, reaches 150 feet into the air."

Tonight I feel like screaming, "Grow up, Heather. Hurricanes are so '87." Just about everyone I've talked to is in denial there's even another hurricane out there right now. This time we stocked up on the baby's formula and filled up the cars, and that's just about it. We're tired. Of this. Crap. Already.

I mean, look at the 11 p.m. track last night (Thursday evening). Could they seriously cover their anymore with that "cone of uncertainty"? I was joking with everyone overnight that they might as well just put Oklahoma in the strike path. After Charley, Frances and Ivan going anywhere they well pleased regardless of the projected path — well I guess from now on, no one wants to be the guy that says "you're gonna get hit ________".

For those playing along with the home game, this is Jeanne's current projected path as of 11 p.m. Friday evening. (We're located near the blue arrow.) Let's just say we're real happy we selected last weekend to re-visit St. Augustine, because OU has a bye-week this week and we almost put off leaving for the east coast until tonight!

And now for something completely different... Almost 40 sites have pinged the 2004 -Thon update now. So if you haven't visited that entry lately, make sure and check it out once more! And details of the history of the 'Thon can now be found here. It kicks off a week from today. Are you pumped? I can't hear you!

UPDATE 1 (8:27 a.m. EDT Saturday): Well wouldn't ya' know...the 5 a.m. track on Jeanne is looking even worse for Tampa Bay now so we're preparing to bend over and take it up the back door sideways just in case... I'll be giving "emergency blogcast system" access this weekend in the event we do lose power, and heaven forbid, lose it long enough to effect the launch date of this year's 'Thon. Please stay tuned!

UPDATE 2 (1:16 p.m. EDT Saturday): I may be a life-long registered Democrat and all, but I really admire the way Jeb has handled himself in the face of FOUR hurricanes since early August. I feel for the man. You just know there's not enough Grecian on the shelves to prevent premature graying from this.

But he always faces reporters cool, calm and collected — and with a sense of humor intact — all at the same time. Take today for example:

"We probably have the highest per-capita battery ownership in the world," said [Governor] Bush.

The 11 a.m. track from TBO.com isn't looking any better for us than the 5 a.m. one. (We're near the blue arrow.)

UPDATE 3 (8:36 p.m. EDT Saturday): Well if we had hatches, I guess you could say we'd be battening them down right about now. How is a web designer supposed to work by candlelight anyway? Scramble, scramble, scramble...

The new 5 p.m. track on Jeanne isn't getting any better for us. (And it looks like it's getting even worse for Seki and family...sigh. Anything with West Palm in it makes my heart sink for Sphinxy.) We actually caved about 2 p.m. this afternoon and joined the rest of the sheep at Publix to stock up on non-perishables just in case. I could make that list in my sleep now. Enough already! Stop the insanity!

In case you've missed them in the past, I have a list of Florida bloggers here and a lot of us are updating as we can. I hear that makes us "catastrowhores", but so be it. Such is life — not the first time, and I'm sure it won't be the last! "On The Third Hand" has a nice list of Jeanne-related bloggers as does DebWire, including a nice inventory of hurricane humor.

Completely unrelated side-note that I've started to notice now with each of these storms... Why does each section of Florida have to be a "Coast"? We've got the Sun Coast. The Space Coast. The First Coast. The Treasure Coast. The Gold Coast. The Gulf Coast. (As if only a few select counties get to claim the rights to that one.) And I know I'm probably missing a few in that list. What's the deal here? Must we distinguish one from the other, save just Gulf and Atlantic coasts? Can't we all be brothers?