8 SANDWICHES AND A HURRICANE
I was really lucky... As a school-goer, I was always thinking of working in Miami and going to the Carribean every weekend to play cricket... My interest in coming to the US has completely dipped after that, more than my cricketing abilities. But, after coming to the US and staying here for two years, now is the time for me to leave this country (with the widest smile, ofcourse), but, without having gone to Florida. And just 2 weeks before my scheduled departure, my project demands me to travel to the same place, to investigate a hurricane though, with two others who loved devouring chicken, beef and pork, giving me the choice between sandwich and sandwich.
It wasn't as much fun, I got a chance to visit most beaches along the Alabama-Florida coastline, only to see washed-out houses, homeless people, foodless kids, and insurance agents, red-cross agents and researchers all around the debris. Sanders beach, Pensacola beach, Mobile beach, Orange beach, Gulf beach... the list goes endless.. beautiful beach houses, most of them completely destroyed. All their possessions washed out and thrown out of the vicinity. The cruel claws of nature has played its part again. Four hurricanes in around two months, and there are a few more that are expected. It is very difficult for these people, and can't imagine how worse it could have been in the Carribean.
And as we went chasing Mr. Ivan, he started coming behind us on our way back, and its still raining in Lubbock, which has already had more rain than its annual average....
Hope the Floridans come back to normalcy sooner, and Ms. Jeanne, please spare them... they've had more than their share.
VS