So, did everyone in Austin and the Hill Country make it through last night

[VelmaD]

My apartment complex got hammered and I didn't even really know it. It was awfully windy and we got a lot of rain but I didn't think it was that bad. Until I left for work this morning and decided to walk across the pool area as a short cut to checking my mailbox on the way to the car. The wind blew a BIG ol' tree over into the pool. I shoulda taken a pic with my camera phone but I guess I was too shocked to think clearly. Somehow it managed to miss falling on the apartment office. But it's going to be interesting seeing how they get it all out of there. I don't want to be the person standing in 3 feet of water with a chainsaw trying to cut the thing up to move it.

I hope everyone else is safe this morning.

[RufusEarl]

1. Happy to hear you made it through,

the bad weather. We got our bad weather Wednesday night, blew over trees and basically screwed up the power grid.

According to the local news, there were no injuries and thats a good thing.

[jobycom]

2. Lost a big tree limb, and got some hail in the NW. Not as bad as around

Riverside, from what I hear. A co-worker said his complex lost a lot of shingles and there were trees down over the road (I think that was on Webberville).

Not anywhere near what Merh, Swamprat, and the rest of our Coastal buddies went through, but still a bit of damage.

[NoPasaran]

3. Just a bunch of rain and lightning in SW Austin

So far as I could tell, no damage.

[Longhorn]

4. Just a lot of wind and rain out here in Dripping Springs.

Looking at the radar, we were between two of the bigger storms. We have some Koolaroo sun shades over our patio and the seams ripped off of two of them. However, we knew they weren't going to last much longer; the replacements (from Hammacher Schlemmer) have been sitting in a box in the foyer for a couple of weeks now. ;) BTW, these are a great, inexpensive way to shade a patio. They're only $80 each for the triangular shades. We use three of them, two hunter green and one tan, and overlap them a little. Here's a photo:



They're from Australia and cut out something like 99% of the sun's ultraviolet rays. I also like how they move up and down with the breeze. It looks nice from inside the house, even when it's 100 degrees out there!

I'm glad everyone made it through okay. I know several of my husband's remodeling jobs were without power this morning. I saw that a couple of schools didn't open because of lack of power, too.

[Melissa G]

19. I love your shades! How do you attach them? Storm hit 78704 trees

hard at my office. lost a big limb on the roof of my shed and the parking lot was littered with branches. My 78745 house sprung leaks in the relatively new roof but all in all okay....

[Longhorn]

21. They're attached to the house using eye-bolts

(actually, "eye-lags," according to Mr. Longhorn.) Then he ran a steel cable between two trees. The cable is attached to each tree using a turnbuckle (so the tension can be adjusted.) The shades attach to the cable using springs and looped steel cable (the springs act like shock absorbers when the wind catches the sails.) He used "knurls" to keep the springs (which are hooked over the cable) from sliding up and down the cable.

"Pretty ingenious, actually," is Mr. Longhorn's modest comment. ;)\

Let me know if you need a translation or better explanation. I can take more picture. :)

[Melissa G]

22. Sounds Brilliant! But I don't think i have any trees in a helpful place

for this scheme. Thanks for the explanation..It may give me some ideas!

[Castilleja]

20. Love the shades

We have plans to use those as our deck/patio cover on the occasion that we actually build the deck. I reasoned that they are cheaper, and easy to take down in the event of a hurricane.

[MazeRat7]

5. I think north and central took the brunt..south just got much needed rain

Hows things VelmaD?... LTNS.


MZr7

[VelmaD]

6. Things are good...

by the time I got home from work the big tree was GONE...I don't know who my apartment people use for their tree service...but they ROCK!

I've been taking a bit of a DU vacation...not completely gone, just not around much most days. Been feeling a bit anti-social but I'm coming out of that so I should be around a bit more. :)

How's tricks?

[Solar]

7. aside from mistaken roommates, I was fine

I was taking a nap at the time when a roommate woke me up and said "theres a tornado coming, crack open your window just a bit." I laughed at that, turned on the TV and saw there wasn't even a tornado watch and laughed again.

I'm trained in severe weather spotting so it was just another walk in the park for me. Still, I'm glad everyone I know is safe.

[StellaBlue]

8. I live downtown

There was an oak tree across all four lanes of Guadalupe at 12th at about 11pm last night.

And I have just been rudely awoken tonight by yet more crackling thunder and pounding rain (my window A/C unit has a metal box that sounds surprisingly like an amplified tin roof).

[GOPisEvil]

9. Hey, you're in town now?

We need to get the gang together for brunch to officially welcome you to town.

[VelmaD]

11. Definitely...

maybe we should poke people and put something together for next weekend?

[Sailing]

17. Count me in

I just moved into 78704 last month.

[VelmaD]

18. Welcome to Austin...

keep you eyes on this forum...the Austin DUers get together more than any other group in the county I think. You'll see posts here for our brunches (usually once every couple of months). Also, hit http://www.keepaustinblue.org - a lot of us attend the monthly Keep Austin Blue meetups as well. :)

[StellaBlue]

12. hahahaha

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=105&topic_id=5122057&mesg_id=5122057

That is so funny, considering what I just posted.

I noticed a guy down at Dog & Duck the other night with a big sign that said "Drinking Liberally" - anybody know what that was about? A couple of people turned up to join him before I left, and I did hear one of them say "Democratic Underground" in reference to some issue or other.

Anyway - a brunch, just for me? How many Austin DUers are there? I would've thought there were hundreds.

[Lithos]

13. Drinking Liberally

I thought that was at Mother Egans. Did it get moved?

L-

[VelmaD]

14. I didn't even know there was a Drinking Liberally meetup in Austin...

I figured that's what Keep Austin Blue meetups were for. :shrug:

[sonias]

23. There is a local chapter of Drinking Liberally

http://drinkingliberally.org/locations.html
Austin, Texas
* Every Tuesday, 6:30 pm onward
* The Dog and Duck Pub, 406 W 17th St (at Guadalupe)
* Hosted by Ben Andrews, austin (at) drinkingliberally.org

Some of the people from Burnt Orange go to these meetups too.

Sonia

[GOPisEvil]

15. We've never done Drinking Liberally.

Considering we see each other monthly at Keep Austin Blue and other events, we've got driniking liberally covered. ;)

www.keepaustinblue.org You can find us here monthly. :)

[Gman]

10. I've been on the patio here in San Antonio since 6 a.m.

with my laptop, watching and enjoying the rain and working.

I spend most of the week nowadays in Corpus and the Valley working and missed the recent rain events here as they were happening during the week. (Corpus has had .89 inches of rain this year.) South of Pleasanton and West of I37 it still looks like winter. Everything is brown.

Glad you're OK.

[bearfan454]

16. A lot of rain in Taylor

No damage that I can see.