I've been thinking of writing an autobiography or memoir, but it just never comes together for me, but I figured if I write one story at a time and post it on my blog maybe once a month, I can do that. Maybe one day I'll pull all the stories together and put them in a book but for now I'll just share some stories with you about my childhood and into adulthood. Some of the stories will be happy, some sad and some horrific because that was my childhood. But they will all be real, things that actually happened. If it seems like something that people enjoy reading maybe, I'll keep it going. These stories will not be in any kind of order; I'll just write them as they come to me.
Hurricanes I've been in
I've told you before that when my parents split and divorced, I ended up living with my grandma for almost 2 years. My dad didn't want me or my brother living with him because he wanted to date a bunch of women. My mom had a boyfriend named Larry and he hated me and didn't want me living with he, my mom and my little brother, and my mom went along with it. So, my grandma took me in for a while. I lived with her when I was 11-13 years old. During that time there were a couple of hurricanes in California where we lived.
In September of 1982 California was hit with a category 4 hurricane named Olivia. I was living in Redondo Beach, California at the time with my grandma. I remember my grandpa coming over and boarding up some of the windows of our house. He stayed with us for a couple of days while the hurricane passed. They weren't a couple at the time, but you could tell they really cared about each other.
I mostly remember all the rain, wind and flooding. Trees in my grandma's yard fell over, tiles flew off the roof and the fence in the back yard fell over in parts. The wind was the scariest part. I was 12 years old and had never seen wind like that before. When parts of the fence fell in the back yard and some of the wood started slamming up against our house, me and my grandparents went outside and took the wooden slats and threw them over the fence into the vacant lot next door so they wouldn't keep slamming up against the house and wouldn't break the windows. The wind was absolutely nuts. It was hard to hold onto anything let alone big pieces of wood from the fence, but I helped as much as I could. Back then I thought of my grandparents as old, but I realize now that they were the same age I am right now! That's crazy to think about.
Then the next year in August of 1983, we got rain and wind from Hurricane Ismael which at the time it came over us was a tropical depression, but I remember being scared because I thought the same thing was going to happen again. Thankfully it didn't and while there was a lot of rain and wind, it wasn't anywhere as bad as the previous year.
I've been in other storms but nothing like Hurricane Olivia.
Have you been through a hurricane?
Links to past stories
2023
2024
I have not been through a hurricane. How nice that your grandparents took care of you. I love my gram and that is why I go by Grammy to my grands.
ReplyDeleteThank you. Aww, that's nice.
DeleteI've never lived in hurricane territory. Cannot imagine living through a hurricane or a tornado and not coming out with nightmares. Thankfully you were safe. I'm sure that's not anything a person wants to go through twice.
ReplyDeleteNo, it's not. I like living in Vegas because no hurricanes, no tornadoes, not many earthquakes. Mild Winter.
DeleteThankfully I have not endured a Hurricane or a Tornado. But, we've had some Earthquake activity in Arizona when Cali gets the big ones, and lots of catastrophic Fires and/or Flooding and Drought here. The scariest thing in Childhood I recall were the Blizzards of Upper Michigan, which could bury a House if it was only One Story Tall with the Snow Drifts... and, the Bomb Scares in Europe when we were deployed over there in the Military.
ReplyDeleteI've been in a few earthquakes living in California and here in Nevada. But thankfully they weren't bad ones.
DeleteGlad you survived the hurricanes.
ReplyDeleteThank you.
DeleteI've never been in a hurricane. The videos I've seen of them show how scary it must be, though. Good thing your grandfather was available to help board up the windows.
ReplyDeleteIt was nice having both of them there with me.
DeleteI didn't know that California got hurricanes. I don't see why not since it's it has a coast and storms can move in. My cousin lived in Redondo Beach for a long time. It must have been scary. We get them here every now and again but luckily the ocean is cold enough that most of the time they peter out, but not always.
ReplyDeleteEvery once in a while they do.
DeleteWind is so scary, much more than rain. You must have been terrified. At least your grandad was there for you and your grandma. Thankfully, my area is quite sheltered from the worst that nature can throw at you.
ReplyDelete"Back then I thought of my grandparents as old, but I realize now that they were the same age I am right now! That's crazy to think about."
Right?
I feel so old. lol
DeleteWind is crazy scary.
I too am realizing that the people I thought were soooo old years ago were younger than I am right now.
ReplyDeleteRight? It's crazy to think about.
DeleteFlorida/East Coast hurricanes get so much press that sometimes I forget West Coast gets them, too!
ReplyDeleteI would never live in Florida because of the hurricanes.
DeleteThat sounds really scary, but I'm glad you were safe with your grandparents. I've never been in a hurricane, but a few of the ones that have hit the East Coast have had remnants hit us and that alone was bad enough.
ReplyDeleteYeah, that is definitely enough.
DeleteI didn't think of California as a hurricane alley... I grew up about 1/2 mile from salt water along the SE Coast and have lived through hurricanes and also have fled them when I lived on an island, one which created a lot of damage.
ReplyDeleteThey are dangerous for sure.
DeleteHaving lived in Florida and even Virginia, we've faced a few hurricanes. It can be scary.
ReplyDeleteYes it can.
DeleteWe've never faced a hurricane, only unending blizzards and ice storms. Your childhood sounds as tumultuous as mine.
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry to hear that you can relate to my childhood too.
DeleteThat is SO scary! I cannot even imagine what that must be like. Sometimes the east coast of Canada will get the tail end of hurricanes but on the prairies where I live, there are no hurricanes but occasionally a twister/tornado can happen. Never been in one of those either, thank goodness.
ReplyDeleteOh, I would not want to be in a tornado at all.
DeleteIt's mostly just occasional after effects that may reach this far although ther was a Hurricane (Hazel, I think) that reached Toronto in the 50s.
ReplyDeleteWe get remnants of hurricanes every once in a while here in Nevada too.
DeleteI've never been through a hurricane, but they sound as desperately scary as tornados and earthquakes. I don't blame you for starting to panic when the second one came.
ReplyDeleteIt was scary. Thankfully we didn't lose the roof.
DeleteI have been in a city that had one. The sirens went off and we all went to shelter. It actually bypassed us by a few miles. They are not fun.
ReplyDeleteThat's scary, they are not fun at all.
DeleteExciting - too exciting!!
ReplyDeleteYes, too much excitement for me for sure.
DeleteI would say no, never been in a hurricane (unless you count the hurriquake of a couple years ago), but August 1982? I was living in Anaheim, which is about an hour away from Redondo Beach. Same as August 1983. I do not recall these storms. (I was 11 & 12 at the time. If I didn't hear "hurricane", I wouldn't have known, anyway.)
ReplyDeleteIt sure made a big impact on me at the time.
DeleteI lived in Southern Cal then, too. We lost a few trees and the bridge from the main highway to our house was underwater for two days, so we couldn't leave. When we did get back into town, we were stunned that the 12 inch square light poles at the freeway onramps were snapped off like twigs.
ReplyDeleteIt's scary to think about how powerless we are against nature.
Dang, yes it is scary for sure.
DeleteScary indeed. We had a bad storm last January! It was a red alert. Families suck big don't they. My mum didn't want want me so me and my dad left when I was 4ish. He raised me and sadly passed when I was 21. He gave me the best life ever. I just wish my daughter and him could have know each other.
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry to hear that. I'm glad you had a good dad that took care of you.
DeleteWe never had them before, until the climate changes started, now we are like Kansas. I was once caught by a massive one while in a train from Belgrade home and it dropped a tree in front of the train and instead of 3 hours, the trip lasted for 7 hours at 45C. We also had it a few times at home, with parts of roof flying of and then water cascading down the walls LOL but we then sealed the roof tiles with mortar so now we are safe from such shit. And once a massive hurricane threw a massive sunshade straight at me with the pointed stalk of it flying at my head LOL while I was running into the house from the yard, but I managed to throw myself onto the ground, avoid it, collect me cats in the same movement and rush into the house before slamming the doors LOL.
ReplyDeleteDamn, that's crazy.
DeleteThat was very interesting. I've been in several hurricanes in Florida and then that nasty on that came through here two years ago.
ReplyDeleteThey are definitely not fun.
DeleteYes, when Sandy hit. We had no power for many days and we also encountered a gas shortage. We could only fill up are tanks on alternate days. It was crazy.. we had watched our neighbors roof fly off.
ReplyDeleteOh dang, that sounds terrible.
DeleteFor some reason I don't associate hurricanes with California.
ReplyDeleteThey don't happen often there.
DeleteI have never been in a hurricane! And it's really not something I feel a need to experience myself. ;D Glad you and your grandma survived hurricane Olivia!
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't want to again. Thank you.
DeleteScary indeed.
ReplyDeleteWe have had some strong storms with power lines down etc. but I've not experienced a hurricane.
All the best Jan
A strong storm can be just as bad with the damage.
DeleteDear Mary, I have (thankfully) never been in a hurricane! I have experienced an ice storm, though. I am so glad you and your grandmother survived this devastation!
ReplyDeleteThank you. An ice storm sounds scary.
DeleteA very scary time and luckily you were all safe in the end. I've heard the sound of a hurricane in a museum in Darwin - the sound of the wind was dreadful.
ReplyDeleteYes, wind is scary.
DeleteHello Mary,
ReplyDeleteI have never been in a hurricane, I hope it will never happen. I am glad you and your grandmother survive, sounds scary!
Take care, enjoy your day and the week ahead.
Thank you.
DeleteThat hurricane must have been terrifying. I have lived through tornadoes here in Georgia. They are very scary. I am sorry you had a rough childhood but glad you had grandparents to supply love and support. Good thing I've always liked old folks since I'm one now. LOL!
ReplyDeleteI'm one now too. lol
DeleteI definitely don't want to be in another hurricane.
I've never been in a hurricane like that; however, growing up in Michigan, I have been in a fair share of tornados and storms. We never had damage, directly, but there was major damage about less than 1/2 mile from us.
ReplyDeleteTornadoes look incredibly scary.
DeleteThere was a hurricane in September of 1959, I believe, that hit New York City and Long Island. I remember being sent home from school mid day and waiting for my Mom to pick me up. I have been through several tropical storms as they do occasionally pass through my part of New York State. The double whammy of Irene and Lee flooded parts of my area, including my neighborhood (I describe the aftermath in my blog posts of September 2011). Alana ramblinwitham.blogspot.com
ReplyDeleteNot fun at all. I hope I don't encounter another one.
DeleteI did a post about my adventures with hurricanes and I also listed my favorite books about hurricanes: https://readerbuzz.blogspot.com/2023/10/hurricanes-best-books-about-worst-storms.html.
ReplyDeleteYou have been through everything rough, Mary! And still you press on!
I'll check it out.
DeleteLiving in Indiana, thankfully no hurricanes here. Tornadoes are a different story. However, we're mostly all a bunch of rednecks and when the sirens go off we're pulling out the lawn chairs to watch the storm blow through. It's about the only time you'll see all of the neighbors outside at the same time LOL
ReplyDeleteThat's hilarious.
DeleteWe do not have hurricanes, tornadoes or alligators (or however that saying goes). Or volcanoes, earthquakes
ReplyDeleteI like where I live now because we don't have those here either.
DeleteHurricanes are scary. Living in Jamaica its something we face every year. Hurricane Melissa was no joke. She flattened half of the island last year.
ReplyDeleteI saw the devastation on the news. It's so scary. So sorry that happened.
Delete