All Bark, Little Bite

I woke up this morning to a calm and quiet world. Noticeably quiet, considering the sounds I had fallen asleep to. I went to bed and somewhat melodramatically placed a pillow upright lengthwise between my head and my window. I lay there hoping that the pillow would act as some type of guard against glass if necessary, and wondered if it was wiser to have my face or the back of my head (brain) face the window. Grim, neurotic thoughts. I blame the hour (around 3 am) and my upbringing.

As I lay there waiting to fall asleep—and scared to do it—the storm died down! It was quiet! I went to the large windows in the den to look at Gongzheng Lu, the street below us. It rained, but didn’t storm. The rain shimmered as it fell on the black pavement lit by yellow streetlights. The traffic light overlooking the scene blinked a red stop light off and on. Thankfully, I went to bed. A few minutes later, the storm began again, back to its full force. I mentally groaned and miraculously fell asleep.

So when it was quiet this morning, I wanted to know if the storm was really over. And I wanted the internet back. The trees on the street were at rest. No howling to be heard. I reconnected the internet and checked the news. I was a bit miffed to read that the winds were only traveling at about 43 mph, but then happily saw that the central winds were more like 170 mph. I don’t know what that means. Are there circular winds at the center of a typhoon? Was the typhoon as a whole only going at about 43 mph? It was category 3 before it hit Taiwan, but only category 2 on land, I think. The pictures of the hurricane in Texas looked worse than anything I was hearing about Sinlaku.

But how could I be sure that the storm had ended? Short of a dove, I decided to check it out for myself, especially after I heard the announcement broadcast throughout the building: Floor one flooded, some vehicles may be overturned. Or something like that. If there were overturned cars, I wanted to see them! I got down to the lobby which was basically in one piece, though there were leaves and small branches from indoor plants scattered about the floor. A couple trees looked like they had been chewed up by the winds, but maybe they were never growing properly. A large number of potted plants from the lobby’s garden were gathered behind a wall of the garden to shield them from the wind. On the way to the door, I met the guard. Going out for breakfast? he asked me. This made quite a change from the don’t-go-outside-let-me-go-with-you-if-you-insist of the day before. Can I go outside? I asked. Yes, he said, then offered me his umbrella and cautioned me to put my camera I my pocket so it wouldn’t get ruined. I hadn’t brought an umbrella since I figured that if the winds were very strong it would be useless. He noted that I needed proper rain gear (I was wearing flip flops). It’s ok, I said, I’m just going out for a look around. Outside was disappointingly orderly. At first I thought the top of the street sign had been knocked off and planted in the ground, but actually it was only let down low on its pole so it wouldn’t get damaged by the wind. Some young trees were messed with and may have to be replanted. Some bikes and a motorcycle were on their sides, but this isn’t too out of the ordinary. Old motorcycles are often on their sides, as if the riders had leapt off the backs on reaching their destinations, leaving the scooters to their own devices. The one I saw was shiny and new-looking, so maybe this way an accident, but I noticed that the mirrors were also absent—on both the side the scooter had fallen on and the other—so maybe the owner had prepared for this. And there was rain.

At five in the afternoon, it is still raining. Aside from my morning excursion and my outing now to a coffee shop/bakery, I stayed indoors all day puttering about. But I did not feel restless, as I did yesterday when shut indoors. What is the difference between a typhoon precaution and a lazy Sunday? Maybe it’s just the matter of choice. Yesterday we were all antsy, and Faith and I joked about taking a refreshing turn about the room as once suggested by the artful Caroline Bingley.

As far as I know, there has been no serious lasting damage inflicted by Typhoon Sinlaku. And so, my friends, it would seem that school will be open tomorrow morning. I remember the shout of glee that went up in the Academic Affairs office when school was closed early for the storm. Forget the students. How sad will all the teachers be tomorrow!