It’s that time of year again. I can start expecting calls from my mother. They usually go something like this:

“Have you been checking the weather?”

“Yes, Ma, I’ve been checking the weather.”

“What are you doing then? Are you planning to evacuate?”

“I’m making muffins right now. No, we’re not evacuating. It’s not a high-scale hurricane.”

Mom’s disapproving tone, “You need to be taking this seriously. The weatherman said it’s serious.”

“We are taking it seriously, but the worst to expect is a power outage, and we have a generator. You do realize that you’ve had to evacuate about three times in the past two years, don’t you?”

“Yeah, but now you moved to New Orleans. You also live closer to the beach than I do.”

“Ma, we don’t live in New Orleans. We’re an hour and a half away and don’t get as many storms as they do.” She’s easily distracted by food, I remember. “I’m cooking muffins right now, and I pulled a spiral ham from the freezer and plan to make some homemade bread and potato salad. The fridge is loaded with fresh fruits, veggies, and salads. We’ll have plenty of food if I can’t cook.”

“You have a spiral ham?” she asks. Her tone curious.

“I have a ham. We can eat off that for days if I can’t cook anything. I may even make some cookies. Oh, and I have the ingredients for a couple of pumpkin pies, and I got some boiled peanuts in the freezer . . .”

That’s pretty much how it usually goes. My mother is not happy I moved seven hours away instead of the five I lived while in Atlanta. She highly disapproves, but I can usually reign her in with talk of cooking. And, true to my word, I spent the day cooking and doing laundry. I also made sure my hair got a fresh wash and my legs got a clean shave. You know, things that need to get done before chaos sets in.

I even made a container of matcha latte so that I can pour it over ice, in case I can’t use my kettle–because tea is a must! It’s now 7:00 in the evening, and the storm is on its way. The worst of it will hit tonight, which helps when it comes to taking the dog out. Laundry is done, and I have enough food that I don’t have to cook for a while. Life is good at the moment.

Hopefully, our sailboat won’t get too much damage. We’ll see how that goes. I think I’ll go get ready for bed early. I seem to be on a roll of getting things done today!