Cancelling Plans

Well said, Kathy. I also tried to leave this one alone, but just couldn't. A lot of people would love to have their own beach house to rent graciously and even to board up if necessary.

I was just trying to put missing a week's vacation into perspective as compared to a longer-term loss. Not to mention being exhausted after boarding up and driving 7-hours (for a normal 4-1/4 hour drive). Sorry, kathydwells and anyone else whose feelings I inadvertently hurt.

No hard feelings here. I understand. I wish for all of you the best. I am sending good vibes your way.

Having just spent nearly all of yesterday in the 90+ degree heat putting up boards (and discovering that "Easy-Clip" fasters neither are easy nor clip) and leaving the house 1/2 unboarded, followed by a nearly sleepless night, followed by a 6 hour drive west on I10 with two screaming cats who puked and pooped all the way home, I can share some of phdphay's frustration. In our neighborhood, we had a group of renters who were partying, bringing in cases of beer, and still hadn't left before we did at 5 this am. That's even though there was a mandatory evacuation yesterday. That's even though their rental house was being boarded up. That's even though as the hurricane approaches evacuation routes need to be as clear as possible. Mountains of trash had been piling up all week and I have little doubt they will just leave it--to be projectiles in the wind.

This is not a jibe at renters, generally. Nor is it disrespect of people whose plans to visit have most likely been scratched. But, I really felt that some renters really did not respect what owners were going through in the last day or so. Nor did some seem to appreciate the ramifications of a hurricane, for example that the beach chair thrown on the beach can be launched straight into my bedroom. It's a bit disconcerting, when owners are having every emotion thrown at them, fearing the worst, working themselves to exhaustion, and worrying about damn near everything, to have a drinking festival going on a few doors down.

Again, I have no anti-tourist horse in this race.

There is no gas really anywhere along I10 west at least until Alabama.

Re: Thanks to Those Who Care About Us

We own a house that is in the rental program at Grayton and we live in an area of CA, the wine country, that is also enjoyed by large numbers of visitors. Sometimes when we are inconvenienced or overly stressed, it's easy to forget all we have that is largely possible because of tourism. Hopefully, communities balance tourism with quality of life, but the two are not mutually exclusive. I have been checking in with this message board daily since pre-Ivan and am so impressed with the devotion that our visitors have to the area and its beaches. I have seen vacationing visitors cleaning trash off the beaches after storms and am aware of numerous donations to local causes from people who live far away. I feel that we are so lucky to have visitors who love our beaches, even though they have no vested (real estate) interest there. And I grew up in the area and remember when it was much less populated/visited.

We want our renters to feel that "The Conch Out" is their own house at Grayton Beach, so that those families will come back year after year and develop their own traditions here. With rare exception, this has been the case. People have largely respectful of our home and we have holiday cards and nice notes passed along from our management company, both of which delight us. Can it get much better than this?

After so many stressful hurricane incidents, there may be a 1031 exchange in our future. However, I doubt that we will find an investment property in any area of the country that is as beloved by its visitors as the South Walton County beaches are, nor nearly as successful financially. Thank you to every single one of you who has taken the time to log onto this board with your concerns, hopes and prayers. We will get through this and welcome you again at Grayton, hopefully with little more from Dennis than a healthy deposit of snow white sand on our beautiful natural beaches. :welcome:

Thank you Donna and others for being sensitive to those of us are that are only lucky enough to spend one week a year there. We so look forward to it each and every year. We have stayed in your house once and had the most wonderful time. It is one of the last really fun memories I have of my Mother (who also loved going to the beach) before she died. She especially loved the kitchen!! And we all loved the "Red Bar". For the first year after she died we could not seem to come back to the area because of the many memories, but now we feel that in some way when we are there, she is with us laughing and having a wonderful time. I truly hope that everything is OK in South Walton and that we do not have to cancel our plans for coming on the 16th. I am holding out until the last minute.

PHDPHAY,
It is time for you and I to clear the air and bury the hatchet. I completely understand how you would be stressed out in this situation, and I certainly respect the fact that you sacrificed through time to accomplish what you and your husband have together. By no means could I even fathom that cancelling my vacation is even in the same universe as what you guys are facing, I have stated that since the beginning of my threads regarding DENNIS. I too have sacrificed for education and built a business from the ground up, and being self-employed has its stresses and rewards as well. I hope that someday I can be like you and enjoy the finer things in life for all my hard work, but I realize that those things come with a price, both on the front end and in the future. I wish you and all of you down there God's blessing for safety and health, and maybe we can all enjoy this place together in the aftermath. As a matter of fact, you are welcome to come to Georgia and stay with us till the smoke clears, as long as you don't wear any Gator apparel. I cook a mean pulled pork Barbeque!

I think we're all through throwing sand and only hope for the best for everyone.
Travel2much, that really was a horrible situation for you---How are the cats?

Travel2much... How are the cats?

Well, the one who screamed bloody murder and tried to claw her way out of her carrier the WHOLE DARN DRIVE is quietly resting at my feet, like nothing happened. Mr. Pukey is hiding from me somewhere. Doesn't want much to do with me right now. I am being shunned, apparently.

They'll get over it. Such drama, like they were being boiled in oil or something.

I too have a place rented already for july 17th - 23rd in seagrove. If everything is back up and running me and my girlfriend still plan on coming down and we'll probably take some of the time of our vacation to help with various clean up projects. I guess we'll just wait it out for now and see what happens in the next couple of days.

...and we'll probably take some of the time of our vacation to help with various clean up projects.

What a gem! :clap_1:
We should have a clean up day and give out Bloody Marys to everyone pitching in. I can bring the supplies and bartend. Pick a morning. (hmm, I wonder if I need a liqour license???)

I have a feeling that we may have more Bloody Mary Mournings on the way this year.

What a gem! :clap_1:
I can bring the supplies and bartend.

you bring the supplies and i'll bring my liver! 😀

you bring the supplies and i'll bring my liver! 😀

It won't be a drunk-fest, just a refreshing treat for everyone's good deeds. We could call it SoWal's Bloody Mary Mourning, in honor of, of course South Walton's loss, but also for SoWal.com, which Kurt has donated his time to keep running. Sure it is a business idea, but it is directly responsible for bringing so many people together from different backgrounds, and provides a great link for many people. Kurt could give out stickers at the bar.

It won't be a drunk-fest, just a refreshing treat for everyone's good deeds..

trust me i know that, it was really just a joke to try and lighten the mood with everything going on. 😀 😀 😀

Travel2Much---They sound like normal cats to me!

We also plan to come down ASAP since we had to delay this week's plans. Probably within the next 2 weeks and we will gladly volunteer to help with anything or anyone...We have pretty good barbeque here in Tennessee too
although it may be served with a big orange soda..