Florence

[ncexnyc]

Dropped some eBay items at the Post Office on Tuesday, as they were closed on Monday. The clerk said they were accepting mail, but it wasn't going anywhere as the processing facility in downtown Fayetteville was still flooded. She also mentioned the flooding on I-95 as well.

On another much sadder note several of our fishing piers took serious damage from the storm and I understand Oceananna Pier is gone. With costs being what they are rebuilding piers isn't an option and if I'm not mistaken we've lost several piers over the past decade or so.

[duketaylor]

Returning I went north to Jax, then west, then nw to kinston, was diverted once. Kinston was a mess. West bound traffic was safer. If Neuse is still rising then kinston is not an option. Go up 17 as far as possible. Maybe Eliz City and go west. Tons of traffic diverted from 95 south to 24 to Jax. Might be closed tomorrow. Just a guess.
I'm beyond tired and stressed. In Wilmington we had 8pm curfew, no restaurants open and no fuel. That's changed some today. [I] work for Publix, we have milk, ice, power. Generators the whole time.
Glad to be home now. Curfew lifted today/tonight. Almost no restaurants open. Many lights out on major thorough-fares. Dangerous travel.
Monday and Tuesday hard to find gas, many long lines, same with any warm/hot food. Not a ton of downed trees or lines, but plenty of power out.
Folks there have been very nice and appreciative of our 35 folks coming from Richmond to help.
DukeTaylor is tired after many hours of work and little sleep. Now checking out. Good luck to all,especially those in Kinston!!!

As always, GO DUKE!!!

[devildeac]

Returning I went north to Jax, then west, then nw to kinston, was diverted once. Kinston was a mess. West bound traffic was safer. If Neuse is still rising then kinston is not an option. Go up 17 as far as possible. Maybe Eliz City and go west. Tons of traffic diverted from 95 south to 24 to Jax. Might be closed tomorrow. Just a guess.
I'm beyond tired and stressed. In Wilmington we had 8pm curfew, no restaurants open and no fuel. That's changed some today. [I] work for Publix, we have milk, ice, power. Generators the whole time.
Glad to be home now. Curfew lifted today/tonight. Almost no restaurants open. Many lights out on major thorough-fares. Dangerous travel.
Monday and Tuesday hard to find gas, many long lines, same with any warm/hot food. Not a ton of downed trees or lines, but plenty of power out.
Folks there have been very nice and appreciative of our 35 folks coming from Richmond to help.
DukeTaylor is tired after many hours of work and little sleep. Now checking out. Good luck to all,especially those in Kinston!!!

As always, GO DUKE!!!

I'm glad you made it here and home again and sent this post. You're a good man, duketaylor and Publix is a good company to provide this service.

[HereBeforeCoachK]

My wife coming to Raleigh from the coast today...has to go through Greenville. Kinston got over run yesterday and it's supposed to still be rising.

[devildeac]

Will try to provide a second hand report later today as our neighbors are going to try and deliver an elderly parent back to his assisted living facility in Wilmington this afternoon/evening.

[BigWayne]

Well at least the liquor stores are open again in Wilmington.

[HereBeforeCoachK]

My wife drove in from Beaufort to Raleigh today...had to route through Greenville. Traffic coming west was not bad...but she said all the way traffic heading east was awful. Could be a long drive back east...

[budwom]

Well at least the liquor stores are open again in Wilmington.

Hurricanes come and go, but graft and corruption in the NC ABC stores cannot be stopped (read a newspaper series a few years ago about the preposterous corruption in that system, the
regional board managers take good care of themselves, even though the system could be run without them.) I don't mean to make a political point here by the way, it's been that way for years, under
various administrations...the entire ABC system is pretty much useless, though of course we cherish the liquor therein

[DukieInKansas]

Well at least the liquor stores are open again in Wilmington.

Reading to the end of the link - Operation BBQ, a local organization, is in Wilmington providing food. I knew they were heading out but hadn't heard where they ended up.

[devildeac]

Will try to provide a second hand report later today as our neighbors are going to try and deliver an elderly parent back to his assisted living facility in Wilmington this afternoon/evening.

Our neighbors spent 6 hours on US, NC and county highways today and were unsuccessful returning an elderly parent to his assisted living place in Wilmington.

[HereBeforeCoachK]

Hurricanes come and go, but graft and corruption in the NC ABC stores cannot be stopped (read a newspaper series a few years ago about the preposterous corruption in that system, the
regional board managers take good care of themselves, even though the system could be run without them.) I don't mean to make a political point here by the way, it's been that way for years, under
various administrations...the entire ABC system is pretty much useless, though of course we cherish the liquor therein

I had a very prominent restaurant owner in Beaufort explain to me the corruption last year....makes NC look like a banana republic, no offense to Nicaragua and Venezuela and Cuba...He knows of one "board member" - and they all make six figures a year for no show jobs - who had never even had a drink of liquor in his life....but he's getting huge money every year. This is why restaurants pay as much, and sometimes more, than individuals do for the same stuff. I was appalled....

[budwom]

I had a very prominent restaurant owner in Beaufort explain to me the corruption last year...makes NC look like a banana republic, no offense to Nicaragua and Venezuela and Cuba...He knows of one "board member" - and they all make six figures a year for no show jobs - who had never even had a drink of liquor in his life...but he's getting huge money every year. This is why restaurants pay as much, and sometimes more, than individuals do for the same stuff. I was appalled...

yeah, I had to look it up, but basically the Wilmington Star News ran a piece about the Wilmington area board chief, Billy Williams who was paid $232,000/year (appalling)...but that wasn't enough, he had a company build him a garage at his house, and billed it to an ABC store job...when you consider that these guys don't even set prices, you have to wonder what it is they do for their salaries...

[HereBeforeCoachK]

yeah, I had to look it up, but basically the Wilmington Star News ran a piece about the Wilmington area board chief, Billy Williams who was paid $232,000/year (appalling)...but that wasn't enough, he had a company build him a garage at his house, and billed it to an ABC store job...when you consider that these guys don't even set prices, you have to wonder what it is they do for their salaries...

LIQUOR UPDATE: The board is pure and simple political patronage. It goes back to when the NC Government wanted to control this industry. In most states, there is competition and it's a privately run situation, though it normally includes proper licensing. It is a close race, as to which is the most corrupt department in state government...DOT or ABC. Both are worse than anything I witnessed in Central America as a business owner. As a N. Carolinian, I am ashamed of these two departments...and of course have no way to change it.
NOTE to mods: I would contend that Florence and liquor are indeed related topics...

FLORENCE TRAFFIC UPDATE:
My wife needed about 6 hours to get to Beaufort from Raleigh yesterday...roads that all the apps said were passable were getting closed during the day. She had to turn around several times. She's not even sure how she got back...she just followed a Disaster Relief vehicle...who's driver was on the phone...we assume getting road updates.

Kinston crest was predicted for today sometime.

[BigWayne]

How many mosquitoes make up a ton?

Because, methinks we're about to have a ton of mosquitoes.

Good call Jim.

A North Carolina city dealing with fallout from Hurricane Florence has been swarmed by aggressive mosquitoes nearly three times larger than regular mosquitoes.

[Acymetric]

Yeah, mosquito have been awful the past week just in Raleigh. I'm sure the places with bad flooding got it even worse.

[HereBeforeCoachK]

Yeah, mosquito have been awful the past week just in Raleigh. I'm sure the places with bad flooding got it even worse.

The treatments started late yesterday near Beaufort, and before that, it was simply impossible to go outside. Today it's better...but not pleasant.

[aimo]

Yeah, mosquito have been awful the past week just in Raleigh. I'm sure the places with bad flooding got it even worse.

Yes, Geez! I was accosted by a swarm of HUGE mosquitoes just now in Durham. Awful!

[PackMan97]

Yes, Geez! I was accosted by a swarm of HUGE mosquitoes just now in Durham. Awful!

[TruBlu]

I wish I knew where I stashed my case of military issued insect repellent. I found a case of it at an old drugstore in Norfolk once and bought the whole case that had about 20 bottles (about 2 ounces each bottle). I was familiar with it because my dad brought some home with him from WW II, and we used it while working on our farm. It is one of the most horrific smelling things that I have ever encountered, but it worked really well.

Years ago, I took a bottle of it to “The Lost Colony” play because I heard the mosquitoes were really bad there. It kept the mosquitoes away. It also cleared out about 3 rows of people around me who decided they would rather have the mosquitoes than the odor.

[camion]

I wish I knew where I stashed my case of military issued insect repellent. I found a case of it at an old drugstore in Norfolk once and bought the whole case that had about 20 bottles (about 2 ounces each bottle). I was familiar with it because my dad brought some home with him from WW II, and we used it while working on our farm. It is one of the most horrific smelling things that I have ever encountered, but it worked really well.

Years ago, I took a bottle of it to “The Lost Colony” play because I heard the mosquitoes were really bad there. It kept the mosquitoes away. It also cleared out about 3 rows of people around me who decided they would rather have the mosquitoes than the odor.

Is that the stuff we mixed with peanut butter and used in place of Sterno back in the day to heat our tins of WWII turkey?