Prayers for those who have already been hit by this monster storm in the islands south of the U.S. The wind speeds and torrential rains and flooding are horrific. Now I worry about my cousin and his wife, son and grandchild on the west coast of Florida, and all of Florida, and all of us up the East Coast who are now in range of this awful system. In N.C. we must be vigilant all the way from the mountains, where heavy rain rips down the gullies like river rapids, and potential damage all across central N.C., and of course the coast where flooding is a peril. Not to mention the South between Florida and here, and the rest of the affected East Coast. Irma could still swing out to sea and miss landfall after Florida, but right now that sounds like dreaming. Smokingpipes.com is in the low country S.C., so safe passage to them, and to all of us in range. It's been a hard year.