Milton

[RT Firefly]

Greetings,
What sorta surprised me about "Milty" was it lingered, for what seemed the longest time, in the gulf and then bazoom, it was across the state and out to sea. I don't have any long term observations or memories of hurricane "births" but it also seems more are developing IN the Gulf as opposed to off the coast of Africa.

We live in the Ottawa, Canada area and the incidence of tornadoes and other extreme weather events appears to have increased over the last several years. I vaguely recall hearing that continental weather patterns have shifted eastward thus causing the unnatural occurrences around here.

 

[Don L]

just knock off the BS and go to below and donate

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[mvweebles]

I just finished beer and a slice of pizza with a friend whose house was flooded similar to mine except their house is on the water and they completed a 6-figure renovation a year or so ago. Nice house. Nice renovation. Their house is on the water with a 7-figure boat behind it (which survived the storms just fine).

Mentally, they are totally toast by Helene and Milton. Ready to move anywhere that's not Florida. Cheryll and I on the other hand are much more sanguine about the loss even though we, unlike them, are woefully underinsured (intentional) and will do most of the repairs ourselves.

My takeaway is if you have too much of your net worth tied up in a single asset which is at-risk, you are susceptible to extreme disappointment. Frankly, it's part of the reason we own an old Willard 36 vs some flavor of Defever/Nordhavn/KK/etc. I guess it's called diversification but for it was unintentional. Just did what felt comfortable to us. Modest house. Modest boat.

We will take a decent whack in terms of time and money due to the storms. But we're diversified and didn't stretch for either boat or house. So we still wear a smile even when we grab Advil to soothe the aches.

My dearly departed father used to say "don't let your possessions posess you." I think we're doing okay.

Peter

 

[Jklotz]

My buddy in Largo txt'ed. Said his house is ok, although the power is out. Sure hope we're done with this for the season. I'm tired of seeing crashed boats and flooded towns.

 

[psneeld]

I just finished beer and a slice of pizza with a friend whose house was flooded similar to mine except their house is on the water and they completed a 6-figure renovation a year or so ago. Nice house. Nice renovation. Their house is on the water with a 7-figure boat behind it (which survived the storms just fine).

Mentally, they are totally toast by Helene and Milton. Ready to move anywhere that's not Florida. Cheryll and I on the other hand are much more sanguine about the loss even though we, unlike them, are woefully underinsured (intentional) and will do most of the repairs ourselves.

My takeaway is if you have too much of your net worth tied up in a single asset which is at-risk, you are susceptible to extreme disappointment. Frankly, it's part of the reason we own an old Willard 36 vs some flavor of Defever/Nordhavn/KK/etc. I guess it's called diversification but for it was unintentional. Just did what felt comfortable to us. Modest house. Modest boat.

We will take a decent whack in terms of time and money due to the storms. But we're diversified and didn't stretch for either boat or house. So we still wear a smile even when we grab Advil to soothe the aches.

My dearly departed father used to say "don't let your possessions posess you." I think we're doing okay.

Peter

A lot of advice from really well to do people (that actually stay well off for their whole lives....like Warren Buffet) suggest living below your means can bring everlasting wealth and way less stress/happiness.

Talking with several bankers, they have seconded that in that they repossess enormous amounts of "toys" like boats, airplanes, expensive cars, etc. Many USA residents live to the edge which when disaster hits, puts them in a bad place. It's the American way it seems.

 

[HopCar]

A friends house in Punta Gorda got six inches of water in it. His boat, a 25 ft Aquasport came off the lift and is upside down in the canal. Electricity is back on and the air conditioner works!

 

[Delta Riverat]

Yes, live below means works well.