Goodnight, Irene

[This post was scheduled to be published on August 29 but something went wrong at Blogger. So, I'm republishing it with the date of Aug 29]

Cumulative Wind History - Hurricane Irene - www.nhc.noaa.gov

So, Hurricane Irene is gone and we were very fortunate. I am sorry for the people of North Carolina, New Jersey, New York and Vermont who seem to have been hit the hardest by this storm. Our worst problem was that we lost power for about six hours. It gave us time to talk and play some old board games we hadn't played in a while.

The title of this post is a reference to the folk song, Goodnight Irene. The chorus goes

Irene good night Irene good night
Good night Irene Good night Irene
I'll see you in my dreams

From what I can find, it was written and performed by Huddie "Lead Belly" Ledbetter around 1908 but he probably got some of the lyrics, or at least the idea, from older folk songs. It was most famously performed and recorded by The Weavers. They would end their show with the song. It's a sad song with some hard-to-take lyrics but it ends with

Quit your rambling quit your gambling
Stop staying out late at night
Stay home with your wife and family
And stay by the fireside of right

That's good advice and being without power during a hurricane helps reinforce that. Nothing is cozier and better for the family than gathering around a flashlight or candle and playing a game together.