Two months ago, I was on a plane to Tampa for my brother’s wedding the day before Hurricane Katrina was to blow through the city on the way out to the Gulf. Instead, it swung west and hit New Orleans instead. The rest is history.

Today, Hurricane Wilma devastated Naples, Florida, where I lived for two years while I taught at East Naples Middle School. Tomorrow, as I’m driving from Newark back up to Massachusetts, Wilma will be heading back up the coast with me. I truly hope it heads far out to sea before it can do too much damage to our poor, beleaguered beach, which is already heavily eroded.

Incredibly, I just received confirmation that next week’s meeting in the Yucatan Peninsula is still a go. The meeting planners (who, presumably, don’t have the cable package that includes CNN) have not been able to contact the hotel yet, but hey! Why assume the worst? Pack those bags, and a tent if you have one. We’re going to Cancun!