Last week when we were at North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, we were caught in the remnants of Hurricane Ida.* Well, being at the beach while the wind is blowing ferociously is scary. And being there when you are on vacation is downright rude.** Well, I am happy to report that I'm still alive, I have not turned into a water zombie, and the only thing I lost was a day watching HGTV.
* The Husband said we were in a "Tropical Storm." But saying were in in a "Hurricane" is so much more dramatic, don't you think?
** It's also a little scary, too, because hotels have lots of windows and not a lot of places not next to said windows.
The entire time we were there was kind of windy, and the water was choppy. I can tell you with all certainty and scientific fact, however, that it was hot as hell. It was even hotter after the hurricane than before because of the humidity.
But the experience was worth it. (I wouldn't say this if our hotel suddenly crashed into the ground, though.) I got some shots of the winds blowing water all the way up to the beach line from our balcony:
Not sure if you can it going into the sandy path. That path is directly attached to the street, for emergency vehicles and people alike.
The thing with the number 35 was a lifeguard station, although I did not see a single lifeguard the entire time I was there. Although I did see many people taking selfies while standing on them. The height apparently made for some great Insta-worthy photos.
Here's the day before the storm. Those who know the weather patterns might have been able to tell that there was a storm-a-coming!
We were able to get in some tourist-y type things, though. Here, we visited Brookgreen Gardens. They had tons of these trees around the landscape ... it's also featured on their website. I'm not allowed to show you any of the statues ... statues are a unique copyright btw. Copyright protects publishing photographs, as well as the actual item, because taking a photograph is considered to be making a copy of it. Hence, copy-right, or the right of copy.
Hope you enjoyed the photos of the hurricane on Myrtle Beach, South Carolina!
The Promos
Speaking of other natural disasters, this week I present to you All Who Wander by Joe Clifford, on sale rn for 99 cents. I like to buy the books that I feature in my newsletter. The cover looks so good:
One snowy night in 1998, Brooke Mulcahy's car slides off the road in rural Vermont. Her car is discovered. She is not. Twenty-one years later, Robert Kirby, Brooke's stepbrother, is paid a visit from a young woman (Lily), claiming to be Brooke's daughter.
Sounds super interesting! This is a amateur sleuth/psychological thriller.
We also have September Giveaway. As the name implies, it's a bunch of free books across many genres. Pick up something special for yourself to read during the next hurricane. Vigorous Defense by Audrey Walker looks really good!
Happenings
What the hotel room didn't have, though, was Netflix. So I needed to binge-watch the first three episodes of The Wheel of Time, Season 2, upon my return. Here is the full book series on the Kindle and the full book series in paperback. The television show has diverted from the book series quite a bit, but I'm not necessarily complaining about it. Season 1 was just not very good, using up my goodwill for my favorite fantasy book series in all 8 episodes. It also didn't help that they released it one episode per week, which pisses me off in the era of streaming.
I decided to give the first episode in Season 2 a go, which would determine the fate of the rest of the television series. I am happy to report that the show has made up for the lack of movement in the first season ... Season 1 reminded me of a slow "Emmy-worthy" independent film with tons of hidden meanings, great cinematography, and symbolism ... e.g. boring.
Some great acting (what else would you expect from Rosamund Pike?) and a few twists sans-book that I wasn't expecting, like the scenes between Min and Mat. M&M ha. Another one was about the arches. They also drop quite a few hints as to what is to come, if you are a Wheel of Time book fantasy buff like myself.
I intended to start reporting on the book series but then remembered it was Halloween next month. So I'm reading The Evil Inside by Heather Graham rn. The events take place around Halloween. It's kind of a paranormal-mystery type book ... right up my alley. Next week (hopefully), expect a shortened book review and a special witchy treat.