#25: Back From Two Hurricanes in a Row: The Untold Side of The Story.

Hi there! I am back after two hurricanes in a row in Florida! I want to thank all my listeners for all their thoughtful messages. They enlightened my heart in times of literal darkness without electricity for a little while. In this very special episode, I share my experiences with the hurricanes in Florida, talk about Hurricane Milton, and the untold side of the story. I also bring the answer to those people asking, "How come people still live in Florida despite the threat of hurricanes?" Listen now!

Link to the Free Masterclass "Attract Your Own Clients & Revenue Online"

Follow me on Instagram

Visit The Neat Lifestyle Store

Link to give me a review on Apple Podcasts 🎙️

Learn more about my Workshop "Attract Your Own Clients & Revenue Online"

One-on-one coaching session with me

Link to give me a review on Apple Podcasts 🎙️

Follow my Facebook page

Support the show with Bitcoin!

Credits: 

Song: Green Lights
Performed By: DLP
Written by: Daniel Labate (BMI 100%)
Published by: Boss Soundstripe Productions (BMI 100%)

Song (Trailer): Epic Hybrid Trailer Music
Performed by: by 2CoolFire
Licensed by: Envato Market

Cover Photo: Angela Clifton Photography
Hair and Make-up: Casey J. Cheek

Transcript

Welcome to The Neat Lifestyle Podcast. My name is Katia Mesquita. I'm a life coach, an online business entrepreneur, and your host on this weekly variety show. I'm excited to bring you an extra dose of inspiration to reorganize life to find and go after what you really want. My goal in this podcast is to help you achieve a more successful, harmonious, and meaningful life. I can't wait to connect with you today. Thank you so much for tuning in, and now let's begin. Hello, hello, I'm back from two hurricanes in a row. Thank you so much for all your messages asking how I am and how things are. I could not answer them because I was, of course, without power, without any electricity or internet for a little while. And welcome, welcome to The Neat Lifestyle Podcast, now present in 50 countries around the globe. It's so exciting. Thank you so much for listening. For those who are listening for the first time, I am your host, Katia Mesquita, and this is episode number 25.

For today's episode, I initially had another topic in mind, but after receiving so many messages, I decided to answer them in this episode and also talk a little bit about the untold side of Floridians' lifestyles. Yes, I'm okay. My place is okay. I didn't have any physical or property damage. I just lost basically electricity and internet signal. I just got them restored, and things around me seem a little bit messy and we are getting together to reorganize again. I also have been helping other people who have experienced damage in their properties and also lost some of their loved ones. I also want to take the opportunity to express my sincere condolences to them, and as you may know, as of today, five days after Hurricane Milton's landfall in October 9th, 2024, twenty-three people have lost their lives, and Florida is a state with an estimated population of approximately 22 and a half million people. So, you can see the proportion, okay? As of today, among 22 and a half million people, 23 people lost their lives, and you can easily search on the internet for the latest updates on these numbers. 

Hurricane Milton didn't involve any other state in the US, just Florida and the other hurricane, Hurricane Helene, that made landfall three weeks before, on September 26th, 2024, this hurricane moved up to other states like Tennessee, Georgia, and North Carolina, so the number of death caused by Hurricane Helene was a little bit higher because it includes other states. Anyway, we are helping each other a lot, offering what we can to help. People are coming together. Some people still don't have power or internet. Some of them still have their homes flooded. In some areas, the flooding was approximately 12 feet high. In meters, for those countries that don't have any idea about how much is 12 feet, it would represent approximately three and a half meters high. A lot of property damage, and people are also asking about the lifestyle of Floridians who are often on the route of hurricanes. And I want to have the opportunity to answer that because yes, most of us Floridians still want to remain here, and I will tell you why and how come, okay? 

Anyway, it's a tough time. Yes, it's a tragedy, but there are some other aspects to consider that are not being told and that I can share as far as I could witness as a Florida resident for you to draw your own conclusions. The first thing to consider is that the hurricanes were tracked and predicted many days before landfall. And the whole population was consistently warned many days in advance. Even before the hurricanes were formed, the National Hurricane Center warned about a broad area of pressure that had a high chance of developing into a tropical storm and then from tropical storm to a hurricane. We received a lot of alerts, loud alerts on our phones, on our TVs. Alerts were everywhere. We also had the possibility to subscribe to free additional warning services from local agencies to receive updated information related more specifically to the area we live in. So, people who were paying attention and being careful in subscribing and download apps, tools, and resources to track the hurricane days before. And we knew that we were under a hurricane watch and able to track the hurricane's path and decide about evacuating or not. 

In certain places where people were living on the path of the hurricane, people received mandatory warnings to evacuate their homes, and there was a constant concern about safety. The news was broadly disseminated, making it almost impossible not to know in advance, with rare exceptions. Maybe what? Maybe visitors that just arrived and they were maybe distracted and didn't see any news, or probably people who are from different countries and don't speak the language here and probably didn't understand some warning, and besides all the government and agencies alerts, there are options for downloading other apps, private apps from meteorologic services for those who are interested. And it's broadly disseminated on radio, TV, on the internet, notifications from the administration of buildings, condominiums, neighbors alerting each other, people texting each other. The news were everywhere. 

The second thing to consider is that people were also notified that hurricanes can produce tornadoes that form far away from where the hurricane is located. And these alerts are super loud and frequent. They would even wake us up in the middle of the night with alerts. For those who are not familiar with tornadoes, the most relevant differences between tornadoes and hurricanes are that tornadoes are smaller, so they can damage smaller areas, but they can be very stronger, they can have faster wind spreads than hurricanes, and they give shorter warning time, but there's still some warning time to shelter for those who are being attentive. And we have instructions on— and somehow they give us a lot of instructions on what to do, how to protect ourselves, what's the best part of the house to get protection, which usually is the smallest room in the house, like a closet, like a bathroom. 

So tornadoes are usually more dangerous than hurricanes because they are like mini hurricanes with more concentrated power in a smaller area. And some people take them lightly. They even go out to take pictures or to make a video to post on social media, which is like— it's not safe to open the door. They know it's not safe to be out, and with so many warnings and tornado watch services, it's really difficult for me to imagine how someone can be caught off guard. And people from other countries also are curious about the construction here. The constructions here don't have as primary materials, bricks. So, the houses are not made of brick, they are mostly made of wood because it's more flexible to adapt to hurricanes and also drywall and other softer material. That's why you see things flying, like cardboards, but the structure is lighter than bricks or stones. 

The next consideration, let's say number three, is that despite the size of the hurricanes, the most dangerous part is the eyewall surrounding the eye because it has the highest winds and the heaviest rains in the storm. So when you see a huge hurricane, it doesn't necessarily mean that the entire extension of it has super strong winds. The rain band, which is all that area surrounding the eyewall, can have lower wind speed and be less dangerous.

Consideration number four: most of the Floridians on the path of the hurricane evacuated. They already know how it works, and they left the state, but some people disregarded the alerts and insisted on staying in areas where evacuation was mandatory. Many people have the possibility to evacuate but prefer not to leave their homes. Many of them can go to a safer shelter closer to their homes or travel to another state with, of course, some exceptions. For example, some people who are in wheelchair, some people who are in assisted living, people who are hospitalized in a condition of advanced illness, they cannot even move to another hospital. The rescue service is helping as much as possible. People with financial difficulties or mobility difficulties can receive help to be transported to a safer shelter.

Consideration number five is that some people decide to evacuate when it's too late and when it's no longer recommended, and then what happens is that they panic and they start to be driven by fear, by desperation, which usually leads them to poor decision-making and accidents. 

Consideration number six: the public transportation starts to offer free rides to help people who want to evacuate. So, in times of hurricane here, people don't have to pay to get a bus. 

Okay, number seven: regarding the loss of their properties, most property insurance in Florida covers hurricane damage. They are expensive, but they usually cover.

Hi there, Katia here to make a quick announcement. One of the biggest mistakes people make when they want to change their lifestyle and start attracting their own clients in revenue is quitting their jobs before preparing what they need. It usually happens because many of us were taught just how to become good employees with no access to marketing information that could actually set us free. Well, I've been there, and after discovering how marketing works and applying it myself, I started experiencing the freedom to work with something I really enjoy. Choose the days and time I'm available to work, travel wherever I want, whenever I want, and I wish the same for those who also want to experience that. I believe that a job can be something transitional, and marketing information should be accessible to everyone. That's why I've created the masterclass, "Attract Your Own Clients and Revenue Online." I wanna show you how to utilize your expertise and marketing strategies to attract your own clients and generate revenue online so you can step into the freedom you were meant to have. And better yet, this masterclass is absolutely free. To register, visit my website at neatlifestyle.com/programs or click on the link in the show notes of this episode, and we can get started right now. 

Consideration number eight: the Florida Building Code requires windows to be impact-resistant or protected somehow if they are located within one mile of the coast where the wind speed is 110 miles per hour or greater. 

Number nine: we choose to live in Florida, already aware that it's a state where there are constant hurricanes. It's a choice. I could choose to live in another state if I wanted. Probably someday I can move, not necessarily because of the hurricanes, but living here, in the first place, is a choice. Some people, though, believe that they would not have the financial resources to move to another state, and with all due respect, I have a different opinion. People can make an effort and find ways to move to another state if they want. But this is just my opinion. Some people may disagree and I respect that. And why do we still live in Florida? Okay, for me, with all these safety measures, all these alerts, all this system, I feel safe living in Florida. We experience here more times in safety than in unsafety. I love Florida, and if I move from here, it's more likely to be for other reasons, not because of the hurricane season. 

And that's what it is. It's a season. It comes and goes. And another thing that I love here is being in this community, being a part of this community. I love the people here, I feel welcome, I feel integrated. I love the place, the supermarkets in my neighborhoods, the people who work there. People are friendly, welcoming. I love the way the places are organized. I love the administration, the law system here. Florida, for instance, doesn't collect state income tax. We just have to pay federal income tax, which is already fair enough. We don't need one more. While in some other states, people have to pay both federal and state income taxes. I love the weather here. Sometimes it's too hot, but as many of you already know, I'm from Brazil. Brazil is hot, so for me I feel like home. And I love the relative safety and peace that we have here. Other places don't have hurricanes, but they have other problems. Problems that maybe I'm not very willing to deal with. Some of them struggle with criminality, violence, or other natural disasters like extreme weather, wildfires, and earthquakes, so there's not going to be a place that is perfect. 

And how are my personal experiences with hurricanes so far? Hurricane Milton was the one that came closest to me in these almost five years of living here. Initially, my place was on the path of Hurricane Milton. I was live in the internet working in a one-on-one coaching session with one of my coaching clients when I received a serious warning, so I quickly finished the coaching session. I started to prepare to evacuate, but a few hours later, the hurricane wobbled south, and it changed the route significantly in a way that I was no longer on the path of the hurricane. So in the end, I had no need to evacuate at all. And like many other Floridians, we bought extra food, extra water because we didn't know for how long supermarkets would remain closed or have some, you know, some limitations in receiving products, and the shelves get empty.

We also prepared extra batteries and flashlights. We charged all the electronics while we still had electricity running and we put some ice in a cooler. I basically used my camping equipment and battery-powered radio to keep track of the hurricane and receive tornado warnings. As the hurricane was passing, we could witness strong winds, some branches of trees flying, and the electricity transformers exploding one after another like fireworks. We saw the sky was blue, the sky was green with a green light, a blue light. It's not about thunderstorms. It's basically about transformers exploding. Until the transformer that supplies electricity to our home was exploded, and then everything became dark. What do we do this time? We keep calm. We turn on the flashlights as much as we can, we remain in good spirits. Instead of feeding fear, we started to talk, tell jokes and eat something. 

Also, we put some music, like many Floridians, we put some music in the house to keep in good spirits with the battery we still have and try to have a good time as much as we can because that is a moment of vulnerability in which we cannot do anything. We have to keep track on the hurricane, and most of us go to the smallest place in our homes like a closet, like a bathroom, and then we stay until we feel like the winds passed, and that's it. A few hours later it was gone. I could turn off the radio and go to sleep. In the following morning, to make breakfast, I used a small two-burner propane stove on my balcony. I didn't go out the day after because, just like us, a huge area was without electricity, including the traffic lights, and it was like exposing people to the danger of car crashes, and it was not safe. A lot of branches hanging or trees about to fall. Some electricity cables about to fall. Some streets were blocked with spots of flooding, store signs hanging by a thread, and a lot of trees were knocked down. 

Then after the first day passed, we started to go out. We started to reach out to neighbors and help each other and offer help to more people. A few days later, finally the electricity was back. Everybody celebrated. We could hear people "Yaaay" because of the electricity. It's good to hear this happiness, this collective happiness after we get our electricity back, little by little, because not everybody has their electricity restored yet, so we are helping them, offering them to use our homes to, you know, cook, to be able to brew a coffee or do something or take a shower, whatever they need, recharge their equipment, their electronics, whatever we can do, we are helping each other. 

And finally, the internet also came back, and little by little we are resuming our activities. We are also cleaning things, fixing things as much as we can with all the motivation to help things get back to function well again. And how do I take it? I take each hurricane as an experience in my life and I see my life as a movie in which I have experiences. I feel alive when I experience challenges. And you know what? Challenges make us stronger. We feel stronger. We feel more motivated than ever before to get things back on track and it's beautiful to see people helping each other. During hurricane experiences, I usually take time for me to reflect on my life, time to be closer to my family, friends, neighbors as much as I can, closer to the community, time to do offline activities, read more books, you know, puzzles, and some games that we usually don't take the time to play. 

We let time slow down and pay more attention to the simple things of life. I took also some time to go start gazing at night with my family, which was an amazing experience. It's a time in which I test my limits. I pay attention to things that I wasn't paying attention before. I also make efforts to help people feel better, feel good, so we keep in good spirits. Sometimes, we tell jokes, especially to children, to help them. We play with kids in our condo, we help them laugh and feel safe Instead of focusing on fear. It's also a time to donate. We also inspire other people to donate as well. We inspire children, for instance, to help and donate some of their toys for other children who lost their toys. I developed a lot of creativity to cook with limited resources. We celebrate the life of each person being rescued and having the opportunity to rebuild their lives, a life that can be even better than before because one thing that happens is that people come together to help each other. 

I see people who lost everything, and as they share it within the community or on the TV or on a radio, they get surprised by people reaching out to them to offer help, to offer support, and opportunities to have a better place to live, opportunities for work that can lead them to have a life even better than that one they had before. I see compassion, people reflecting on their lives and feeling happiness for being alive, valuing more now what they were not valuing before because one thing that tough times show us is that experiencing paradoxes actually help us to feel happier and more grateful. Something like the opportunity to experience the joy of finally drinking a glass of water after experiencing some time of thirst. The joy of eating a meal after experiencing hunger. The joy of finding friendships after experiencing times of loneliness. The joy of having electricity working again after experiencing the darkness. The joy of feeling more resilient, stronger, and motivated than before after experiencing vulnerability. The joy of realizing that we already have everything we need to be happier.

So, we are at this moment finding joy in doing our part to make our community a better place and resume things again, and the joy of realizing that if we can do that, we can also do our part to make the world a better place. And yes, there is a lot of bad stuff going on in the world, but so does the good. That's all for today, and if you have questions on how to make your life better, how to enhance life, to achieve more, to find peace of mind and fulfillment, send me a DM on Instagram. You will find the link to my Instagram account on the show notes of this episode. The next episode will be about how you can coach yourself to achieve more and build the life you desire. And if you are new here, you are invited to listen to previous episodes. You can listen to them in order or just scroll through and see which topic inspires you. The Neat Lifestyle Podcast is all about personal development with insights and amazing interviews that can be a game changer for you. I'm Kata Mesquita, and I'll see you in the next episode. Bye!

Thank you so much for listening to today's episode. If you liked what you heard today, be sure to share it with those you care about so they can also benefit from it. If you aren't already following me on social media, do so by clicking on the link on the show notes or simply by visiting my website at neatlifestyle.com. I appreciate you so much. I hope you have an amazing day. I'll see you in the next episode of The Neat Lifestyle Podcast.