Portugal has already weathered a string of named storms, as 2026 is just getting started. Storm Joseph was followed by Ingrid, and then, earlier this week, by bomb cyclone Kristin.

Emergency warnings began popping up on my phone Tuesday, with Kristin making landfall on the Silver Coast in the early morning hours of Wednesday. I was safely huddled in my interior guest bath with blanket and flashlight, and a bag of storm emergency  supplies at the ready, when Kristin reached my oceanfront home with Category 2 hurricane-force winds after 3 A.M.

I’ve gotten used to windstorms here, so I wasn’t worried. I didn’t give a second thought to staying at my townhouse alone when the warnings about an approaching storm started coming in. GB was working at his house and wanted to stay there to keep an eye on things, and I wanted to do the same at my place. Be home to pick up an overturned plant or maybe sweep plant debris off the balconies. Keep the dehumidifiers going and emptied. No big deal.

Homeowner associations started sending reminders to residents to move furniture and pots indoors. Yeah, yeah. Lightweight chairs and tables, patio umbrellas, and small planters came inside. I left my large, heavy clay pots and my sofa sectional outside, pushed against a corner of my veranda and weighted down with heavy (I thought) bags of wet soil and a 30kg (66 pounds) patio umbrella base. The usual windstorm prep that’s always been more than sufficient.

Not this time.

We were not expecting 100 mph winds. I don’t think I have ever heard 100 mph wind before. If you have hurricane or tornado experience, then you already know the deafening sound of a thousand roaring freight trains all around you. The sickening sound of screeching metal. The crashing sounds and banging thuds of unidentified objects falling, flying, and shattering. I have to admit that I was afraid alone in the pitch-black darkness. Of course, electricity, Internet, and phone service went out with Kristin’s arrival. I wasn’t going to waste battery power to light my bathroom shelter, so I draped my fleece blanket over my head and wrapped myself in its comforting coziness, closed my eyes, and did my yoga breathing as I waited for the inevitable sound of my windows crashing in. How fortunate was I to have that shelter in a storm. Many people in the world do not.

When I finally stepped out of my guest bathroom shelter, I saw how truly fortunate I was. Nothing broken. Windows and doors intact. Just water that was easily mopped up in all three of the ocean-facing rooms. Nothing in the other rooms. Outside, there was some building damage, but nothing even close to what it had sounded like from my hiding place earlier. Kristin took my sofa sectional for a ride, but it was easily retrieved and essentially undamaged. Amazing.

As of this morning, electricity and cell service have been restored where GB lives. WiFi is still out, but water has stayed on. I am writing and posting this using my cell phone’s mobile data, so I hope it goes through. This WordPress/Jetpack app has been screwing up and giving me fits in the best of conditions.

I’ve not been back to my home since Wednesday night. Power there was still out last night, after briefly returning. Bravo to the utility workers and tree crews who have worked round-the-clock to clear downed power lines and fallen trees so electricity can be restored and roads reopened.

All is well in my small world, and I am grateful for that. Others are not so lucky, and my condolences for their losses.

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Thank you for reading! ❤️ May your weekend find you free from worry and sheltered against any storm.

Oops. Power just went out again. Let’s see how strong my cell phone data is…

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All images are my own, except as noted.

The Hot Goddess

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