Peter the Meteor(ologist) - 9. Interviews, and the Big Move

I think I can make it now, the pain is gone
All of the bad feelings have disappeared
Here is the rainbow I've been prayin' for
It's gonna be a bright (bright), bright (bright)
Sun-shiny day
Look all around, there's nothin' but blue skies
Look straight ahead, nothin' but blue skies

Johnny Nash - 1972

25

Late Sunday morning Aaron and I drove to the airport. I booked a hotel room in Riviera, which was the closest hotel to Armstrong between it and Corpus Christi International Airport. We landed around six o'clock and since we only had our suit bags as a carry-ons, got out of the airport pretty quickly after we each rented a car. Earlier, we had no chance to eat because we only had a short layover in Dallas-Fort Worth, so I grabbed something to eat on the way to the hotel, arriving there a little before eight. Aaron was staying in Corpus, near the university.

Monday morning, I arrived at the State of Texas Hurricane Center a few minutes before my scheduled interview time of nine o'clock. I told the receptionist I had an interview with Celine Murray.

"Yes, I see you on her schedule, but it appears you'll be speaking with our director first, Elena Young. I'll let her assistant know you're here."

She made the call and I decided to probe about the director while we waited. The name and timing couldn't have been a coincidence.

"How long has Ms. Young been here?"

"Only two months. Her predecessor was unhappy here and he moved on. Mrs. Young came highly regarded from the National Hurricane Center."

"Thanks."

Her assistant came to get me before I could ask anything more. I walked into Elena's office.

"Pete, sit down, please. Do you need a coffee or anything?"

"No, I'm fine, Elena. Wow, I knew you left to take a director's position a couple months ago, but I hadn't heard where. I was figuring somewhere in Florida, though."

"That would have been a less drastic move, but I'm originally from Raymondville, about a half hour south of here."

"I know exactly where it is. I looked into the Holiday Inn there, but I decided to stay in Riviera last night, but will be staying in Corpus tonight. Riviera is between here and the airport. I didn't want to risk booking a flight later today and then need to leave early."

"That was smart. The Riviera area doesn't offer much in the way of things to do."

"Yeah, it did seem pretty desolate."

"Like here. So, what made you leave the NHC?"

"Mostly bureaucracy, but partially failure on my part to apply mathematics to my predictions."

"I always thought that was a fruitless endeavor. They let you go because you couldn't do the impossible?"

"That, and apparently someone higher up in the NOAA didn't want non-scientific methods to be used."

"I was happy when Celine told me this morning you were coming for an interview. If I had known that sooner, I could have saved you a trip. But it's still a good idea to speak with the person you'll be reporting to directly."

"That sounded amazingly positive."

"Yes, I suppose so. But unless Celine hates you, you'll get the job. It's hard to find good hurricane specialists. Especially one who is willing to work in the middle of nowhere. Your ability is just icing on the cake."

"Why did the state decide to build here, anyway?"

"Cost, why else? Land is cheap, there are almost no people, so there's no major tax need. It took the town itself over fifty years to double in size. The population is thirty-eight, I believe. And it's close enough to the gulf to be convenient to travel there."

We chatted for a few more minutes, and then she showed me to Celine's office, next door. That discussion focused on what they did here and what would be my role, should I be offered and accepted the position. After about an hour, I was surprised with a question.

"So, when would you like to start? I assume you'd need some time to move, but we could really use the help soon, hurricane season is just around the corner."

I suppose the question shouldn't have been a surprise, since she had told me one of their two hurricane specialists recently left. Like the previous director, he quickly tired of being in the middle of nowhere.

"Well, I'd love to start right away, but my, um, roommate will likely be making the move as well. He has an interview with TAMU-CC today as well."

"If we give you access to our systems remotely, would you be able to start by doing some analysis on last year's storms? And just Texas', not the entirety of hurricane alley."

"Considering that's part of what I'd been doing for the last five months, yes."

"I can set you up with our HR manager, do you think you could start in two weeks?"

"Sure. I don't see why not, although we haven't discussed salary."

"I spoke with Elena before you got here this morning. We'll match your NHC salary less the cost of living adjustment for Miami, plus ten percent."

"Yes, I suppose Elena had access to that information. That sounds fine, and two weeks is good."

Before I left for the day, I had my Texas state account information, which wouldn't be activated yet, a laptop loaded with all the tools of the trade I would need, and an appointment to have a meeting with Celine remotely my first day. Fortunately I kept my bank account in Texas active, so setting up direct deposit was simple. Now all I had to do was wait to hear if I was moving to Texas with or without Aaron. With being the obvious preference.

26

Aaron and I agreed I'd call him to find out how each other’s interviews went when I left. He discovered there were eight research slots available and he was the last of five applicants so far. He did well enough during the interview to land one of the four remaining spots. With his upcoming graduation, he was offered a July fifth start date. The research assistants would be starting two weeks apart from each other. The first started that day, and the next three Monday start dates were already filled. July fourth was a Tuesday and they didn't think him coming in for a day, then having a day off would be worthwhile. I drove up to his hotel in Corpus so we could get dinner and celebrate our good fortune. I just hope we didn't celebrate too loudly. Although there were more grunts and moans than cries of passion.

The next morning we flew back to Miami and started our preparations for the move. The first thing to do was determine where we could live. A larger town called Kingsville would give each of us a forty-five to fifty minute commute. It wasn't ideal, but we'd both have decent paying jobs. Texas A&M had a campus in Kingsville as well. Aaron would check if there was any way to make use of that facility after he starts. Anywhere much closer to Armstrong would leave him without many employment options. The next step was to check into apartment complexes in that town. We did that together and decided we'd apply at King's Crossing Apartments.

It was coming together for us. With me starting my job remotely on the twenty-second, money wouldn't be a problem. I got two months severance pay with only two weeks off. Aaron gave his two weeks notice on June sixteenth so he'd have enough time to pack everything up. Of course I helped him as he needed, as my work permitted, plus weekends and evenings.

We set aside enough money to cover the moving expense itself, and five nights in hotels/motels. The five were the night before the move out, the moving company's travel time, and the night before the move in. I was still paying Aaron’s father for the furniture, hence the moving company. Obviously we were hoping for less time in hotels, but shit happens. I took off the previous Thursday and Friday, in addition to Monday, July third. Fortunately, the move went smoothly and we were settled into the new place the afternoon of the third. We'd both be going into work on Wednesday.

27

With an average of less than one hurricane per year in Texas, more of our effort was spent analyzing patterns and predicting when we'd see a hurricane, rather than where. I still spent a portion of my time trying to find the key to adding a viable calculation to my predictions. So it wasn't a surprise in early August when Elena came into my office.

"As soon as I hired you, I knew this would happen. But I can't refuse the request in good conscience."

"Calvin?"

"Yes."

Hurricane Calvin was currently expected to hit Gulf Shores, Alabama as a category five. Although it wasn't my work responsibility to monitor hurricanes elsewhere, I felt a moral obligation to keep track of any fours or fives. Especially those that would veer a significant amount from the consensus of the models.

"I was expecting something. What was the request?"

"Jonathan Barclay wants a favor."

"Three miles east of the center of Biloxi."

"I guess it was obvious what he wanted, but why do you know that right away?"

"While I may never be able to do anything about it, any cat four or five, I look at, no matter where it is."

"That's over fifty miles, isn't it?"

"About seventy, depending on your reference point in Gulf Shores."

"That's a lot of potentially uninformed victims."

"Very much so. Calvin will turn pretty close to the coast. Biloxi will likely have less than six hours warning if his speed remains constant at around twenty-five. Not enough time to make much of a difference."

"Oh, shit."

"I sure hope he can do something about it."

"Thanks. I'll call him back now. Almost three days' notice is much better than six hours."

"You're welcome."

28

Shortly thereafter, in Miami, Jonathan is on a call with the heads of the NOAA. NOAA Administrator, Eric Griffin was not willing to listen to reason.

"If there is no approved model indicating such a sudden turn, I will not authorize including a city seventy miles away from the consensus."

"But Peter..."

"Is a quack. Anyone that believes him doesn't need to be employed by the NOAA. Do you get the implication?"

"Yes. But like he told one of my branch chiefs after you forced me to fire him, I hope you can sleep at night if you're wrong. I only request you fire me after landfall, wherever it may be, because I'm issuing a warning."

"Gladly. You may as well be prepared to be unemployed in seventy-two hours."

"You do what you have to do, and I'll do what I have to."

Jonathan disconnected the call and immediately crafted a warning, with an additional statement:

'The preceding warning was not authorized by Eric Griffin, NOAA Administrator. The information was provided by Peter Noonan, whom until recently, worked for this office. We have saved hundreds, if not thousands of lives, heeding Peter's warnings. The National Hurricane Center approves this warning regardless of the NOAA's position.'

Three days later, that statement caused quite a stir at the NOAA.