Fred Weinberg sends this video of Hurricane Irene -- the outer bands, anyway -- moving through Palm Beach, Florida, this morning. "Interestingly, birds are still chirping away...reminds one to sing in the face of adversity."
Two things: If you're in the way of this storm, please be reasonable and do what the emergency folks ask. And second, the few hurricanes I've lived through directly all started with the sudden quieting of the birds. It's so quiet beforehand, and then the storm roars, and afterward you open the door to absolute silence.