Being prepared to leave when called on.

With Tropical Storm Rita hovering just below hurricane strength, residents of south Florida are going through a familiar drill.

They're hammering plywood over windows, lining up to buy gas, and evacuating low-lying areas, though some vow it could be their last such drill.

After 18 years in Key West, Julie LaMattina says she's "had enough". She says the area is "beautiful", but it's "getting scarier and scarier."

Though tens of thousands of people are under evacuation orders, traffic is reportedly moving well on the lone highway out of the Keys. But lines are sprouting up at gas stations, with cars flowing out into streets.

Some people are doing their best to work around the storm. One couple from Indiana got married today at a quiet spot on the beach. They'd planned to honeymoon for a week. But after a quick toast, the newlyweds hit the road -- heading north. They joked that if they had a baby, they'd name her Rita.

People have evacuated since the weekend, and Rita will supposedly be near the keys on Tuesday. You know, when Florida got hit by four hurricanes, people were smart enough to leave if able. If not, they sure as hell knew where to go, where to get away from, and most of all, listened ahead of time and were prepared. May what happened in New Orleans stand as a reminder of how disfunctional government works that has to support the citizens. Let Florida lead by example of how functional government works with responsible citizens.