Ike Photos

We've all seen images of crazy reporters battling the wind and rain during the storm and then the initial reports of the damage, but it isn't often you really see the long term effects of a hurricane. These are a few pictures collected over the last week or so showing some of the damage. I still can't believe this is in my backyard.

A house in Galveston during the storm


The entrance to the Kemah Boardwalk - only about 6 miles from my house and a very popular place to eat and play games


The Gulf side of the Boardwalk after the storm


Here comes Navy Beachmaster Unit 2 out of Virginia to bring in heavy equipment to help clean up!


A house in Kemah, near the Boardwalk, that has been condemned because of damage.


Very few boats stayed in the marina!




Even the fish had problems


The before and after of Crystal Beach (near Galveston)


A hole in the middle of I-45 near the Galveston Causeway.


The clean up effort continues.

Power

We finally have power at the office! Yipee! I never realized that electricity is not a luxury, but an economic necessity until all of this happened. I have enjoyed my small "hurrication", but I am ready to get back to stuff as normal. I've been working out of my boss's office for this week. It hasn't been too bad, but it's been hard to do the administrative stuff. But, we got power back yeasterday afternoon. Today, they are working on the AC and phone lines and we are going to disconnect from the server in a few minutes so our IT guy can move it and reconnect it at the office. We are going in this afternoon with fans to try to get stuff back up and ready for work tomorrow. This has been a very long week (I thought it was Friday this morning) and am so very looking forward to Homecoming next weekend at PC and the wedding of a friend at work. Perhaps this nightmare of recovery is almost over. God has been so very faithful and has continually been poking and whispering that I need to remember that He is in charge.

Cleaning Up Because Life Goes On

This whole hurricane thing has been an interesting experience. Leaving for Rita was a lot different because nothing really happened. We had one bush get blown sideways, but that was it. It was a good exericse in what to do pre- and during the storm, but nothing could have prepared me for what to do after the storm. I am so very lucky to have not sustained any damage to the house. I did lose one piece of plywood (which admittedly, I had a hard time getting up). It splintered when it was ripped off the window frame. Two or three other pieces fell off and crushed some plants, but didn't splinter. Other than having to completely throw away a lot of food because we lost power for 3-5 days, there was not much else to clean up except to pull down 2 tree limbs and clean up the front yard from all the limbs and brush that fell down. My yard is still a mess - partly because of the dead grass in spots and partly because it hasn't been mowed, but that's something I'll deal with this weekend or when T gets home next weekend.

The real mess in all of this has been my office. We still don't have power there and are working remotely as best we can. I didn't realize until today how much easier it is to work at the office. I've been able to log on and check email and stuff remotely before, but now I have several motions and things that need to be filed and mailed out. I think I'm going to end up at Office Depot or someplace to make copies and get stamps. It's frustrating to be able to complete something but not get it mailed out. On top of that, my boss is worried about the financial side of running an office. I understand his concern - he has about 30 people to worry about and if we're not there to work or mail out invoices, there's no money coming in. No money means no payroll, which could mean laying people off temporarily. Of course, most of our clients are not working at 100% either, but that often means they need us even more. It's very frustrating. On the one hand, I am so grateful for what I have. On the other hand, I'm annoyed about the complications with work and worried how that will turn out. The office is in the part of the grid that is projected to get service "sometime after Monday, September 22". That's not comforting - they can't even give us an estimate of the timeframe. I know the power people are doing everything they can and have brought in crews from all over the country. I can't imagine how much worse it would be if others weren't willing to help. There's another blessing!

As best I can tell, most of my friends have fared ok. Many are still without power, but their homes are intact. I have one friend whose roof collapsed into their living room. She and the kids have gone to FL to stay with her family while her husband tries to get stuff cleaned up at the house. They have 2 boys - 4 years old and 2 months old. I'm glad she's somewhere safe, but I wish I was closer to help her out a bit. The church had some damage and doesn't have power, but it' still standing. I'm looking forward to seeing people Sunday to see if I can help. I feel selfish having 2extra bedrooms with people needing a place to sleep. So far, my offers have not been accepted, but all I an do is offer.

Life is somewhat back to normal (work issues aside), but driving around town isn't fun. For starters, most of the traffic lights are blinking red if they're there are all. Most of the gas stations and grocery stores in my area are back up and running. A few are still on generators, so perishables are not available, but most are back up as normal and are relatively full stocked with no lines. There are still a lot of buildings and places you can see damaged. A few neighborhoods between my house and office have been blocked off with concrete barricades. I love that area of town, but am so thankful I don't live there at this time. I had a client who used to live in that neighborhood, but after Rita, his wife made them move to the complete other side of town because she was tired of dealing with hurricanes. One of T's favorite places is now gone. The roof was torn off and I think at least 1 wall is missing. It was a neat place - probably the only bar I've ever actually liked. It was an old building that had a lot of NASA memorabilia on the walls. They didn't serve anything but hamburgers & fries, but they were so fresh and good. The owners were really nice people. I'm sad it's gone.

So, life will continue on. I'm lucky to not be one of the people on tv having to file FEMA claims and deal with being homeless or having their lives shattered and their "treasures" destroyed. As I've told many people, it's just stuff, but it's my stuff. Memories attached to things make life better sometimes. Hurricane Ike has changed a lot of lives. Life will go on, but it won't be the same.

Blessings in a Storm

I'm sitting here blogging now from a home in Baton Rouge, LA that was opened up to me while I was on the road evacuating from Ike. My friends, C & M, and their 2 girls, E & M, evacuated to Baton Rouge to stay with C's parents early Thursday morning (around 1 am). Thursday, after I had packed up the car, gone to the office and packed up the office with everyone, I got in the car to drive to Mesquite, to stay with some church friends. I got a call just as I pulled out of the office driveway that they could take me in in LA. So, I changed course and headed east down I-10. Traffic wasn't bad and I made it in about 4.5 hours. I have been so blessed to have a home opened up to me - a total stranger. I have been blessed to have a home to go home to. Two people have gone by the house to check on it and the power situation. Both reported it all looked ok. Some of my plywood came down, which I thought it would since I didn't really know what I was doing when I put it up, but the fence is still up and there doesn't appear to be any damage. Supposedly we got power back last night, but I'm not totally sure if it'll be up when I get back tomorrow. For now, though, I have a warm bed, good food and a roof over my head. I am blessed!

Handling Problems

Someone sent me this on Facebook. It somehow gives me a boost of confidence.

Ike

You know that song "I want to be like Mike"? I've got a new version - "I don't want to meet Ike". I hate the stress and worry that comes with hurricanes. My stomach has been in knots the last 3 days trying to figure out what's going on. I have a load of stuff packed by the back door just waiting for the evacuation order. All I have left is to pack some clothes and put up the ply wood. I've never done that by myself, so hopefully my neighbors will be nice and avaiable if I need help. I'm also hoping I'm worrying about nothing. But, as the hours tick by, more and more reports of evacuations further down the coast trickle in, each one causing a new small wave of panic. We just got a report that our local schools are closing Friday "just as a precaution". I'm fairly confident it won't hit directly here, but I don't know what will happen since we're probably going to be on the "dirty" side of the system. And no matter what my confidence level is, my stomach won't stop churning. I think I should move to higher ground and jsut be sedated through the weekend!

Hurricanes

So, it's September, which in states on the Gulf of Mexico, means hurricane season. The season actually runs from June to November, but nothing major seems to happen until September. We dodged Dolly (which hit to the south of us) and Eduard (which weakened to a tropical storm) and Gustav (which hit to the east of us). Now, it looks like, at least for the next day or so, we're in the direct path of Ike. I can hope and pray that it moves somewhere else, but I think Houston's luck might run out soon. So, even though T makes fun of me for buying more water, canned goods and camping gear, I've gathered supplies all into one spot. Last night, I mentally packed the car with the things I know I have to take like my work computer, the water I've started to horde (because there won't be any in the stores when I get back) and the "important papers" box.

Tonight, I'll start packing the smaller things that mean so much but I don't need in every day life. By Thursday, we should have a good idea of where it'll actually hit and I'll be able to load the car if needed and plan a route (I actually did this when we thought Gustav might hit here). I do not relish the thought of being stuck in the traffic that will arise when the whole world thinks it has to get out - 13 hours to make a 3 hour trip is not my idea of fun. Which reminds me - if you or someone you know lives on the north side of a city near the water and are more than 30 miles inland, please stay home long enough to let those of us near the coast get out of the way. The north side might get wind and rain, but those of us near the coast will get the 20 feet of storm surge that can come with a catagory 4 or 5. From all of us on the south side, let me be the first to say thanks! Can someone please remind me why we live in the Gulf of Mexico near the water?

Single again

I hate it when he leaves. The drive the airport is always so rushed, and it goes by way too quickly. Maybe I should start having him fly into the airport on the other side of town just to have a longer trip together. But, that causes problems of its own with scheduling and, let's face it, gas prices aren't exactly cheap right now. So, it's back to working late, spinach salad suppers and finding things to occupy my time while I wait.

I don't know how my friends with spouses deployed overseas do this. Friends here tell me how impressed they are with the way I deal with the separation. I get comments about how strong I am and how they could never do it. Some of them even get mad at T for leaving. They think it's inconsiderate. I don't enjoy him being gone, but I am so proud of what he does. It's a sacrifice I am learning to make. I never thought I'd be able to do it - especially the first one that seemed to go on forever (it was only 3.5 years, after all). Watching him drive off that time was hard. I kept waiting for him to turn around and tell me he'd made a mistake and that the Navy really didn't need him in PA without me. The year in CA was better because it was a shorter time, but it was still really hard to go home from work that first night. Even though it's much more expensive for us, I like it better when he flies because it seems so much less permanent than driving away.

Our deployed friends go 12-18 months without seeing their loved ones. Not only is the separation hard, it's compounded by the fact that the deployed person isn't always in a safe spot like PA, CA or FL where the biggest threat is a snow, an earthquake, or a hurricane. They face much more serious threats like bullets and bombs. The one left behind waits for those random 4am phone calls and worries that a CACO officer will show up at their door. I may get those random calls, but they are usually because T can't sleep and is bored. And, I don't worry about a CACO officer showing up. I hope I never have to figure out how they do it.

So, once again, I'm single. This time, though, it's only for 25 more days and then he'll be home - just barely in time for our anniversary and hopefully for longer than 6 months. I'm not looking forward to the stillness tonight and will probably work late to avoid it. Did I mentione I hate him being gone?

Hurricanes, Heart Attacks and Other "Fun" Stuff

I thought having T home this weekend would be a restful and relaxing way to spend a three day weekend. Instead, we got to watch out for a hurricane, deal with chest pains, and solve all the world's problems in a mere 24 hours. Well, we didn't have to solve all the problems, but a few did arise.

The weekend started out fairly relaxing - we went to see the Johnny Cash Show, which was a revue by this guy who sounds just like the original. In fact, the sound was so good that there were times it was hard to decide if he was singing or lip synching (by no means do I think he was not singing - it was just that good). It was really fun and a great show - I highly recommend it.

Sunday brought the fun part - while I am very sorry that the hurricane hit Louisiana, I can't begin to tell you how thankful we are that we didn't have to evacuate or deal with any of it. We evacuated for Rita three years ago (on our anniversary weekend) and got stuck in the fun traffic that comes with evacuations. I decided we should go to SAT - it's the closest city that I am the most familiar with and felt reasonably comfortable driving around. It usually takes 3-3.5 hours to get there and is somewhat boring drive down a flat, straight section of I-10. I check off our usual landmarks and know about how much further it is. We usually drive it in daylight and it's not a bad drive for a fun weekend away. When we evacuated, however, it took us 13 hours to get there and it was bumper to bumper (literally in some places) the whole way. We left our house at 6pm Wed night and pulled off I-10 at 7am the following morning. We were blessed to have cell phone service the whole way and were able to follow each other (because we were among those people who loaded up both cars and contributed to the congestion). We even made it all the way without needing to stop for gas (we needed stop and stretch, but not for gas). In fact, my gas light came on as we pulled off the freeway. It was a long hot weekend, but overall, not nearly as bad as it could have been. In fact, the worst part was mentally preparing myself to not have a home to go back to. That was by far the worst of all of it. This weekend, however, we were blessed to be just far enough west to not have to deal with it. I'm hoping we'll get some rain out of it, but nothing else is supposed to happen. Weather is highly unpredictable, though, so who knows. At least the worst of it has passed. I did all our usual preparations - which T thought were funny and totally useless, but I decided if we lost power, we'd be well stocked! T wants to bubble wrap the house next time, but I'm not sure how you do that.

Sunday evening brought the next round of fun as T came in working in the garage. After a sit in the jet tub, he pitifully cries out my name and tells me his back and chest are hurting. Then, he asks me to rub his shoulder. I didn't realize it was his left shoulder until a few minutes went by. It started connecting everything and asked if we needed to go to the ER. He always seems to time things so that our regular dr. isn't open. He told me no, he's ok but he doesn't feel good. So, we started with the heating pad to see if it was just shoulder muscles being too tight (he sits at a desk all day and his shoulders are usually in knots). That was uncomfortable after a few minutes. Then, he asks if we have any aspirin - I only use ibuprofen, so that's all we had stocked. He took 2 of those and then we used the back massager for a bit. That seemed to help but he said he still hurt. This went all all night with neither of us getting much sleep - him being in pain and me worrying something would happen if I slept. By Monday, he was complaining less but still wasn't happy. So, when he asked if the insurance card I gave him was still good, I asked again if we needed to go to the ER. Of course, we switched insurance plans on Monday (9/1), and I don't have a card yet. He decided not to go but as 7am, I was at CVS getting aspirin. I'm sure I looked like a bag lady in my pjs, ballcap and glasses. By 10, we were both asleep and slept off an on all day. I made him put on my heart rate monitor I use while working out - it went from 00 to 90 to the mid 70s. He checked his own pulse and said it was at 70, which isn't too bad. By last night, he was feeling better and decided he would go to the dr. for a full physical when he gets back to FL. I don't know what all they'll do, but if he experiences anything like this again while I'm around, we're going to the hospital.

Then, we founds out he wasn't selected for another job with the Navy. So, once this one ends in 2 years, I have no idea where he'll be. He's getting closer and closer to retirement, which makes him unhappy, but as you move up the ladder, there are fewer and fewer jobs. I'm still praying about that one.

Other than the minor issues like the anti-virus program eating his entire laptop, the balance of the weekend was fairly uneventful. We did grill steaks for Labor Day, but somehow, it just wasn't very festive. I really didn't want to go to work today since he's still home, but someone has to solve the rest of the world's problems! He leaves again this afternoon and will be gone for another few weeks. He'll be home, though, the night before our anniversary, so that's a good thing. I hate it when he leaves. The whole house is way too quiet and it's very very lonely. I'll be

glad when he's home again.

ps - thanks cjoy for the introduction to blogger-land. I've enjoyed my stay so far!