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Published: September 14th 2008
This had been written yesterday and last night. I lost Internet just as I finished. I just now have a signal (Sunday, September 14, 2008).
Just now it's 11:10 a.m. but I will go back in time, now that I do have the Internet and type a time line of my experience, from notes of course.
More about my travels from Orange county to the Dallas area. A lot of real JERKS were on the road. There were more very nice, courteous drivers though. Local and state police forces did a wonderful job in most areas assisting with traffic flow. Unfortunately, they were not stopping the JERKS.
A big thank you to all the local inhabitants of communities to the north who had a very normal Friday with the exception of millions traveling, sometimes way too fast, through their area. Thank you all for your patience. Some food establishments were overwhelmed and I apologize for the JERKS that stopped at your place to go to the bathroom, walk their animals and feed their JERK faces.
Can you tell I am still upset with the JERKS ?
Arrived safe and sound nonetheless and always appreciate my evacuation point and how they treat me and mine. I love them as much as they love us.
Sleep well, if a short period, just knowing that we were all safe here.
Friday, September 11th. Such a sad day for all and we're all trying to spread our emotions between the two circumstances. Lots of prayers of thanks and remembrance uttered by my little soul.
Nanc and I ventured out to the pool area to just relax and read. That lasted less than an hour. Clouded but we've got too much nervous energy anyway.
We decided to make a little trip to stock up on adult beverages. Gave us something to do, but we didn't consume very much later that evening. Too tired - and worried.
She and family went to eat with family members living in the area. I took the opportunity to go visit my son, although he was at work. He's at TGI Fridays, www.tgifridays.com, which I spent a considerable amount of visits to when in Merida, Yucatan last year.
So, once again, I sat in a section not waited by my son and talked with customers and his fellow workers in that section. He was able to see me, however!
Got back to the room relatively early. Nanc and family had returned as well.
She and I sat on one of the large beds in my room monitoring the Weather Channel, www.weatherchannel.com, and making cell calls to family and friends who stayed in our areas (either because of work or just, as I believe, stupid).
Until about 1:30, all of the TV reporters were located on the west side of the storm as it approached, with the exception of Galveston. No one, until 1:30 a.m., was located on the east side, which I've always heard as the 'bad' side but is now called the 'dirty' side. Beaumont finally had a reporter in that area. (One of the west side reporters so reminded me of a comedian with his seemingly fake grimaces and supposedly wind related staggerings.)
Since I did not have Internet connection last night, I had written two pages of notes from the reports on TV. It's worth retelling, but I will put those in a separate article.
Nanc went to her room and I went to sleep about 2:15 a.m.
I awoke at 4:15 this morning, Saturday, September 12th. The storm had made landfall, they said, at 2:30 a.m. in Galveston. More praying.
Finally have Internet connection. Well, it was madly sporadic between 5 and 9:00 a.m. 9 until 11:45 a.m. it has been very good. Then it went out again. Now that I have it back, I will type as fast as I can and try to publish.
Skipping the other two pages of notes that I have, KLVI, www.klvi.com, has done a wonderful. Of course, I could only listen in when I would receive an Internet signal.
Nanc and I headed out to buy a few supplies we needed. Weather in the Dallas area was receiving some of Ike's ire. Windy and raining on Saturday afternoon. We bought our supplies and headed back to our safe haven.
Tried to take a nap all afternoon but body and mind would not cooperate.
Last night, late, I was finally able to reach my neighbor and a best friend. Cell service in that area had not worked all day, but as miracles work, both numbers were put through finally.
Maurine was home. She had gone to a safer location to weather the storm passing through. Of course there is no electricity in our area now, nor sewer; no water, no anything. She said it was as hot as could be expected and she had not yet used her generator.
She reported that I still had a house, that the property had received damage and some trees were down, but all in all, things will be fine.
Turner called from Arkansas where he evacuated (after telling me that he probably would not) with his relatives.
You just can't imagine how relieved I am now that my friends are safe. The fact that I should have a home to return to is nice as well.
I cried after I finished the phone calls.
I cried hard.
I cried because I had been so terribly afraid, because I was making myself sick with worry, because I had no control over any of the circumstances having taken place, and because it was as if all my fears had been forced out of my body with a tidal wave of tears.
I prayed hard with thanks.
I finally slept.
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Khaki
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About those tears
Those tears are still the tears of Katrina and Rita... and now we will add Gustav and Ike... and many of our voices will still break with tears when we are well into advanced age... because help has never come. As I drove in to the grocery store today, I passed houses with the infamous "blue tarp" roofs... and they've been like that not since Ike passed yesterday, but since Katrina and Rita passed three years ago. The only difference is - there are more of them now. I turn my head and don't look - because it makes me cry.