Long Hollow

     Ike has come and gone, leaving a mess in his wake, but not creating nearly as much havoc as he could have. My family is fine…sweaty and sticky from the power outage, but safe.

     I'm happy to report my parents' old house weathered the storm with no damage – even the carport is still standing, although it's relatively new, thanks to some other storm. Ditto on Donnie's house. Brenda had some water in one bathroom, but they're not sure how it got in – the roof is untouched, although a tornado left it's signature dangerously close, twisting and splintering one tree and leaving it to die on the neighbor's carport. 

     I've been mesmerized by the televised scenes of destruction Ike did manage to paint on his way through the Galveston/Houston area. It reminds me of the aftermath of Alicia. When she hit in 1983, Tom and I lived in League City. We stayed up all night listening to the wind roar, wondering what the bumps and crashes could mean. Tom took advantage of the calm in the eye of the storm to try to patch up our damaged roof. The next day we walked through the neighborhood and drove to the bay, seeing crumpled houses, splintered trees, downed power lines, and washed up boats.

    Even though we're miles away and are feeling no physical effects from this storm, it's comforting to have all my "babies" here at home with us for the first time in months. This afternoon we gathered around the computer, watching funny videos on youtube…it reminded me of the days I would read to them  huddled around me on the couch.

     It was good to laugh after the hours of worry. Here's one Tommy showed us…Usher's "Love in this Club" perfomed by the Showbiz Pizza Band…hope it makes you laugh, too…