life is random and so am i

It's now been just over 2 weeks since we made Ike's acquaintance.  Clean-up continues and I have several friends that just got power again last week.  For those of us who were mildly inconvenienced, we've been a refuge for those who need their clothes washed, a couple of hours in AC, or a good hot meal that does not involve a can of soup.

The night Ike hit, the sunset was incredible.....the beauty before destruction.  I couldn't resist a few pictures, this one is my favorite.

On Saturday after the storm, friends of ours who were without electricity came and camped out at the house with all their electronics in tow.  We had laptops, cell phones, video games, etc, plugged into every available outlet.  NONE of us would have made good pioneers.....I can guarantee we would have been kicked out of the covered wagon for sure!

Our friends are big Georgia Bulldog fans.  Our satellite was hanging by a thread off our roof, so Scot hooked us up on the computer.  A couple of arm chairs later and they were good to go!

I have to say that the weather after Ike was gorgeous!!  My boys played outside from 9:30 until dark almost every day of their "Hurrication".  I couldn't resist a good game of 4 Square so I jumped in and defended my 3rd grade title (actually, I was so clumsy in 3rd grade that I may have had a title, but it wasn't very nice).  Needless to say, I dominated the "King Square" and scored major points with all the pre-pubescent, jock wannabe boys around here.  We even had injuries.......it's all good people! 

So this is Ike related in a round about way........because of Ike, my girl's weekend to Charleston, South Carolina was cancelled.  Scot took the opportunity to get tickets to an UT game (I must insert here that he is an Aggie through and through, we just happen to have a Longhorn in the house which is fine with me because the UT colors look better on G, with his red hair, than Aggie colors do) and he and G went to Austin for a Boy's weekend.  That left me and N to our own devices so we went and watched Aunt Lisa jump out of a plane.  Let it be said, I WILL be jumping out of a plane before I turn 40.  It was AMAZING!!  I would have gone that day, but I was wearing a short skirt and noonoe, I mean NOONE, needed to be a part of that.

I was so proud and excited that I did get a little misty eyed when she landed.   

Lisa and her friend, Jill, after the jump.

School has finally resumed and life has returned to some kind of normal.  I could get poetic here about all the things Ike taught me, but I'll leave at this.  Appreciate everything that is normal around you that you find mundane.  And by all means, have you hugged your lamp today?  

The Other Side of Ike

Well, here's my big hurricane story........I got to interview with Campbell Brown on CNN.  Crazy, right?  You just never know what can come of a simple blog post.  Unfortunately, there was a train wreck in LA that bumped my national debut (a real train wreck with a choo choo.....not another Britney or Lindsey fiasco), but the director was nice enough to send me the video clip of the edited interview.  

Ike was kind to us all things considered.  It was a loud and somewhat scary night, but the boys and I rode out the storm on air mattresses in our closet and they slept through the whole thing. We already have our electricity back which I can NOT believe, but I'll take it.  I'm in the process of freezing out my family in an attempt to cool the house in case we lose electricity again.

I will try to figure out how to post my 60 sec. claim to fame..........stay tuned!!  

Ike

They make you sign a mandate when you move to Texas.  You have to promise to:

• Honor Texas as if it's a country of its own
• Try to have even a slight appreciation for country music
• Find some way to sit through a rodeo where the poor baby cows run for their lives only to be roped by some testosterone driven cowboy
• Choose sides between UT and A&M but NEVER side with Texas Tech
  
• Have a favorite Mexican restaurant
• Be able to share you favorite Hurricane story at the drop of a hat.

When Rita roared into town on the heals of Katrina, I hit the road with the boys and all our most important stuff.  I sat in bumper to bumper traffic for 10 hours and went a whopping 25 miles before I decided that I could take Rita and all her fury more than I could take sitting on a freeway with the masses.  Rita turned out to be incredibly unimpressive, but by golly, I now had a Hurricane Story.

Now Ike is bearing down on us and many scarred by long hours on the road the last time, don't even want to attempt to leave.  So we are staying..........and I fully expect to have a newer hurricane story.  Especially since they are building right behind us which leaves all kinds of possibilities open.  Like having a bulldozer land in our backyard or a 2x4 come through our window.  

Stay tuned.......Ike story to come!

Going Home

* Update - I got home early this morning from a wonderful trip to California.  My Grandpa Hal perked up and we talked a lot about his life, our lives.....we laughed and he told stories.  I met his son that I've never had contact with before, so now I have a new relationship with Uncle Jim.  I spent time with my parents, my brothers and their families - the trip could not have been more incredible.  I will treasure every moment for years to come.  My Grandpa went Home at 12:40 this morning.

Tomorrow I'm getting on a plane to California with my sister to see my Grandpa Hal.  He was just placed in Hospice with end stage COPD and the family is making a mad dash to see him before he heads Home.  

It's interesting, the rush to see a loved one, when news has spread that their time is near.  Why do we rush to spend time when years have gone by with many missed opportunities to spend time together, to make memories.  I must admit that I'd rather people rush to see me when I'm healthy and happy.

My Grandpa Hal has always been a distant part of my life.  He and my Grandmother divorced when my mom was very young.  His involvement in her life was minimal after that, something she deals with to this day.  My Grandmother remarried and that man was who I referred to as my Grandpa.  I knew who Grandpa Hal was and would get cards from him and Jan, his wife, at Christmas or on my birthday.  When my Grandpa died, Grandpa Hal very respectively stepped up to the plate.  Something I'm sure he wished he had done all those years ago when he saw a very young 5 year old girl crying in his rearview mirror.

I'm sad because he is a man I've seen make a lot of effort to regain a family.  I'm sad because I know he has regrets.  I'm sad because as a teenager and young adult I did not fully appreciate the value of family and what that means.  It means that we will make mistakes, disappoint others, hurt people we love, but at the end of the day, it means forgiveness and love.  

That is why I'm rushing to see him, because he is my Grandpa Hal and there is still time to love and make memories.  And I love him.

This was Spring Break a couple of years ago and I'm so happy to have these photos.  Grandpa Hal was so excited to meet my boys.  I remember how he blushed when I went on and on about how cool he looked in his Doc Martins.  I remember the effort and the camera he carried at all times to capture every moment.

j