Bitter-Sweet Getaway

We chose to move forward with our planned mini-vacation to San Antonio. We left Friday afternoon and headed toward the hill country via I-10. The trip was very short compared to the 6 hour trip we take to the valley.

We were very excited to be there. We were even more delighted to have ELECTRICITY and running water! Downtown San Antonio is faboulous and River Walk is amazing. But we were on a mission to visit the Natural Bridge Caverns. And we did and we loved it.

The caverns are so intriguing. I highly recommend taking a trip to visit this natural beauty . The best part is they are open almost a year long. Check out thier calender here. Make sure you take comfortable shoes and be ready for long walk down 180 ft. trail.

We also took an evening stroll down the ever famous River Walk. It is a beautiful sight---day or night. We missed out on river boat ride :(. That is definitely on our our agenda next time we visit.

(Bitter side)
Our getaway to San Antonio was short and sweet. But our mini-vacation was tainted by one occurence. The bitter side to our alone time happened at our hotel. Our vehicle was burglarized. This has never to us or at least to me. I guess there is always a first time. There was some body damage to our SUT but nothing was stolen---at least that we know.

It angers me to know that there are worthless turds out there who choose to steal rather than working for thier living. I guess I should consider ourselves lucky because we were not left car-less. But nothing could take that feeling of anxiousness, worry and anger I felt whle trying to enjoy San Antonio.

As Ike Approaches..

Hurricane Ike: Chronicles
09.11.08
There was much speculation in regards to where hurricane Ike would strike the Texas Gulf Coast. As the week rolled in, Houston and Galveston residents were "urged" to take precautions incase a landfall was headed our way.

Barely recovering from the hurricane Gustav scare, we had no other choice but to prepare once again.

We headed to our local Wal-Mart to stock up on some goodies. As we walked through the isles, we realized that we had missed the bread train. We had to make due with some Ritz crackers, Gatorade, several gallons of water and a tote.

We rushed over to the nearby Buckey's to fill up our gas-guzzler (actually it's Daniel's) and as a back-up, we filled up a 5 gallon gas can. Little did we know that we would need much more than just an additional 5 gallons.

No Work For You

Due to the chaos brought by hurricane Ike, several businesses and school campuses alike decided to cancel out this week.

Houston Community College has decided to cancel courses through Sunday, September 21st. The lack of electrical power in some HCC campuses and structural damage in others, PLUS in consideration of those students, faculty and staff who may be in similar situations, HCC Chancelor Spangler made the executive decision to have the campuses remain closed through Sunday, Sept. 21st.

Normal hours are scheduled to begin Monday, September 22nd.

Uninvited Ike

09.12.08: Fleeing Ike (Approx: 1:19 am)

This time we did not dodge the bullet. It came straight at us. His name was Ike.

We had to evacuate and we chose to seek shelter in the valley.

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09.15.08: Ike's Destruction

We are back in our home. No electricity. There seems to be a shortage of gas around the Houston area. We are currenlty running our generator that is powering a few appliances. (i.e. fan, microwave and a lamp)
We are under a curfew--due to the total darkness, we are required to stay off the streets until 6:00 am the following morning.
We have some non-perishable foods we purchased while in the valley.The food and water should hold us over for the next few days.
Our home is okay---very few damages (thank GOD!) We lost some back porch stairs, the skirt came off and we have no satellite dish. And of course, no electricity.

(Above: Downtown Houston Left: Galveston Island)

We are okay overall and consider ourselves very, very lucky. We have a home, we have our veichles in good shape, our pets are all safe and above all have a great family--support. THANK YOU GOD :).

Other fellow Texans weren't so lucky. But we will all prevail. There is cleaning up to do. As we drove around our neighborhood earlier this afternoon, we saw signs of hope. We are all picking up where Ike left off and we will all move on.

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In the following days, I will try to chronicle our journey through the Hurricane Ike ordeal. Call it a photojournal blog that will encapsulate the days just before and after Ike.