what a week

Mon/Tues - spent all day at MD Anderson doing lab work, meeting with Targeted Therapy (Phase I Trials) and Kev's primary oncologist from Melanoma and then speaking with Social Work. There were some long emotional discussions but in the end everyone agreed it is was in Kev's best interest to stop trials and to receive Hospice care. His blood counts were low, as was his protein and other nutritional levels. The interests now were in preserving some quality of life. The melanoma oncologist suggested some "alternative medicines" including curcumine, bioperane, birch bark extract, red grape seed powder, white/green teas, dark chocolate & acai. It was a solemn departure since he has been such a large part of Kev's life these past 9 years (and the one most responsible for giving Kevin these extra years) and with our good-byes we all knew we would never see each other again. 

Wed - Kev is exhausted from Mon & Tues and sleeps until 4pm. Rumors are Ike is heading  to Gulf Coast including Galveston Bay.  Evacuations are voluntary and I decide to wait until the they are mandatory, knowing our city (Seabrook) is usually very conservative in calling for evacuations and Kev doesn't need the added stress of an evacuation right now. 

Thurs - Evacuations are mandatory with Galveston in the morning and Seabrook and surrounding coastal areas in the afternoon. The kids & I work all day to collect, pack & load the necessities in the car and board up the back of the house. Kev monitors the news and updates us with trajectory changes. MD Anderson calls and informs us Kev has a urinary infection (from the analysis they ran on Mon). They can't call the Rx into our local Walgreen's because they have already closed down so we have to stop by MDA pharmacy  to pick up the antibiotic. Luckily it's not too far out of the way since we are evacuating to our friends, Karen & Sam's house near the medical center in Houston. With our arrival we turn their home into Noah's ark - their 2 kids, our 2 kids, their 2 dogs, our 2 cats and our 2 hens and turtle. The cats get the kitchen, the hens the backyard & the dogs the rest of the house. 

Fri - The storm's trajectory is shifting north and it looks like we are going to take a full hit. Nick & I decided to make a run back home and grab a few more things - just in case.  The storm starts to roll in about 10-11 pm. I awaken a few times throughout the night and even though we find out later the winds hit 80-100mph, where we're at (~50 miles from coast), the inside of the house was fairly quiet. Multiple transformers blew out through the night and our power was lost at about 2 am.

Sat - We awaken to very calm skies. We're in the "eye". It's sprinkling outside but we all want to check out the neighborhood and see how everyone faired. Looks like other neighbors have the same idea. Karen & Sam's street was pretty clean, but just a block over in either direction huge oak trees were down. The bayou had spilled over into the street, but within the few hours we were out it was noticeable the waters were receding. Cell phone coverage is poor, but texting with folks on the outside informed us that the storm had broken up and the worst was over. Nick & I decided to head down to Seabrook to see how our home stood up against the massive forces of wind and water on the coast. No matter which way we tried, all entrances to Seabrook were closed off. A group of about 15-20 of us were waiting outside the roadblock. We saw a fellow sailing family (Goethe's) and quickly struck up a conversation to pass the time. The Police consistently told us they didn't know why Seabrook was closed, they just enforced the orders. not too long thereafter the Fire Chief and then the Mayor showed up and explained there were multiple gas leaks and power lines down. They need to safe the city before letting anyone in. In addition the sewer treatment plant was not functioning and it made no sense the let the folks come back into their houses if they can't flush toilets. They let everyone know the status of each neighborhood - everything is pretty good (shingles missing, fencing down) with the exception of Todville Rd. I started making calls to see if I could catch a ride on someones dinghy - it was the only way to see the waterfront property. 

Sun - I have 3 potential rides set up from guys from the club, but coordinating time/location is horrible due to poor cell coverage. Nick & I finally decided to drive to Kemah in hopes of connecting with 1 of them. While still playing phone tag Nick & I walk around Kemah Boardwalk. The destruction is massive and does not give me much hope for our home. We finally hook up and catch a ride over to see our house. The ride over there is ominous. The fish market is gone. Seabrook Sailing Club is gone - nothing but a few cinder blocks. The houses behind it are gone. There are bare patches and severely damaged homes all along the coast. I have a hard time recognizing our home - Nick points it out - a huge relief when I see that a structure still stands. But then I realize why I didn't recognize it - it's not blue. Did the storm strip the siding off? Upon closer inspection I realise the storm tore the entire backside of the house away and the white walls I see are what used to be interior walls. But amazingly, Kev's dock and deck he built are not only standing but not even missing one board! There is part of someone else's dock leaning up against ours. Anything remaining in the house is pushed into a jumbled pile in the front of the house. There is clothing hanging from our tree branches and it's not ours. Most of what is in the yard is not ours. We have debris from neighbors to the north and debris from neighbors to the south. Seems like the wind must have been blowing in all directions. Some of our things are in the ditch across the street. Some is houses away. Some will never be found. There is an obvious gas leak from our neighbor. We take a bunch of pictures, check out our neighbors houses which are far worse and then leave. Later that night we're informed the west side of Seabrook is open but without power. Our side is still closed off. The schools announce closures for another week. 

Mon - There is still no power in Houston, just a a few grocery stores are open and even fewer gas stations. But weather is nice so no AC is not a problem and Karen is keeping us well fed. She has the camp stove gourmet technique mastered. But I'm starting to doubt power is going to come back anytime soon and after seeing the mess on Todville, I am doubting the city will open up our side of Seabrook anytime soon. Waiting for something to happen gets to be too much and there is definitely the feel that we are still in a war zone so I decide maybe we should leave - drive somewhere where life in more normal. After considering options I settle on Shreveport LA. The hotel will accept cats but the hens need to stay behind. It's almost noon so I go to tell Kev our plan only he is still sleeping. When I try to rouse him I notice he is warm - fever 38.3C. hmmm...i see the plans unraveling. I put in call to Kev's Dr at MDA and await the return call. In the mean time Nick & I head back to Seabrook again. This time with the hens which we are leaving in Dan & Melissa's yard. We swing past Lakewood Yacht Club for a look - serious damage to buildings and boats.  We're notified our area of Seabrook is open. Kev's Dr calls back and says he needs to come into the Emergency Center. I cancel the Shrevport plans and switch gears into staying in Houston.  I take Kev into the EC while Kelden & Nick stay and eat with the Karen & Sam & family. Nick plans on staying down in Seabrook with friends from the club so he can start cleaning out the house. I'm staying with Kevin (which explains my access to electricity & wi-fi). Kelden is staying in Houston at least for now. I know she wants to try to salvage some of her belongings also. 

I have pictures I can post tomorrow (Tuesday).