We're fine

We left Houston today to come crash at my sister's in Austin for a while. Things are frankly a mess, but we feel very lucky. My front yard is raked and our fence is sort-of repaired (at least it's standing up, but will do while we're out of town). The fridge and freezer have been completely emptied and there will be no nasty-smelling suprises waiting for us when we get back home.

A tornado touched down within a block of us, and there are large trees and limbs down everywhere. All of our trees remained upright...although half of their leaves and small branches are all over our yard. But honestly, we came through Ike just fine. Our only issue is electricity, and there still isn't a good estimate of a restoration date. My oldest woke up with bronchitis, so we really felt like it would be best to get him out of that air and get him somewhere where his lungs could recover.

This morning a trailing band of Ike smacked us with 5 more inches of rain, and as a result our bayou came close to flooding, but didn't. Many of the streets were impassable, and two of the major freeways were closed. But, eventually that water drained and we could leave.

We're exhausted and smelly...I'm waiting on my turn in the shower. I'll try to post more later, but I just wanted people to know that we're okay. I talked to Mother of Five and Pastry Princess, so I can report that all the letterboxers I know are just fine.

Thank you all for your kind notes and thoughts. I have internet access, but it's going to take me a while to get caught up. Interestingly enough, I may have had to come to Austin to find out what's going on in my own city.

If you're looking for a way to help, can I recommend monetary donations to the Houston Food Bank? I know from first-hand experience what a great job those folks do with stretching their resources.