Update and Reflections from Mark

Hi there. This is Mark writing - Katherine has graciously allowed me to hijack her blog to provide you with some updates on how things are going down here as well as some reflections on Ike.


It is now one week since Ike made landfall and we are still without electricity. The electric company says that exactly half of Houston's 2 million residents have power - guess we're the unlucky ones. They have been quick to point out that places like next door "Oak Forest" and our subdivision "Ella Lee Forest" have been harder to restore because of the trees. Unfortunate, but I'll gladly wait a few more days for electricity and enjoy the lovely trees from then on. Houston has been VERY fortunate to receive a significant cool front the day after Ike. This last week would have been a far worse scenario if we'd had our usual mid 90's and very high humidity. Of course, this front was the one responsible for flooding our house, but I still think it's worth it for the rest of the city. That being said, the heat is returning more and more each day. Last night was the first one where I had trouble sleeping because of it. Hopefully the juice will return soon!
One of the hardest parts about this is the waiting. When will we get electricity? When will work start back up? (Mine has been announced, then cancelled, then reannounced.) Most of all, when will the ball start rolling with the insurance company? We filed our claim Tuesday afternoon and were told we'd be assigned an adjuster within 48 hours. Over 96 hours later, still no adjuster. I'm trying not to be upset, remembering they're getting absolutely hammered with claims, but the waiting is very hard. Especially since we don't know much about mold and water damage, and there are many different opinions out there. When we got back, one neighbor was furiously tearing out sheetrock. Most neighbors have thought it's okay to wait for the insurance people to do their thing then start the work. I tore out a few sections of sheetrock along the baseboards and there sure is a lot of water in there. It's okay on the interior walls but the insulation on the exterior ones is like a wet sponge for the first couple inches. Not knowing how to proceed has been frustrating.
Perhaps my greatest personal revelation from all this is that I am a bone fide family man. I love Benjamin immensely, but I've had a very difficult time adjusting to life with a baby/toddler, particularly regarding my introverted need for alone time. When we made the decision for Katherine and Ben to go to Oregon until the house gets back in order and the electricity returns, there was a part of me that was looking forward to a week by myself. I have enjoyed that somewhat, but now the loneliness is really setting in. Most of our friends are couples, many have kids, and there really aren't folks I feel comfortable calling by myself to do something social. All that to say, I'm ready for my sweet wife and son to return - Thursday can't come soon enough.
I did my first "brick" yesterday. No, not some hurricane recovery effort but a kind of workout. I've entered my first triathlon which is in three weeks. I'm feeling pretty good about the three aspects of it individually, but putting them together is totally new. A brick is a bike/run combination. It was harder than I expected - the legs do not like running when they've already been beat up on the bike.
Many thanks to those of you who've been thinking of us and praying for us and the house. So far, I've found only a few things that aren't just "stuff that can be replaced." Once I can use our computer at home, I'll try to post some pictures. I've got hundreds for the insurance adjuster, but we'll save the choice ones for this blog.