by Anonymouse

Created on: July 29, 2010   Last Updated: August 09, 2010

On the morning of September 12th, 2008, I had yet to experience a hurricane, but that would change by nightfall. My husband and I were staying at his parents’ crowded house. All being full-blown Texans, the family was casually going through the motions.

 Seeming awfully composed, they lit candles to prepare for the inevitable power outage, gathered flashlights and batteries, and charged their cell phones. I privately thought the roof would be torn away, a forceful gust taking my silver-striped tabby and social security card along with it.

 There was a mandatory evacuation for Harris County, Texas, where my husband had decided it was safe to stay. After all, “he would protect me”. I rolled my eyes at that claim and crossed my fingers, hoping I’d still be alive in the morning. I did not share his feelings of invincibility.

Ike was nearing; a category two hurricane. I recorded electric blue flashes of light that filled the sky. Everyone ran against the howling wind together, getting soaked in the process. “One last happy jaunt before death,” I mumbled sarcastically. Later, a few of us sat on the front porch and watched the storm surge through middle class suburbia.

Trees swayed violently, but there was no flying debris - though we did spot a petrified cat stumbling over itself in the high winds. The lights flickered. It was a reminder that the worst was soon to come. I went back inside to play board games and poker until the power went out.

Hours later, we had no electricity, and my husband and I had gone to bed. Rain whipped against the windows more with every passing hour. I peeked outside around 4 o’clock in the morning. I’d never seen any place look so foggy. I wanted to step outside and feel what I saw and heard, but common sense told me to go back to bed and keep away from the windows.

When I woke up in the afternoon, fence boards and roof shingles were strewn generously about the neighborhood. I saw houses that had been boarded up, but the wood had come loose during the storm, denting quite a few garages. Carports had collapsed onto vehicles closer to shore. Apartment windows were blown out completely. There were temporary lakes on formerly dry land.

Nobody had electricity, at least not where we explored. That meant no air conditioning. Floors, banisters, and countertops became sticky from ample condensation. Humid Texas heat was not easy to sleep in - especially not in a stuffy, second-story

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