ike's visit

three years ago, my sister, mrs. turner, and i evacuated houston from hurricane rita. we packed up my car and headed off for dallas -- a 250-mile journey -- to find refuge from the storm.

after 17 hours in the car, we had managed to get to college station -- just 90 miles from houston. luckily, we had friends there we could stay with. yet, rita didn't hit houston and all was well when we returned to our home.

i've since left houston, but mrs. turner is still there and had another hurricane drill this past week. this time, mrs. turner bunkered down with mr. turner and dog, eban, in a closet under their stairs.

after a windy and rainy friday night, the turners woke up to find all was well at their home and in their neighborhood. what a great blessing, compared to the damage of galveston and downtown houston.

i am so glad that all is well with the turners. and i am so glad that i am no longer living in a hurricane zone.

but, this natural disaster reminded us to prepare for such emergencies. mr. pike and i just invested in three days worth of ready-to-eat meals for our 72-hour kits. while i'm not looking forward to eating MREs, i'm sure in dire straights i will be glad for the calories.