The Night of the Hurricane

Ahoyhoy

Joel, when do you get to come home?

Great story, of course. I read it as it was published.

That was a great article Joel. You're a real hero for reporting through the storm. A little foolhardy, but a hero nonetheless.

Sad comments at the article article. So many angry haters. Depressing. "Let 'em drown" sort of things.

Seems like a heck of a way to spend a weekend. Wow that stuff scares the s*** out of me.

Glad you weathered the storm and your article is great.It felt like we were all there with you.

Too pooped and near exhaustion--so I know this is not the best retelling-it's essentially what I e-mailed tonight to the friends who put us up for two nights in California, with some edits and a few deleted grafs.

No troubles getting *into* Houston's Bush Intercontinental Airport this morning, but many challenges while there and getting out. And so much more detail I could provide thanks to my conversations with others--both flight staff and fellow passengers, but trundling off to bed within moments...
***

The trip was eventful (not uneventful, as you had wished for us)--in a weird way. Everything went well after we left your house [in Escalon]. We took 120 to 99, and then 4 across Stockton to I-5. Loomispouse started getting road hypnosis below Sacramento--as he admitted today--but I could tell, since he slowed and speeded up at about five-second intervals. I went into yak-overdrive to try to keep him awake, also put on the radio. Arrived at the airport turnoff, got the gas tank refueled at an ARCO, car checked in at Enterprise, caught the shuttle, and boarded the Continental plane.

The flight from Sacramento to Houston left on time at 12:25 p.m., and arrived on time at 5:45 a.m. They played the movie "Notting Hill," but we didn't pull out the headphones we purchased on the way out, but put all our effort into trying to fall sleep instead. The flight was full, the cabin dark, but very unfortunately I don't think either of us slept more than 30 minutes, despite the fact that Loomispouse bought us both microbead, wrap-around-the-neck pillows at an airport shop.

The interesting part--if you call it that--occurred when we arrived in Houston at 5:45. It was eerily unoccupied, almost spookily vacant. We had time to spare, so our main objective was to take a walk to stretch our legs. Unfortunately, we passed better (fresher) food choices unknowingly. We walked from the E gates to the C gates. There we discovered a little food kiosk operating. We bought no coffee, just two of the tiniest, hardest, toughest, stalest sticky buns for just less than $5. As we attempted to chew these tough dough nuggets, we listened to the local Houston 6 a.m. TV broadcast--and saw on the news much more devastation in Galveston, and Houston folks who had enough gas in their tanks to crawl to the gas stations waiting in extremely long lines for more gasoline to better fill their vehicles' tanks.

We found a nearby book and magazine vendor had opened. The only newspaper that was current for Monday was USA Today, the Houston Chronicle and New York Times were Friday's editions. Made me feel like I was in the Twilight Zone. We walked back to the E gates and Loomispouse noticed another bookseller whose gate was down. Inside, Bill pointed out water on the floor and two broken ceiling tiles. Along the concourse, all the drinking fountains had been covered and wrapped with big sheets of plastic. We observed throught the large glass windows that no lights were on beyond the periphery of the airport. A stewardess on our flight later informed us that the C gate baggage area had been flooded with six inches of water, and some windows had been broken by high winds.

We boarded 15 minutes later than the flight was supposed to leave--it was supposed to depart at 7:25 a.m. and we got on the plane around 7:40. We were told there would be a slight delay. Since the plane was only about 25 percent occupied, I got a blanket and took the microbead pillow to stretch out across the three seats directly in front of where my husband was seated. Best sleep I got for about 45 minutes or an hour. As it turns out, the plane couldn't depart because there was no captain to pilot it.

We were first told that the pilot was flying in on an international flight, but would be delayed because he, like other passengers on the same flight, would have to clear customs. When were informed about how difficult internal communications at Continental were at that point. I told the white-haired senior steward how hungry we were and he gave me seven bags of peanuts. He told me how trees around his neighborhood had fallen on his neighbors' homes, and how he had been unable to work during the past three days on flights originating in Houston to Rio and Honolulu. We were informed a short time later than our pilot was actually flying in from Denver.

Since the delay was so long, we passengers were informed we could leave the airline for half an hour to get something to eat. Our intent was to stop for a nice, delicious breakfast at our favorite San Antonio bistro on the way home. This time near our gate at Bush Intercontinental Airport, we found two vendors, one a Starbuck's where, between the two food operators, we picked up far fresher food--chocolate milk, some scrambled eggs, and a cream cheese Danish.

By the time a pilot finally arrived (we were the last to reboard and the plane was ready to depart), he informed passengers over the loud speaker that he had just flown in from San Antonio and was taking our plane back there with us and him on it, but said his schedule had been juggled since he originally was to have flown to Pittsburgh, Pa., today (also hinting that many operations across the airline were topsy-turvy this morning because of Ike). Rough descent coming into San Antonio because of strong winds, and the hardest, rollicking landing I've experienced in quite some time.

From the economy parking lot and my car, Loomispouse phoned the boarding kennel to explain our predicament. We had been told that if we didn't pick up our dog by noon, that it would be another day's charge. They were kind enough to waive the additional day's fee after we told them we had been in transit for 15 hours and the difficult situation at the Bush Houston airport, causing a three-hour dealy in our arrival time at the San Antonio Airport. We got to the kennel at 12:20 p.m., picked up our pooch, came home and fell into bed. I was the one who could hardly keep my eyes open on the way home from San Antonio Airport and I was the one driving! Loomispouse pinched me several times on my arm to keep me from nodding off.

It is so good to be home, even though we arrived exhausted. My heart goes out to the thousands in shelters tonight in the Greater Houston area or those who have no more homes whatsoever.

I'd meant to mention to CP to tell her friend that Joel had reported on the Balinese Room over the weekend...

This Iggles/Cowboys game is crazy good.
Emphasis on crazy.

bc

Joel's a writing maniac!
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/09/15/AR2008091503372.html?hpid=topnews&sid=ST2008091503413&s_pos=
I love the last paragraph.

I saw a story on the evening news yesterday about Haiti, where so much has been destroyed. The mud is everywhere. It truly looked miserable - talk about enduring in the aftermath.

*big sigh*

BTW, excellent color piece there, Joel.

That was a crazy game,I figured whoever had tha ball last would win.It was a gunslingers shootout in Dallas.They both looked explosive on the offensive side of the ball.

Pretty moonlit drive home,nice to still have Jupiter so prominent in the sky still.I saw lots of deer on the side of the road. Over the weekend when we had rain all the frogs were jumping happily across the road.

it is supposed to be in the 40's tonight,where in the heck did I put the blanket.

Yet for all the destruction, a series of photos posted here show a couple of old houses, shutters shut, with a big old live oak covered with bright green resurrection ferns in the foreground:

http://www.palmtalk.org/forum/index.php?showtopic=13996

The wind didn't even strip the leaves from the tree. I suspect the historic section of Galveston may look OK within a few months, assuming that sewage service and electricity are restored fairly soon within this relatively small area.

In my own yard, cicadas are putting on big choruses at dusk and the trunk of a fast-growing palm whose trunk is swelling so fast that a perfectly good, five-foot green leaf got pushed off the tree today. So much for the efficiency of nature.

I haven't been to the Houston Bush airport in maybe five or six years. It always seemed very, very gray, perhaps a warning to outsiders that Houston is full of Very Important corporations that take themselves Very Seriously.

'Morning, Boodle. Yesterday morning and again this morning there is an incredible full moon out there right about now, with the luminescence dialed up to 11.

Some good, blistering op-eds this morning. Chief among them Richard Cohen, who admits he was "in the tank" for McCain, but now renounces Satan and all his works. In fact, here's a piece of his denuinciation of all things McCain: "His opportunistic and irresponsible choice of Sarah Palin as his political heir -- the person in whose hands he would leave the country -- is a form of personal treason, a betrayal of all he once stood for."

Gene Robinson is more than disgusted with Palin, who lied about the Bridge to Nowehre, seems to have admitted it was a fabrication -- then went out and told the original lie again anyway, because it sounded good.

E.J. Dionne isn't any happier: "For some time, McCain's strategists figured they could deflect attention from the big issues by turning Palin into a country-and-western celebrity and launching so many ill-founded attacks on Obama that the truth would never catch up. The McCain strategists' approach reflected a low opinion of average voters, and some Obama supporters began worrying that their opinion might be right. ...The stakes in this year's election went way up this week. The days of Paris, Britney and the exploitation of divisions around race, gender and religion are over." O would that it be true, E.J.

Even the Post editorial page is umbraged (though very late to the game): "The most startling revelation is that President Bush apparently was unaware -- until the day after he signed off on the program's renewal -- of any opposition inside the Justice Department. He was also apparently in the dark about the number of officials who were poised to resign in protest. The list included Mr. Ashcroft, Mr. Comey, Office of Legal Counsel chief Jack L. Goldsmith, Justice Department national security expert Patrick F. Philbin, Criminal Division chief Christopher A. Wray, FBI Director Robert S. Mueller III, FBI general counsel Valerie E. Caproni and CIA general counsel Scott W. Mueller."

The editorial page folks, long asleep at the switch, have the news division, in the person of Barton Gellman, to thank for that.

OK, time to start moving. Let's get he Dawn Patrol into the air.

'Morning, Boodle. Yesterday morning and again this morning there is an incredible full moon out there right about now, with the luminescence dialed up to 11.

Some good, blistering op-eds this morning. Chief among them Richard Cohen, who admits he was "in the tank" for McCain, but now renounces Satan and all his works. In fact, here's a piece of his denuinciation of all things McCain: "His opportunistic and irresponsible choice of Sarah Palin as his political heir -- the person in whose hands he would leave the country -- is a form of personal treason, a betrayal of all he once stood for."

Gene Robinson is more than disgusted with Palin, who lied about the Bridge to Nowehre, seems to have admitted it was a fabrication -- then went out and told the original lie again anyway, because it sounded good.

E.J. Dionne isn't any happier: "For some time, McCain's strategists figured they could deflect attention from the big issues by turning Palin into a country-and-western celebrity and launching so many ill-founded attacks on Obama that the truth would never catch up. The McCain strategists' approach reflected a low opinion of average voters, and some Obama supporters began worrying that their opinion might be right. ...The stakes in this year's election went way up this week. The days of Paris, Britney and the exploitation of divisions around race, gender and religion are over." O would that it be true, E.J.

Even the Post editorial page is umbraged (though very late to the game): "The most startling revelation is that President Bush apparently was unaware -- until the day after he signed off on the program's renewal -- of any opposition inside the Justice Department. He was also apparently in the dark about the number of officials who were poised to resign in protest. The list included Mr. Ashcroft, Mr. Comey, Office of Legal Counsel chief Jack L. Goldsmith, Justice Department national security expert Patrick F. Philbin, Criminal Division chief Christopher A. Wray, FBI Director Robert S. Mueller III, FBI general counsel Valerie E. Caproni and CIA general counsel Scott W. Mueller."

The editorial page folks, long asleep at the switch, have the news division, in the person of Barton Gellman, to thank for that.

OK, time to start moving. Let's get he Dawn Patrol into the air.

'morning all. Nice dry, cool, morning here. What a change from the stifling humidity of the last weekend. There is not a door that shuts straight in this old house after this week of fog and rain.

A local figure died last weekend, from the complication of a bad fall. Pinko liberal, closet socialist and ex-mayor of Ottawa Marion Dewar. I'm thinking about her as she was the ultimate Community Organizer. This is what she's done her whole life.
http://www.canada.com/ottawacitizen/news/story.html?id=73552441-d252-4fcb-a778-f2aeb4552570

Disasters all over the place. Sigh. Off we go patrolling the murky dawn.

The fly one the wall two-parter was nothing new except in the level of detail. One of the fun games to play when one of these mega-turds (as Carl Hiaasen calls them) drops is Name The Source. There is always one guy shown in a more flattering light than the others and is more places than anyone else. For this story it is clearly James Comey who in not resigning may have done more harm than good in the long run.

The Sunday WaPo three-pager had a good Rogue's Gallery, but I had named the all the major players over a year ago in my Torture Trading Cards post:

http://livebythefoma.blogspot.com/2007/10/torture-trading-cards.html

Good to see the MSM catching up here.

Morning all. I hope we're not heading into another great depression. The front page of the local paper sure makes it seem probable.

Loved Joel's latest from Galveston. "When there's no running water, life gets dirty fast. Humans in the wild are not an elegant species."

Glad to hear you got home safely, Loomis.

GALVESTON, Tex., Sept. 15 -- Tommy LeCroy, proprietor of Bistro LeCroy, supervises the grilling of steaks and sausages, washed down with fine wine, on the deck of a loft overlooking a street buried in mud. This is the historic restaurant and retail district known as the Strand. The neighborhood is...
- By Joel Achenbach

Joel really caught the mood. His story reminded me of the aftermath of a different storm. 1968 the battles of the Tet offensive were still going on. I walk into the bar of the Club Nautique in Nha Trang.

The acuariums behind the counter are empty, the glass on the windows as well of the acuariums is gone. The walls of the establisment are peppered with bullet holes. Without any staff the owner, a dour Frenchman sits at his usual place. He nods and pours me a scotch. Thanks to a portable generator we can get drunk listening to Edith Piaff. Drinks were on the house.

Morning all. Kudos again to Joel for such an amazing piece of work. Truly unflinching journalism. I keep coming back to "merciless," and although that word is usually not viewed as flattering, in this case it is. Joel pulled no punches in telling the story.

The editorial pages are finally beginning to show that the Emperor has no clothes. The 9/14 columns by Dowd, Friedman, and Rich, respectively, are worth the read. Brooks has even expressed his opinion about the risk in choosing a candidate that is an average person, as opposed to a politically experienced candidate. He made his point using guidelines for choosing such people from the Federalist Papers. I thought I detected some of your editorial style from those citations, 'Mudge.

I'm off to tend to my bro. He had a laparoscopic precedure as the primary treatment for the cancer he was diagnosed with, and may be discharged from the hospital today. The latter is dependent on, among other things, how flatulent he is. The attending nurse stated that flatulent events and other such excretions are often cause for celebration at the nurse's station. Heh.

Thanks to those who caught my Balinese lapse. Lots of JA stories and hard to keep up.

Slightly less busy so I can just run in place. But I have a nice view from my hamster view. If we were to have lunch today, I would bring ratatouille, which is basically late summer produce 911.

The leaves are still green but beginning to look spent. I love fall.

Take care, Jack while you take care of your brother. Small miracle, that wind, right?

Wow. Investors lost 700 billion dollars yesterday. That's like the cost of a pretty good-sized war. I realize that this is just "on paper" and can, and probably will, come back, but still. Big money involved here. Big money. I don't pretend to understand all this, but I can't help but think that somebody wasn't keeping close enough of an eye on the ol' fiscal chicken coop.

Good morning, all.

Stayed up to watch that game, great stuff
(and I am *not* a Cowboys fan)...

Watching the markets today, to see how the global economy turns (Dawn Patrollers, does the phrase, "flat spin" mean anything to you?).

Personally, I've had more than enough of the Sarah Palin Insta-Celebrity Phenomenon for now (really, for the past week).

She's not enough to distract me from the Really Big Stuff - Hurricane Ike, the economic messes gone viral, the wars, the real issues confronting the Administration and the work ahead of Congress.

And the Mega BPH.

Have a good day, folks.
And don't forget to sharpen your chainsaw blades, folks.

You never know when you're going to need it.

bc

Joel's back. New kit.

Thanks, CP. I had to negotiate Charlotte yesterday without the benefit of many landmarks that existed when we left town for the Palmetto State. It was weird to feel so lost in a city that was my home for the better part of 15 years.

Great story, Joel. As I read it, my mind replayed the night that Hugo made its pass over Charlotte. IIRC, the eye passed over the city, affording a respite from the maelstrom. We went out to the porch to check things out and saw the skies uptown lit up by the explosions of failing pole transformers. We beat it back indoors when the storm resumed. The following morning I was amazed at the devastation.

Hi All.
SD. I 'm sad to hear about Marion Dewar.
It was cold and wet here this morning. The frost was so thick I think I've reason to call it rime.

Any superusers here?