Hurricane Ike (getting ready)

The Atlantic hurricane season runs from June first to November 30th each year. The peak of the season is August to October and early to mid September is considered the pinnacle of the season. Southeast Texas got a small scare from Hurricane Gustav in late August. Gustav stayed on its track and struck central Louisiana. Tropical storm Ike formed on September first and by the fourth, it was a category 4 hurricane, the third major hurricane of the 2008 season. The projected landfall for Ike bounced from south of the Corpus Christi area to east of the Texas/Louisiana border. Right in the middle of that arc of land is the greater Houston area.

On the Tuesday before Ike was due to make landfall, we were eating dinner at PeiWei with my in-laws. My father-in-law Jim told me that my cousin Mike had purchased a generator that day and that he was going to buy one that evening. I thought that was a little extreme. After all, it had been 25 years since a major hurricane had struck this area of Texas. On the way home, my wife Jen called and asked me if we were going to buy a generator. I immediately sensed the correct answer to the question and responded with "yes dear". I called Jim and he purchased one on our behalf that evening. The following day, Jen picked up the new generator, which I never expected to have to use.

I began keeping a close watch on the track of the hurricane the evening of the generator discussion. I followed the blog of Eric Berger, the SciGuy at the Houston chronicle. His coverage of hurricanes is outstanding. Eric does not build up the hype, just tells the facts as he understands them along with his informed opinions. In Eric's coverage, he really wrote at length about storm surge. Ike was a huge storm and would bring an appropriately sized surge of water with it. I had no concept at all of a storm surge. I could not fathom twenty feet of water coming ashore with Ike. Nevertheless, I checked the elevation of our home just in case twenty feet of water really came. I found that our home is about 23 feet above sea level and felt moderately relieved.

Preparations began in full on Thursday while I was working an extra job. My father-in-law and Mike both boarded up their windows. My father began taking things upstairs from the garage since it was likely that the garage would take in some water. My father discovered that the motor on the boat lift was frozen. He made a few phone calls and fortunately someone came out and helped him lower the boat by hand so that it could be taken out of the water. That was a blessing since after the storm, the freeway by their house was littered with stray boats. Mike, Jim, and my dad showed up at the house on Friday morning to help me board up the windows and move everything outside into the garage. Jen loaded up the suburban and evacuated with the kids and dog to her parent's home in Pasadena.

On a quick side note, I have to give my wife Jen a lot of credit. Ike was a huge hurricane heading straight for us. These storms cause anxiety in everyone. She knows that due to my job, she will be riding out the storm with the kids without me. She does not like it, but not only did she not complain, she handled it with her usual graceful poise.

My parents with the boat behind them evacuated to Mike's house in Pearland. I took a short nap before heading into work. I had been ordered to report into work at 2 PM that day. We were told to expect to be at work until the day shift officers could make it into work, in the middle of the hurricane, to relieve us. Understandably, it took day shift a LONG time to get into work.

What a decision

My father went to high school in Las Cruces, NM, the town that I grew up in until I was eleven. He played golf in high school and was an excellent young amateur player. After graduation, he went to work. Later, he met my mother and they were married. He was then drafted to fight for our Country in the Vietnam war. Upon his return, he enrolled at New Mexico State University. He joined the golf team and at some point earned a scholarship. His junior year, while his team won the conference title, my father took home medalist honors for the conference championship. He was also named an All American that year. After graduating from school, my father had a decision to make. Join the work force using his degree or try to play professional golf?

He definitely had the talent to play professional golf. On his All American plaque, names like Ben Crenshaw and Tom Kite were there along with his. However, at the time, I was three years old.

My father decided to use his business degree and got a job. He states that it was not a difficult decision. He had a wife and a three year old son at home to support. Professional golf was not an option with those responsibilities.

A few years ago I visited the clubhouse of the NMSU golf course, where my father won the conference tournament. I was wandering around and noticed a few plaques on the wall. I went over to look at them and they were pictures of recent NMSU golf teams. This piqued my interest and I continued following the pictures. I continued looking through the decades and finally came to the 70's. When I found a picture for 1973 and saw my father with the medalist trophy and his team, I was extremely proud. A copy of the All American plaque was there as well. It was very cool to see my father's accomplishments on the wall at NMSU.

My father's decision has influenced the way that I look at decisions that affect my family. The impact of his unselfish decision to look out for his family instead of pursuing individual goals sticks with me. I have had many opportunities to move my family all over the United States for federal law enforcement jobs, but it was never in the best interest of my family. Thank you Dad for showing me by example, what comes first in life, family.