Tid Bits from a Hurricane

One of the nice points, and they are few and far between, about enduring a hurricane that causes damage to the extent we suffered is that you essentially get a new house from the insurance settlement. Thank God for insurance. The adjuster determined the house damage was very excessive before depreciation, and well the contents coverage was practically nothing since depreciation after 15 years on our stuff took away most of the value. But we're not complaining since it would have needed to be replaced anyway in the near future. And the depreciation of the house will come back to us as reappreciation once the work is completed.

As of today the roof is being replaced. We are paying for that out of pocket in order to get the place 'dried in' and while we can get materials that are in critically high demand by, well just about everyone in this area. Hopefully TWIA (Texas Wind Insurance Association) soon will at least advance us $30k of the settlement to get the work going like they have for other neighbors on our street. We're waiting, and hoping construction will be complete well before the end of the 6 months lease of the house in Friendswood arrives. It is a nice house, but it is not home.

Having a heart attack, however mild they want to call it, during a hurricane has brought about many questions from the curious. Was it less painful since it was a mild heart attack? I can best describe the pain as someone placing the heal of their foot on my chest and pressing as hard as they could. For several hours. But the pain and symptoms were different at different times. There is no words that can describe it. I'd take a heart attack anytime other than when the EMS cannot respond for 3 hours. Questions that were not asked included how much does a heart attack cost (insurance, insurance, insurance)? The ambulance ride (and I only got the police car ride since an ambulance could not navigate the route and thorugh the high wind) to the hospital costs about $2300, and the hospital stay costs about $26,000 if they don't do the stint or anything approaching surgery, just a look to see. Remember, insurance helps with all this but the deductable if you have good insurance. So it is not cheap, and there are still fees involved with tests and doctor visits afterward, and copays, and prescriptions, etc.

The biggest remembrance about all this has been the move, vacating the house and move to the lease house. My body is still hurting from all the lifting and work involved with this move (I have bad shoulders that need fixing anyhow). I hate moving. It is very hard and difficult labor that seemed to go on for weeks until we finally cleaned the last of the junk from our house, and stored box after box of who-knows-what in our lease house garage. For a man recovering from a heart condition I feel every ache and pain aggravated by the work involved in this move as though the heart attack was just a minor thing in comparison (not really). But probably the exercise was beneficial and I have lost 6 pounds or so of the 26 I need to lose. But a younger man wouldn't ache so much. :)