Update from me....also

8 years ago

last modified: 8 years ago

Since Raven updated, I suppose I should also. Hard to know where to start. We stayed with a friend for about a month, which was just about two miles away. My horses were given a safe haven about a mile in the other direction, by a kind lady who took them in after the storm. So they were close enough that I could still take care of them twice a day.

We lost both of our trucks. Thought they were on high ground but with all the rain we got, there was no high ground. They went completely underwater. A friend of Jody's let him use his truck and then Jody bought an old beater for $1,000. A school friend of mine that I had only seen twice in the last 52 years gave me a truck! She said she had four and the trade in value wasn't worth trading it in. It is a 2005 Dodge and only had 150,000 miles on it. That may sound like a lot to someone who lives in the city but for the country...not bad at all.

Everyone was incredibly kind to us. The local fairgrounds....in both counties....Galveston and Brazoria, had feed and hay donated and it was free to anyone that could use it. Also halters, bridles, grooming aids, medicines, etc. The mother of the lady who took in my horses, got her friends to donate and bought numerous bags of feed for me and hay. It wasn't necessary and I told them so....but they insisted.

Val needed shoes....lost them in the flood when all of my horses almost drowned, and one did drown, along with two donkeys. My farrier won't work on him unless he is sedated by a vet, but for two months, I had no way to haul him to the vet, so I had him trimmed by the farrier that the lady uses, where my horses were staying. He had trouble with him and didn't do a very good job. He got an abscess. I called out a mobile vet and she said he may have Navicular disease, which isn't a disease but an ailment of hooves....quarter horses are prone to it because they have big bodies and small feet. Anyway, that was a blow because I put down a favorite mare some years ago that had it, and I have invested a lot of not only money but emotion as well, in Val. I wouldn't put him down unless he couldn't be kept comfortable. She seemed to think he would be okay as long as he is kept shod on front and not ridden hard. I haven't ridden him since March, so he definitely isn't ridden hard.

So we are going back to my other vet next week....and see what else he has to say.

We live on a curve in the bayou. The water came across with great force, about 8' deep in the yard. Much debris that was floating in the bayou, came onto our place and washed up against our fences. So we had to have a bulldozer come in and clear the fence lines and re-fence to bring the horses home. That took about two months, but finally, got them all home.

While the bulldozer was here, I was trying to stay out of Jody's hair...."Don't push down that tree over there!!!"....so came inside and was looking at horses in kill pens. I should never look. They had a yearling filly....she looked so sad with a big red MT marked on her hip....which means she sold at auction for slaughter...MT stands for "meat". I went out and asked Jody if I could buy her. Anything to keep me from standing in front of a tree...........so he said yes.

I confess, I knew they also had a bunch of baby foals at the kill pen, and so it was always in my mind to get one of those too. So the next day we went almost to Dallas, and got the yearling, that I named Rita, and the smallest of the babies, Shadow. They told me the baby was four months old. I have raised enough foals to know that she was no more than 10 weeks old. Very, very traumatized. She stuck like glue to Rita...which is one of the reasons I named her Shadow.

Another reason I bought them....it was 60 years to the day since I got my first horse.

I was in Tractor Supply buying feed buckets and some ladies came in, inquiring about what to feed an old, skinny horse. The person working at Tractor Supply said sweet feed, and I said, "No...don't do that. Feed him senior feed." They said the owner had moved off and left him and he had nothing to eat and no water except for some filthy water in a kiddie pool. They had called the sheriff dept out to see about him....they agreed it was sad, but did nothing.

I said I would go see him. I did. I couldn't leave him. It was so sad. He wouldn't load in my trailer and I didn't want to wrestle him around, so walked him home. Took two days. That is Emery.

I wanted a donkey companion for Amos, since I lost Hobo and Moses. I knew someone would soon have one to give away....they give them away all the time. So Brazoria Co had four that no one had claimed after the flood. So a friend and I took them. I got the jenny, who is pregnant and her son, who is about 2 1/2, and my friend took the other two. (I named mine Mama and Trampas....or Tramp for short.) While there..................they had another old horse. Thirty years old and abandoned at the auction barn. He had no coggins test so couldn't be sold, and not worth anyone paying $40 to get a coggins for him. They were going to put him down. I said........."I'll take him. I have another old horse that would like a companion." So that is Snoop,. Emery hadn't seen another horse in years. He isn't in the pasture with mine because I am afraid they would hurt him, so he and Snoop are friends now.

Meanwhile back at home....we are back in the house but it is in dire straits. The flood washed several of the blocks out from under it. We had a sun porch and front porch put on it that have posts that go in the ground. If not for that, the house would have been a big boat and floated off down the bayou.

So it has to be leveled again. No doors in the house close correctly. I am in the process of washing and packing up all my dishes except a few to get by on. That way we will have them out of the way when we work on the house. We cleared out all the wet stuff....any clothes, books, etc. The refrigerator still worked, despite being tipped over on it's side. We had about 30" of water in the house. Two outbuildings that had a lot of my furniture stored....got 8' of water because they are on a slab.

I want to say that the hurricane did no damage. It was only after it went ashore, turned around, stalled out right on top of us, and dropped about 50 inches of rain, that any of the bad stuff happened.

Meanwhile, I found a place exactly two miles down the road from here. It would be a perfect place for us....so I have talked to a realtor about selling this place. We haven't listed it yet....will probably do it next week. I am almost paralyzed by fear....if this place didn't sell but the other one did........because the realtor wants to divide this one in order to sell it. I know that would help it to sell because it is a lot of money for someone to buy it all. I worry that we would sell part of this and then not get that other place, and I would have less land here. I am such a privacy nut....it would probably drive me over the edge...and I don't have far to go, as it is.

Jody hasn't worked since right before the hurricane....the middle of August. He has a boat that he has been "getting ready" for about a year. He is now in the process of cleaning up his other boat to sell it. I think he already has a buyer for it.

Jody has had trouble with his lungs since he had flesh eating bacteria a couple of years ago. I think it affected his lungs. He seems to be better lately....not coughing nearly as much. He thinks he can do everything, just like before. One of the reasons we would sell this place is so he doesn't have to do so much. The other place is better set up. There is a ton of work to do here and you can work forever and not tell you have done much.

Sorry this is so long. Basically this is a recap of our last 3 months. I thank all of you again, who so kindly donated to the go fund me. I am over whelmed by the kindness of people. Also the people in this little town. That is one reason why I don't want to leave here.

Featured Answer

Sylvia Gordon

8 years ago

last modified: 8 years ago

I am a Texas real estate broker. The following it's meant to be helpful real estate advice. I'm not an attorney, do not give legal advice, and nothing I say is to be construed as legal advice. If you purchase the back part, be sure that it is not landlocked. Weird things happen. Sellers get divorced, sellers die, sellers kids act like stinkers, Etc. If you only own the back part and and no legally binding document has been signed giving you access to the road, and before you complete the purchase of the front part, "something happens", the place is virtually unsellable. Lenders won't lend on it, and cash buyers will buy something else. The only people who typically are willing to buy such property are the people who sold it to you in the first place , since they still own the frontage, but they never seem to offer you anything like what you paid for it. You can have the sellers Grant you an easement, which will get you back and forth to your own property, but if you ever want to sell it, A lender is often unable to make a loan on a property that does not come with its own Frontage. A better option would be to have the sellers deed you a strip along one side as part of your purchase. I know this is a long winded post, but I have sold real estate for many years, and I have seen a lot of stuff happen. Typically, the listing agent represents only the seller, and his or her job is to get the best price and terms possible for that seller. That means that the buyer is unarmed in the real estate jungle. Please be careful. If I can help you in any way, let me know. 214 980-5496

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (23)

ladypat1
8 years ago
You have had such a life changing series of events! Such a loving person to take in old senior horses and others. I wasn't on here yet when all this was going on. My mother went through a flood in the 1950's and said she would rather have fire, or tornado, than a flood. Sounds like the flood has such long reaching effects. You must be a very strong person to get through this.
marilyn_c thanked ladypat1
cooper8828
8 years ago
My gosh, you are making me tired just hearing all you have done! Two days to walk home! We take in cats and are at capacity (actually over). You take in everyone! I think you must be a saint, and all your critters probably know it. :)
marilyn_c thanked cooper8828
Related Discussions
Hi! Bakemom sent me also....
Q
Comments (14)
Welcome Linda and Dan! I was a newbie a few months ago and loved the wintersowing. Its addictive though so fair warning. You can send away for a SASE for tomato 6packs of seeds and 6 (or more ) random seeds to get you started from the Wintersown.org. Also, I think bakemom does newbie packs that the kind folks have donated. I have no other advice other than to heed the no sharpie rule unless you are good at recognizing seedlings. After I learned the hard way I put tongue depressors inside the container with the name written on it. Have fun! Betsy
...See More
Update from "What do you hate about our plans" post
Q
Comments (12)
MUCH MUCH NICER! Still a few things that could be improved tho... 1) Those windows in the two upstairs closets (for bedrooms 2 and 3) won't work well. While you do need windows over the porch for the exterior facade to look right, you don't want them on a closet wall where you will want to hang things! Wondering if there might be some way to use the space with windows for bathroom space instead and move the closets to interior spaces. Maybe bedroom 3 could have a reach-in closet like bedroom 4 and the closet for bedroom 2 could move to where its bathroom is currently. Then both bathrooms could be back to back in the space between bedrooms 2 and 3. It's a great idea to have a full bath downstairs so that, if you ever have someone unable to climb stairs (temporarily or permanently) the study could easily become a bedroom for them and they'd have a full bath to use. I rather like the exterior door for the downstairs bathroom. Easy to run in/out and not track mud into the house! Sure the garage door is not that much further around but when a kid's gotta go, they WILL take the route that they perceive to be shortest. NOT having a door directly into the bathroom from outside makes it more likely, I think, that they'll decide to come in thru the patio doors cut thru the living room. And, I wouldn't worry about someone trying to come in while you're showering. You're going to be out in the country and that door is well hidden from the driveway. So the only folks who'll ever know it is there will be family members. Having one of them try to open the exterior door while you're showering is no different than family members possibly walking in on one another via an interior door. Not something to freak out about. I do think you should flip that downstairs bath tho so that you don't have a view directly into the bathroom from next to the fridge. I know that would put the plumbing into the wall shared with the study which isn't the greatest but you can greatly reduce the sounds of flushing water by using cast iron drain pipes so I don't really think that would be a huge problem. I don't like that there are no windows in the master bath upstairs and I also think it would be better to move the laundry a bit further away from the master bedroom. Wonder if you could move the laundry down to where the toilet and shower are and make the masterbath more squarish? If the vanities were then put on an interior wall, maybe there would be room for at least one window in the masterbath. I don't know about you but when I'm getting ready in the mornings, I really like having natural light in the bathroom. It helps me wake up! Plus, its easier to get one's makeup looking right and make sure one's socks actually MATCH under natural light. A dark blue sock and a black sock can look identical under artificial light - especially when you're half asleep anyway. LOL! You may get some negative feedback about the dogleg-shaped island in the kitchen. There are folks on this forum who think that that particular island shape is overdone. I like it however. It gives you a nice large work surface that is easily accessible on the kitchen side. And the bar seating on the back side allows for conversation between folks sitting there...unlike a long straight island that forces everyone to sit in a row like birds on a telephone wire. I love the way the staircase is open to the dining room. That is going to make that space feel very spacious. If you hang a pretty chandelier in the dining room, you'll get to see it from the staircase as you descend and maybe even be able to glimpse it from upstairs. I don't like that the laundry is right across from the stairs from the dining room tho...especially since the design shows an open railing between laundry room and staircase. If the door to the laundry room is left open, you would be able to stand downstairs in the dining room and look up and see into the laundry room. And, if you're doing laundry and leave the laundry room doors open while you have dinner, you'll be able to hear the washer and dryer running from the dining room. So...Another reason to move the laundry room down closer to the bonus room. Overall tho, this is a terrific design. Simple, classic, space efficient, and organized. I'm so glad you and NickE found each other on this forum. You're on your way to a lovely home and NickE is probably thrilled to have a chance to create a real life design for his architectural portfolio and see it actually get built! I doubt that there are that many architectural students who can show potential employers pictures of a house they designed and the client actually built. Keep us posted on revisions and I can't wait to see you start posting pics on the monthly "How is your build going?" thread.
...See More
Pachira Update - Squills from Al Tapla
Q
Comments (4)
Wow, that is the path!!! I'm glad to hear you're enjoying retirement and have put a lot of the stress behind you! I've tried, with some success, to reduce the amount of plants I care for....but somehow they keep sneaking up on me! I've sold off a few Jades lately, and given away twice as many. My sister and brother in law bought a house last year, and I've donated several conifers to enhance their property. Truly a relief to release plants to the wild and not worry about them anymore. My Summer garden is in full swing, and I had *intended* to only grow 3 peppers this season....but a friend *had* to give me two plants that he "knew I'd love," and a local woman gave me a Hungarian Black pepper, so I've ended up with 5 peppers total. This is the third season I'm growing out a Yellow Ghost pepper that was a natural mutation. I'm curious if it'll hold the yellow mutation again this year. For the first time, I decided to put a pepper plant in a #15 container....and, yes, it is growing much larger as a result. I might just grow fewer peppers in larger containers if this goes well, as it has dramatically cut down on watering, as well. I've taken up paddleboarding, which my girlfriend Lacy initiated, and we've been hitting the lakes and rivers as much as we can while I'm on Summer vacation. I still have a great sunburn from Monday's trip to a high elevation mountain lake. The weather's been relatively mild; only a handful of days over 100F so far! Teaching is still going great, although I've jumped to alternative education working with Juniors and Seniors who are on individualized programs to graduate. The program gets them into internships two days a week, and helps transition them into the community. It's really different, but it's also an interesting change of pace from teaching English year in, year out. Currently working on a medieval dagger for my girlfriend, and prepping for Renaissance Fair season. Last October, I commissioned a medieval Portuguese sidesword, and made a nice scabbard for it. I just need to finish the suspension, and I'll be able to wear it proudly this September. Josh
...See More
update from previous post -master bedroom
Q
Comments (10)
You can purchase 2 more art pieces of the same height and smaller in width to flank this one. That way it is in line with your headboard.
...See More
marylmi
8 years ago
You do sound like a saint Marilyn! What an ordeal to go through. Wishing you, your husband and those animals all the best and really hope things work out so you get your place sold and buy the other one! You deserve some much needed good luck.
marilyn_c thanked marylmi
greenshoekitty
8 years ago
Glad to hear from you, and to know things are starting to turn around for you and yours. I hope what you wish to do finds a way to come about and make life a bit easyer for you. please know you are well liked and cared for at this table.
marilyn_c thanked greenshoekitty
marilyn_c
Original Author
8 years ago
My houseExcept for losing the horse and the two donkeys, I would much rather go through a flood than a fire. The worst part is losing all of my photographs. I had given my daughter many of her childhood pics a few months before the flood, so I am happy that at least she has those. My photos were completely blank...or covered in a rainbow looking haze. None salvageable.

We will know more after the first of the week what we are going to do about the house. One possibility on the other place. When I spoke to the realtor who had it listed, he said they would sell the back part of the place....which is the barn, apartment, boat dock, etc. separate. If we bought that and got a lease on the front part, which is a hay field, with an option to buy when we sold the rest of ours, I would feel okay.

We are considering moving the house if we get that other place. You don't have to be crazy, but it helps....but anyway, we are crazy. But we have put so much into this house. It depends on if it is feasible to move it. We took it from a total disaster to a pretty decent house. It means a lot to us. Jody will get in touch with the mover the first of the week.

my house
marylmi
8 years ago
Wow, nice job on your house! I can see why you would want to move it, you put a lot of heart and hard work in it!
marilyn_c thanked marylmi
User
8 years ago
Sylvia...that's interesting.

Marilyn....This "other" property you like...is it on higher ground then?
marilyn_c thanked User
User
8 years ago
I know your hands are full, but I don't think you're the type who would be happy with nothing to do either. It would have been nice if Harvey hadn't destroyed and damaged so much, but the blessing of Harvey is that you have a family of horses who have good lives now.

As always, I love your house. I'm happy you have an option to keep it even if you move.
marilyn_c thanked User
lindaohnowga
8 years ago
Marilyn, I've prayed that God's will be done. He knows what will be best for you and Jody. It may be that God wants you to move to that other house where things would be easier for both of you and if so, He will work that out, or God may want you to stay put for reasons only He knows.
marilyn_c thanked lindaohnowga
marilyn_c
Original Author
8 years ago
Sylvia, thank you. We would have a real estate broker representing us. Even if I found a buyer for my property myself, I would still go through a real estate agent. We have sold eight and bought six pieces of property and we always have a realtor representing us. The property has a half mile long driveway and if we bought the back part, where the barn, apartment, etc. is, we would get a right of way. The driveway is off to one side, so it would be easy. However, if we couldn't get the front part, which is a hay field, I wouldn't want the back part. It would defeat the purpose of moving. Heidi Allbritton is our realtor. She specializes in country property.

Nicole, I am not worried about flooding. I am not worried about flooding here again either. And the other place has the land built up where the barndominium is located and also another pad built up for a house. We didn't get any water from the hurricane. We only flooded a couple of days later when the storm went inland, turned around, came back and stalled out over head and dumped over 50 inches of rain in a very short time. If you get that much rain, and the ground is already saturated, you are going to flood anywhere you live around here. In one town 20 miles away, 90% of the houses flooded. It was a very freak situation. Yes, it could happen again....but probably not in my lifetime.

The realtor who has the land listed told me it didn't flood. I have no reason to doubt him because there is no evidence that I saw. When a place floods, you get all kinds of trash washed in and hung up in fences. The land is deep....it has a half mile long driveway. I know the part by the road didn't flood....which means, if my horses had been there, they would have been okay....even with that much rain, and to tell you the truth, that is all I care about.

The bayou is even wider there than it is here. It is 100' wide here and down there, looks to be half again as wide.

Linda, we will see how it goes. I love this place and if we ended up just staying here, that would be okay.
ont_gal
8 years ago
I read thru the above posting and then looked at the pics of your beautiful home with a lot of long sighs,and even some tears just thinking back to what yous were and still are going thru after that dastardly storm,Marilyn....no idea what else to say,other than,God Almighty....and best of luck no matter what you and Jody choose to do in the upcoming months.
marilyn_c thanked ont_gal
User
8 years ago
I see. I knew you would have looked it over and have a plan of action. Now I understand what your seeing in this property and it's potential. It fits your needs and I hope you get it! BTW Your Dodge truck with 150+K miles is a dream truck for someone in the construction trade, here in Colorado. Texans moved here in force, remember I'm a Texan......the life here is similar. :0)
marilyn_c thanked User
OklaMoni
8 years ago
Wow, Marilyn... what an update! Good luck for your plans.

Moni
marilyn_c thanked OklaMoni
chisue
8 years ago
To think that some women just buy *shoes*.
marilyn_c thanked chisue
marilyn_c
Original Author
8 years ago
I am sure my husband probably wished I just bought shoes. I am wearing a pair of sneakers from the thrift shop, that cost $3.99, and my horse, Val, is wearing (or will be again as soon as I can get the farrier out) a set that costs $175. And he gets new shoes every 6 weeks. I get "new" ones when I completely wear out my old ones, and back to the thrift shop I go for them. I am not complaining. My shoes aren't important to me....although, I am wearing some pretty high dollar shoes, but I wouldn't pay that much for them new. I am happy that I can put shoes on Val. My horses mean everything to me.
chisue
8 years ago
You are amazing, Sue. I hope you know I was just trying to be droll -- not critical.
marilyn_c thanked chisue
marilyn_c
Original Author
8 years ago
No offense taken, Chisue. Not even when you called me Sue. :-)) Funny, I used to have a neighbor down the road who would come by fairly often to see my horses. He always called me Susie. I don't know if he thought that was really my name or if it was just a general sort of name that he called all women. I wish I had asked him, but I never did....so I will never know.
chisue
8 years ago
Ack! I must have been thinking of Marilyn Sue in Indiana! My apologies.

I once dated a fellow who insisted on calling me Susan. My name is Sue (middle name, but the one used by my parents -- and me). That was better than the one who called me Baby Doll. He even wrote to me that way: "Dear Baby Doll". What a clever boy; no chance of calling one girl by another girl's name!
marilyn_c thanked chisue
Rusty
8 years ago
Thank you for the update! You sure do manage to stay busy, don't you! But it sounds like things are looking up, and that's a very good thing! I'm also glad to read you will probably take your house with you if you move. When you posted pictures of it (the new place) awhile back, I thought it looked like the ideal place for you, but the living quarters sure don't seem to have the appeal of your current home. I, too, am praying that God's will will be done in your life, that He will guide and protect you, Jody, and your animals always.

Rusty
marilyn_c thanked Rusty
Ali
8 years ago
Thanks for the update. That's neat, taking your house with you!
marilyn_c thanked Ali
Rosie
8 years ago
Boy, you've been on quite a ride, Marilyn, and I don't mean horseback riding! I sure do hope the new place works out; it sounds like it would be perfect for you and the animals. And, I hope your house can come with you too!
marilyn_c thanked Rosie
socks
8 years ago
last modified: 8 years ago
Loved the update, every word. Very best wishes, whatever you decide to do.

PS when you have time, We would all love to see pictures of the new family members.

Update from me....also

Sylvia Gordon

Comments (23)

ladypat1

cooper8828

Related Discussions

marylmi

greenshoekitty

marilyn_c
Original Author

marylmi

User

User

lindaohnowga

marilyn_c
Original Author

ont_gal

User

OklaMoni

chisue

marilyn_c
Original Author

chisue

marilyn_c
Original Author

chisue

Rusty

Ali

Rosie

socks

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

Update from me....also

Comments (23)

Related Discussions

marilyn_cOriginal Author

marilyn_cOriginal Author

marilyn_cOriginal Author

marilyn_cOriginal Author

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

marilyn_c
Original Author

marilyn_c
Original Author

marilyn_c
Original Author

marilyn_c
Original Author