Answering the Questions.....and Counting Our Continued Blessings

I have been bombarded by questions and been fielding rumors...here you go...

Question: Did we have any idea that the waters were going to rise so quickly on us?

Answer: NO! It happened too quickly. The first band of Fay came through and the water rose slightly up our back yard, then it started to recede just before the second band. Remember, T.S. Fay only moved at about 4mph. When the heavier band came, it stayed hovering over us for a long time. The water rose about 4 feet in less than two hours! It rose about 6 inches in the 20 minutes we took to gather our stuff and get out.

Question: Why did you continue to live there if you were flooded before?

Answer: Remember, this was our home. We have a mortgage. The rising waters from a couple of years ago only came up to the backyard and threatened us. We DID NOT have any damage from that flooding. This was dramatically different! We had a TS literally hanging over us for several hours. 33 inches were reported in Thomasville. I even emptied our own rain gauge of 22 inches!

Question: What is FEMA going to do for you?

Answer: Nothing! We are NOT eligible for any county, state, or federal funding. There were not enough people affected in this flood to make us eligible despite all of our losses. If you would like to share your frustration about this on our behalf--please write Gov. Sonny Perdue and the Congressmen of the state of Georgia. Personally, we think it stinks, but unless you live in a high population area that affects at least 100 people, us "little guys" get NADA, nothing, nil, zilch, zip, zero.....

Question: Why are you bothering to clean up the house when there are Hurricanes Ike and Josephine out in the Atlantic and headed your way?

Answer: Mold and fungus are the enemies in flooded buildings. Remember there is insulation that has been sucking up water within the walls. If you don't get it out quickly it can cause more damage and pose a health hazard. WE HAVE NO PLANS TO RENOVATE UNTIL HURRICANE SEASON IS OVER! We are fearful that our already saturated grounds won't take much more water and may rise again with a heavier storm.

Question: What is your insurance doing? Shouldn't they be covering this demolition and removal?

Answer: Yes, but remember we live rurally and there are few companies that do this work. They are busy and they are charging a MINT!! We have been blessed with wonderful people who have been willing to help us in the interim. Plus, we have not gotten back the info from the insurance company. We can't afford to wait on them! Time is a precious commodity right now and the sooner we get our house gutted, the better it will be in the end.

Question: Why aren't you answering your phones/returning calls?

Answer: Sorry, but if we did, we wouldn't get everything done that needs to be done in the little time we have when we aren't working. Please understand that we are exhausted physically and emotionally. We appreciate all of your concerns, but for now the comments you make on this blog, and the emails you send are the best way to communicate with us. No promises that you will even get a response from us via email. We really need supportive words right now and we are protecting ourselves from all other kinds of conversations.

Believe me, we are doing what we can to get our lives back on track.

Blessings that we continue to receive:

1) Continued love and support from family and friends
2) Unending prayers - we sure need them
3) I have been granted a 4 day work week (as long as I work at least 32 hrs/week)
4) Unending offers to help with the work load; folks that have been willing to break their backs and work in less than desirable conditions
5) A wonderful daughter and son-in-law that have participated in and lived all the craziness with us firsthand and still let us stay with them anyway.

Please bear with us. Despite the recognized blessings, there is a lot of frustration and sadness. We are on an emotional roller coaster and look forward to its end. Unfortunately, it may take awhile. Our home is gone---and remember a home is your sanctuary, your safe haven. We are mourning the loss of our sancturary.

In the meantime, we'll just continue to count our blessings---it makes us feel so much better.