The second most terrifying part of 2017 (second to Trump becoming President) was experiencing Hurricane Harvey. As a Houstonian, I slowly saw my city become submerged with water - shops, streets, homes, businesses, and more.
Talal and I were trapped at home for nearly 10 days - campus closed and his office unreachable.I kept a steady eye out my window and an undistracted ear attentive to the television. The slow-rising anxiety came as the rain continued to pound, as the tornadoes continued to swirl by, and as the Houston officials continued to report.
It's incredible terrifying to watch the news and hear of the tragic deaths in my hometown. I knew days before the hurricane that I wasn't the only one panicking. When I went to stock up on supplies on Wednesday evening, the shelves were empty. There was no tuna, bread, peanut butter, cereal, water, or any other non-perishable ingredients. That's when I recalled started to worry. Talal was driving in from San Antonio from a work trip, bringing some snack bars and waters. I came home (plenty of food in tow) to cook for a month of being trapped at home. We were also supposed to host a Saturday evening party to watch the Macgregor/Mayweather boxing match. With the weather, it ended up just being Ray, Maysoun, & Samantha. Since I over cook and I was 17 guests short, Talal and I had enough carnitas for the ENTIRE week. Nonetheless, I continued to cook. Although Talal could work from home, i literally had nothing to do. To avoid going stir crazy, I made burgher bit feen, and curry with homemade naan bread. Hey, I even baked an apple pie.
All of this was simply a distraction and I was dying to get out of the house, visit my parents who were a long 20 miles away, or get a breath of fresh air.
After seeing the devastation of lost homes and lost lives, all I can say, is get some flood insurance and listen to the authorities who know what to do, far better than we do.
At Home
With Talal