Karen Chapman's Blog - Downtown Beaumont

Wed 11:00pm  Entry 7

Last week at this time, we were wondering who would draw the black bean.  Tonight, we are realizing those beans stretch from Orange to Freeport.  What Ike didn't do with wind, he more than made up for with storm surge.  It is heartbreaking to see and hear about the devastation, yet I have felt somewhat isolated in our little downtown Beaumont community. We did not suffer the kind of damage as did other parts of the Golden Triangle.  No flooding, no major structural damage.  Everyone here has gone back to work during the day.  At night, we still meet in the driveway around hubby's gas grill eating all the food we had in our freezers.  Our new lawn chair circle of friends has found comfort in its new evening ritual.   

After the feast, each of us goes back home and bathes in salt water.  The first time I tasted it, I thought I was imagining things.  Now, four days later, there is no mistaking it.  Not only does it taste like the Gulf of Mexico, it foams like the Gulf of Mexico!  They are telling us not to run water through any appliance until it is clear.  We are also noticing rust on metal objects like utensils and bakeware.  Brushing the teeth is particularly disgusting as the water is turning more yellow by the hour.

For two days, a co-worker and I have prepared dinner for the folks at Channel 6.  The news, production, traffic and engineering departments are working so hard.  They looked bushed and relieved when we brought them hot, home cooked food.  I have never served more thankful people, and our hearts are filled with joy.  It has become just one small way that Rachel and I can give back to the employer that has given us so much.    

My eyes are heavy, my legs are aching, and I must sleep.  You shall hear more from me tomorrow, dear reader.

WYR2-5-4 clear

Tues 11:30pm Entry 6

I had big plans for this blog. Each hour would be a new adventure in hurricanes...STUPID Time Warner screwed that pooch.  I will not fault Entergy.  They are everywhere telling everybody it will be forever until power is restored.  We have come to expect the worst. Tonight we are falling at their feet because we have power around 10pm.

That leaves Time Warner. 

Hubby, who can techno repair anything, says the cable box is blown, so anything we have recorded is gone...like the Tony's, damn IT.  Oh well.  Who can complain tonight with a/c and a Kenny Loggins DVD?  Darn, I wanted to see those Tony's again.

Don't hate me because I have lights.  We've had so much fun at Cathedral Square, I wish we were still in the dark. 

More tomorrow.  Please stay tuned...

WYR2-5-4 Clear

Sunday 10pm Entry 5

Sorry I've been off line. Time Warner is always the first to leave the party. Entergy hung with us until about 2am Saturday morning. I'm back only because Buffalo Wild Wings neighbor has dish and a generator. He's so kind. He's allowed four other lofts to hook up to it! All but hubby and me are running fans and lights. We've hooked up our old "harvest gold" refrigerator in the garage. It sucks everything when it comes on! It may be the first to go when this is all over.

By now, you've all heard the worst, I'm sure. Ike was a powerful hurricane, but not as visibly devastating as Rita. In downtown Beaumont, we slept through the worst of it, thankfully. Ours is a three story loft, built under new codes just a year and a half ago. We stayed on the top floor and could feel the the building swaying; the water in the commodes was moving, the television on its pull-out stand in our bedroom armoire was wobbling. Surreal. Sleep finally came after hours of listening to the wind (though it never howled) and pounding rain; once it did, I was out until Saturday afternoon. When I woke, it was raining lightly, the trees were swaying a little, the skies were overcast. And it was hot as hell.

I had to get busy.

I started sweeping. And cleaning. Three hours later we were ready to eat...again.

There isn't much to do in downtown these days but eat and visit with the neighbors. Wonderful food. Hubby has commandeered the grill, and we've all been in weight gain mode. "I've got peaches! I'm bringing two cans of clam chowder." Everyone's involved. It's a picnic, camp out, tailgate party rolled into one.

Downtown had no street flooding, but I have seen debris and broken windows. The Stedman Building got slammed pretty hard. Large plate glass next door to Subway is all over the sidewalk. Suga's faired well with the exception of the canopy covering their upstairs patio in the back. You can certainly tell which buildings were built a long time ago and fell in disrepair. Those are the ones hit the worst, like that Tattoo place across from the old Dallas Williams building. Parts of it look like a bomb exploded. Dallas Williams lost some glass in the front too as did the Essence Club. The Beaumont Hotel had no problems as far as I could tell. Crockett Street looks good too, although our neighbor from the Beaumont Enterprise says he and co-workers saw a tornado come from the port, hop over Crockett Street, and head down Calder. Glad I was asleep!

Still no electricity as of this hour; however, Entergy's Joe Domino says downtown should see power by the end of Monday. Hope he's right, although, the night air tonight is cooler and we have a breeze. Someone said the temperature is supposed to be 62 tomorrow night.

Certain grocery stores have opened today, with incredibly long lines because they're only letting in a few people at a time. Great thing about living in the hood is that no one thinks about coming down here for anything. Mercado de Familia, owned by Market Basket on College near MLK, was open and only about five people deep outside. They are selling beer. We saw cars wrapped around the block at Sam's waiting to get gas and groceries. No thanks.

The police are everywhere tonight, waiting to grab anybody not obeying the 8:00 curfew. They harrassed one of our neighbors five doors down tonight who was walking to our bar-be-cue. It is comforting that they are here. I have my gun just in case.

I'm closing for now. Hubby is getting tired, and Buffalo Wild Wings is probably ready for us to leave.

Much more later. Thanks for joining me tonight.

WYR2-5-4 Clear

Friday 10:00 PM Entry 4, Scratch that we are seeing some action downtown. Rain is heavier, winds are stronger, time warner cable is out. God I hate those guys. Buffalo WIld Wings neighbor is typing this entry for me. A small amount of water is standing at street and parking lot. So far, Ike is still not showing his true colors. More later. WYR254 Clear.

Friday 9:00pm Ok, folks. What's the dang deal. I have this peachy assignment for KFDM.com during Hurrican Ike and NOTHING'S happening in downtown Beaumont. We have gusts every now and then and a little rain...but where's the beef? I'm just telling you what I'm seeing which is not much.

We grilled venison burgers for the neighbors around 8:00. Delicious. Food tastes so much better during a hurricane. We had chips and beef jerky too. One of our neighbors is a biggie at the ExxonMobil Chemical Plant down the street. He was able to make our soiree because they shut the sucker down. Flare humor is so much more funny during a hurricane. Another neighbor owns the Buffalo Wild Wings fanchise. Ew. Wings work. Our other neighbor works for Brock...I.T., Lance!

I'm stretching for material now, so I'll close. I think we're all gonna run around the block a few times and see what's shakin'.

WYR2-5-4 clear.

Friday 6:00pm I am back in our home in downtown Beaumont, away from the noise of the Channel 6 newsroom. Scott typing, Bill talking, Jack watching video, David running crawls, reporters filing reports, Lance cracking jokes. Larry was even answering the phones! It is there that this hurricane will come to life tonight, be placed in perspective and sent directly to you.

I miss it already.

But hubby wants to be here in case something happens. He's right. I'm glad one of us has a clear head.

On our way back, we checked on our cars parked on the second floor of the bank building down the street where I'm sure they will be safe. We are using hubby's company truck for transport when needed. It will keep us high off the flooded streets if we must venture out. We also drove to River Front Park. The Neches River is high, close to the banks, but has not yet overflowed. The police department across the street from the park has sand bags piled high against the glass doors facing the river. Yikes, I hope we won't need those at our house four blocks away.

It is very hard to believe a storm is on the way. I am looking at the trees across the street at the church. They are barely moving! As I watched our dog Bridget do her business over there, I felt a small amount of rain on my face. Not rain drops really, but tiny pellets against my face. Where the heck is Ike?

We will grill venison burgers for our neighbors in a couple of hours. Six of us have decided to ride out the storm. We have a close community at Cathdral Square. Tonight, I am sure we will become even closer.

Right now I need a short nap, to get ready for the long night ahead.

WYR2-5-4 clear.

Friday 3:40 pm This is Karen filing the first entry. Not downtown yet; still in the newsroom answering phone calls. Man, people have some crazy questions. Example: "I live on Harrison Street in Beaumont; is my house gonna flood? Should I evacuate to Monroe Louisiana?" Come on, people!!!! We're good but not THAT good! Oh, well. It beats sitting in a motel somewhere in Oklahoma watching the Weather Channel. KFDM News ROCKS!!!! Do you realize there's no other television station in the world that would be answering phones, much less peoples' questions, at a time like this!!??

More later from my house at Cathedral Square, downtown Beaumont. We face St. Anthony Cathedral. That wind will be coming from behind that church right up my front door. As long as I have power, you'll be right there with me.

WYR254 Clear