Wow was that anticlimactic. The storm brushed us basically and we just got a lot of wind and some rain. We did wake up several times in the night due to the winds rattling against the windows and walls, but all in all it was pretty tame. We still have a house, a barn and now just some wind battered plants. The winds are supposed to clear up sometime after lunch. We are lucky, we still have power. A lot of people are without power but given the glancing blow that the storm did here I suspect it will be back up soon for them.
We dodged a bullet that Sabine Pass and Cameron, LA did not unfortunately and we hope everyone there is safe. Luckily Rita lost some steam and came ashore as a category 3 and is down to a category 2 presently.
I think a lot of lessons will be learned from this ordeal, as Houston has to revise their evacuation plans. They were divised years and years ago and the city has grown too large and with the aftermath of Katrina, no one was taking any chances. They have to think of a better way to get people out of the city.
As for us I have no regrets for any prep that we did. There was a very stressful time where Rita was heading straight towards us and all she did was prove that it is very hard to predict where a hurricane will land. Prep for the next one will just be that much faster and efficient for us.
Thanks to everyone for their concern and offers to stay with them. It was very much appreciated.