September 25, 2005

We traveled to Houston on Monday, September 19. There was a new hurricane – Rita – brewing in the Gulf and headed for Texas. Hurricane Katrina had already hit New Orleans. Our hotel was full of New Orleans people. FEMA had set up a desk work area in the lobby for displaced New Orleans folks that were staying at the hotel. There were kids running all over the place. The Marriott had to close their swimming pool because some kids had dumped soap in it and it had turned to a bubble bath. Fortunately we had a room since all of the Houston hotels were full with people displaced by Katrina. Now we were expecting Rita to hit Texas. It was an uneasy situation in Houston.

Diana had a full schedule of tests and meetings on Tuesday starting at 6:20 AM with a chest x-ray. Next was a CT Scan followed by a meeting with the Research Nurse for the Clinical Trial. After that meeting Diana had an EKG followed by a meeting with Dr. Blumenschein.

All went well except for her blood pressure and the EKG. The EKG printout stated abnormal – what was abnormal we don’t know. Diana was provided with a copy of the EKG to give to Dr. Blumenschein. He told her (and me too) not to worry – all looked fine on the EKG printout to him and to ignore the machines abnormal interpretation. We both felt relieved. Dr. Blumenschein said all was set for Diana to start the Clinical Trial Treatment on Thursday. The fact that Dr. B was going to start the clinical trial on Thursday was extra assurance that there was nothing wrong with the EKG. We left the clinic – had a very late lunch and retired to our hotel to follow the progress of Hurricane Rita.

The next morning, when we woke up at 6:30 AM, we turned on the TV in the hotel room. All that was on TV was information regarding evacuation routes from Houston and school closings for the rest of the week. Hurricane Rita was now pointed at Houston and expected to hit Saturday/Sunday timeframe. Galveston Beach – about 40 miles south of Houston, was in a mandatory evacuation zone. We had a 9:00 am meeting the Research Nurse. At 8 AM I called via telephone to her office to verify our meeting and treatment schedule was still valid. She said all was still a green light. With what had just happened in New Orleans – it felt like Houston was about to go into a panic situation.

We left for the Clinic and our 9 AM Meeting. As soon as we met with the Research Nurse, she told us that they were worried about starting Diana’s treatment on Thursday. Did not want to have the process interrupted by Hurricane Rita. Thus we were going to postpone her first treatment until next Thursday – 9/29. We agreed. She said she would change all the schedules accordingly. We left the clinic and went back to,the hotel to checkout.

We got on infamous Interstate 45 which is the highway that connects Houston & Dallas about 11:30 AM It took us 6 hours to drive home – about an hour longer than normal because of evacuation traffic. However people who left Houston only a couple of hours after we did – took from 12 – 24 hours to make the trip because of the ensuing traffic jam on that highway. Cars were running out of gas. Everyone was trying to leave Houston at the same time. Houston is the fourth largest city in the US so it was a huge number of people trying to evacuate. Traffic jams the likes of which had not been seen in this area occurred. We were very lucky to get out of Houston when we did.

On our ride home Wednesday afternoon – we received a phone call from MD Anderson that all appointments except emergency ones were cancelled for Thursday & Friday. The Clinic was going to be officially closed on those days. Fortunately, we were already on our way home.

We are now home and do not have a schedule for next week. I will get on the telephone on Monday to verify/setup our next weeks’s schedule.

Hurricane Rita eventually veered East and missed the Galveston/Houston area totally. We did not even get any rain or winds in Dallas. Today, Sunday, the sun is shining brightly. The temperature high for the day will be about 95. Another normal day in Dallas. Even though Hurricane Rita did not hit the Houston area, Houston was basically shut down by the fact that so many people evacuated the city. I will try and call MD Anderson on Monday and get a revised schedule for Diana’s treatments.

In the meantime, we have accepted an offer for Diana’s company. The potential buyer is requesting lots of information which I am doing my best to provide. I have been meeting him early in the morning at a Starbucks and giving him the information he has requested. At least I am getting an early start with coffee. We are looking at a closing of mid October. Even Diana is starting to get a little excited about the sale – although she does miss her company. She knows it is what we need to do and will allow us to concentrate on moving. Our next obstacle will be our house once we find a new one in the Houston area. Since we will be spending lots of time in Houston the next couple of weeks for her clinical trial treatment, we should have plenty of time to look for a house.

Thanks for your continuing support and prayers.