Help and aid: Almost all our help and aid came from family and friends. We received nothing from FEMA (after months of waiting just to see them). We did qualify for a small business loan from the Small Business Administration but declined it because the terms weren't acceptable. We did get a $25,000 home loan from SBA. We actually qualified for almost $97,000 but couldn't take it, again because we couldn't meet their requirements: anything over $25,000 requires a lien on the property and flood and hurricane insurance, both of which are flat out impossible to get at any price. In fact, insurance agents won't even talk about new policies. But at least we got something. That will almost cover the repairs we still need to do to be ready for Stephanie and Jordan.
April, May, and June were spent finishing things at the house and Ola Lola's for Stephanie and Jordan and getting our new place ready to move into.
We had a friend who lived in a house on the other side of Isabela. She was a single mom with a five-year-old. Shortly after the hurricane she moved back to Denver, where she's lived before. We contacted her to get the name of her landlord, to see if maybe the house was available. Three sisters own the house and 22 adjoining acres. It took a bit of discussion but we finally convinced them we wanted both the house and the land. So, we now have a three bedroom, two bath house on 22 acres.
That sounds wonderful (and it is) but...After Brenda moved back to Colorado, nothing was done to the house or the property since the hurricane. We had to clean, paint, and get the house ready, clear downed trees and debris from the yard, start clearing and cleaning property for the horses, all while finishing the work at Ola Lola's. It was a pretty intense few months.
Eddie, the digger guy who cleared the area next to Ola Lola's so we could build the new fence, came out and cleared stuff for us. It took him a full week to do it.
The next thing we had to contend with was our neighbor's horses. Since no one was caring for the property, he figured he could just let his horses run free. They ran all over "our" property, up and down the street, in neighbors' properties. He didn't care.
Pretty horses but we couldn't have them there when our horses came home. We eventually had to go to court and get a court order against him. But it's all good now.
I've grown to like the house. I do miss our "tree house" but this place is good. The one thing I haven't completely come to grips with yet is not being able to to walk to the beach. I know, "boo-hoo!" But for 12 years walking to the beach with the dogs or horses was a huge part of my life. Now we have to drive (gasp!) to get to the beach.
Having Coda Bear helps. We go walking every day. We've explored a bunch of different beaches and keep expanding our options. He's a great adventure companion.
I have one more post-hurricane post coming in a couple of days. Other than that, we're pretty much caught up and, unless any of you have questions (which you are welcome to ask and I will do my best to answer), we are through the hurricane log.
Again, thank you for being on this journey with me. I hope you'll keep reading as the adventures continue.
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