Yet Another Problem

It’s been a very interesting time since hurricane Rita ran over my Mom’s town in Texas and it’s not over yet….

Things have been a frustrating trying to get some help for Mrs. B, my Mom. It seems that no one will allow you to file, get copies, forward information, pay the bill or do anything at all with any account unless you are the “owner of record” or are “named on the bill”. It’s probably a good thing from an identity theft point of view, but some of the people I’ve tried to work with definitely have a Catch 22 clause in their work agreements. One company I called would not even let me PAY the bill for Mrs. B without a “coupon from the statement” and would not “forward a copy of the bill” unless “she calls in person” even though she’s an evacuee! However, they did assure me “since her bill is current” they would not cut off the utility… I guess they didn’t GET IT that she’s lucky to have gotten out of town and the town was badly damaged and that no one had any “utilities” to speak of! So, in spite of everyone trying to help, she’s had to do much of the calling and filing and arranging of things herself.

I understand from the neighbors that things are getting back on-line in the town and the services and utilities are back on line. The local radio station web site has stopped blogging detailed information about what’s happening, so we have to rely on information from the neighbors who have already returned after the hurricane.

I can’t say enough good things about Mrs. B’s neighbors, K and B and their son P. They have been really extraordinary in helping us out. In spite of having damage to their own home and having to deal with the results of the hurricane themselves, they have been on the forefront of helping Mrs. B get help, including assisting in getting someone to remove the tree from the house and forwarding important phone numbers and passing on much needed information.

Here’s a picture of the old pecan tree that fell on the house during the hurricane.


Now, just to make life a bit more miserable for her, it seems like someone has stolen her car. But I have to say, her spirit is not daunted one bit. She’s so good at filing reports, that she filed the police report like it was no problem! Of course, no one else could file it for her, not the family or the neighbors because it has to be the “owner of record” of course…