Two seconds. That’s how long it takes for a child to drown. One Mississippi, two Mississippi and your life could be changed forever. Even if you don’t have an above or in ground pool, chances are you and your child(ren) will visit someone who does or you’ll join friends and family for an outing on a lake, river or at the ocean this summer.
Hurricane season runs from June 1 through the end of November. Hurricane forecasters at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration are predicting a busy hurricane season. If you’re not prepared, now’s a great time to prepare instead of waiting until a storm is bearing down on your section of the Texas Gulf Coast, or where ever you happen to live.
Hurricane season started 9 days ago on June 1 and runs for 6 months through the end of November. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is predicting “active to extremely-active” season. Their predictions include:
Outgoing Texas Insurance Commissioner, Eleanor Kitzman, vacated her office on Monday, May 27th when Texas State Senators blocked her from another two year term. Governor Rick Perry quickly appointed Kitzman’s replacement, Julia Rathgeber who until May 27th had been Lt. Governor David Dewhurst deputy chief of staff. Prior to serving as Dewhurst’s deputy chief of staff, Rathgeber served as a Director of Research for the Texas General Land Office and also as former division head for the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission.
Last spring one of my clients in the Lake Highlands area of Dallas called me. There’d been some pretty strong winds that had swept through north Texas, similar to what we’ve had this spring, and a section of his wood fence had blown over. It had happened to be the section that separated his back yard from his neighbor’s back yard. We discussed options on how to handle this with the first option being whether or not he should file a claim.
On a Sunday in February, Sheri (my wife) and I had breakfast at Cindi’s Deli in Dallas with Jordan & Christine (my son and daughter in law). The two of them were in town and this gave us some nice time together and to catch up. They presented us with a Valentine’s Day card that happened to have a picture of a sonogram showing they were expecting their first child. I was completely caught off guard but incredibly excited for them and us. This is the first Wise grandbaby and I’m thrilled!
Every couple of months, I get a call from a realtor, an insurance agent, or a mortgage loan officer. The stories are variations on a theme; they have a client that’s trying to buy a home but there’s one little issue that’s threatening to derail the close. Usually these gotchas present themselves when the home buyer has found their dream home only to discover their current insurer is unable to insure it. This usually is not discovered until two weeks or less before the scheduled close and creates a mad scramble to find insurance for the buyer’s dream home. They call me.
On Wednesday, April 17, a fire broke out at the West Fertilizer Company in West, Texas, a community of 2,849 about 70 miles south of Dallas. 10 volunteer firemen and two people who joined them responded to the calls that began being fielded by the 911 call center at 7:33. As first responders, they began to assess the massive fire and plan how to begin putting out the blaze. They were killed moments later from the explosion that occurred at 7:51 pm.
Last week, I introduced Ben and Amy (not their real names) who are first time home buyers in the McKinney / Allen area of north Texas. Because they are buying their first home, this also means they are first time buyers of home insurance, something Ben admitted to me, he knows nothing about.
I love the State Fair of Texas. There’s nothing like walking through the stock pavilion, watching the sheep dogs work the sheep, and the pig races. I enjoy wandering around the new car pavilion as I think about what I’d pick for a new vehicle. Then there are the rides and the cry of barkers tempting people to try their hand at some game to win the giant stuffed animal or some other prize. There’s plenty of food to savor as well; funnel cake, Fletcher’s corny dogs and some new fried delectable. And then there’s the icon of the fair, Big Tex.
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