Hurricane Resistant Homes Survive Ike’s Worst in Texas’ first and only hurricane resistant community. The home are all that was left standing north of Gilchrist on the Bolivar Peninsula Galveston County. Proof this design concept works.

Crystal Beach, Texas rebuilding projects .. Thougt I’d cruise up to the beach in this video to show the new rebuilds (houses) before showing Jim (from Orlando, Florida in the white Ford Truck) and Jeff (from Savannah, Georgia in the red Dodge truck) just which house we were working on that day. There is today, currently, a 2400 sq ft driveway at the house I pulled into. Even tho’ the landscapers were slightly ahead of us, we got it done.

There were no houses here after Hurricane Ike.

According to the USGS .. (August 20 – 2011) .. South Pacific Region ..

Magnitude 6.2 – FIJI REGION — 2011 August 19 03:54:27 UTC
Magnitude 5.1 – FIJI REGION — 2011 August 20 10:27:16 UTC
Magnitude 5.0 – KERMADEC ISLANDS REGION — 2011 August 20 17:08:36 UTC

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The U.S. Geological Survey says the first quake had a magnitude of 7.1, and occurred shortly before 7 a.m. Hawaii time about 39 miles south-southwest of the Vanuatu capital of Port Vila. It was at a depth of 25 miles. The second quake of 7.0 magnitude occurred shortly after 8 a.m. Hawaii time, and was located 42 miles south-west of Port Vila, with a depth of 28.5 miles.

Four other smaller quakes were recorded between the two larger ones, ranging in magnitude from 5.1 to 5.9, according to the U.S.G.S.

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Fattig said a congressional appropriation is required for renewal of the $5 million disaster grant that was also used to provide families with a place to stay while their houses are rebuilt and to store their goods.

Grandson’s only income is a $1,000 monthly Social Security check. She says she can’t afford to furnish her house when it is rebuilt. “I had a washer and a dryer, but everything is gone,” Grandson said. “My clothes, my house — everything.”

As of July 1, the city had repaired or rebuilt 38 houses since Camp, Dresser and McKee received a contract to handle the work nearly two years ago.

The process is mired in federal and state-required paperwork, said Siefert, a CDM employee. The biggest obstacle is the requirement that homes be inspected first by the city and state historical commissions.

Siefert said 937 of the 1,217 active applications had to be sent to the Texas Historical Commission for approval. Of those, 425 were deemed “historically eligible,” meaning that all plans had to be approved by the Historical Commission.

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Kelly Pace And Group – Mighty Good Road

If you’re worried about dehydration, keep in mind that beer is 93 percent water. Also, according to a Spanish study, beer may actually provide better hydration than H2O alone when you’re sweating it out under the sun.

So with all of this in mind, which kind of beer should you reach for? Calorie-wise, you may be tempted to grab a light lager, but for health benefits, a dark beer is the better choice.

Dark beers tend to have the most antioxidants, which help reverse cellular damage that occurs naturally in the body. A recent study published in the Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture has also found that …

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Rafferty drew a clear distinction between the artistic integrity of a musician, on the one hand, and the music industry’s need to create celebrities and sell products, on the other.

In an interview with Colin Irwin in 1988, he said: “There’s a thin line between being a songwriter and a singer and being a personality… If you feel uncomfortable with it you shouldn’t do it. It’s not for me – there are too many inherent contradictions.”

Two decades later, speaking to the press after Rafferty’s funeral, Charlie Reid of The Proclaimers confirmed Rafferty’s dislike of celebrity: “He was not entirely comfortable with fame. Even more so than most people who work in this business, he saw it as not a good thing”.

Reid believed Rafferty was fundamentally unsuited to the pressures of celebrity: “He struck me as a very, very sensitive man and for someone like that, fame was probably not appropriate.

In a posting on his new campaign website explaining why he wanted to take on President Barack Obama, Perry contended that “America’s place in the world is in peril, not only because of disastrous economic policies, but from the incoherent muddle known as our foreign policy.”

Americans, he said, “will not sit back and accept our current misery.” He said “a great country requires a better direction” and “a renewed nation requires a new president.”

Perry’s decision jump into the Republican presidential race promises to jolt the crowded field and threatens to cast a shadow all the way back to the Midwest, site of an important early test of his rivals’ strength.
“I have never seen this landslide of emotion for a candidacy. I cannot literally keep up with the emails and messages coming into my cellphone,” said Katon Dawson, a former GOP chairman in South Carolina who’s a Perry supporter.

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As soon as I get a bit more time, I’m going to add a new category to this blog .. I’ll call it “From the Mail Bag” .. and it will address the concerns and/or the questions that others might have with regard to anything having to do with concrete.

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From the mailbag today, Joe (Roanoke, Texas) writes:

Is it too hot right now in Texas to pour a concrete driveway.  It has been averaging 101 degrees at my house.  I have half driveway in Sun.  Other half in shade trees.  I also want to use a 5-sack mix.  Would you recommend that in this heat?

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Dear Joe

Thanks for contacting me with your question.

5 Sack Mix (3,000 psi) is fairly common in Texas .. more because it’s cheaper, than due to any kind of heat issues.

I could recommend 5 sack mix on house foundations, sidewalks, and patio’s .. but for the sake of durability, I would suggest a 5 1/2 to 6 sack mix (3,500 psi – 4,000 psi) for a driveway.

In the heat, 5 sack mix will set up about as fast as 5 1/2 sack mix .. added *flyash and adequate base *moisture can slow the setup time on nearly any mix design you use.

The mix setup can also be slowed by shade. If you are pouring this yourself, I would suggest pouring the shady portion first, and then pouring the sunny section last. By doing this, you stand to even the odds between the setup times of the two. The slab will set more uniformly.

It’s okay to use a 5 sack mix for what you are wanting to do .. If you have concerns about the heat, simply ask the batch plant to bump the percentage of flyash up a bit, and be sure that your subgrade contains adequate moisture .. you should be fine.

Because sun and shade are proven to move throughout the course of the day, you might do well to consider the best time to pour during that particular day. The earlier, the better, is usually the rule, but if it can’t be poured early, you’ll have your logistics to fall back on .. i.e. mix design, flyash, base prep moisture and a pour plan.