The IntegrateSun Blog

We dodged a bullet here in Houston with Hurricanes Marco and Laura. Twin terrors in the Gulf of Mexico at the same time…Yikes! Though the storms missed us by less than 100 miles, I’m sad to say our relatives in Lake Charles, Louisiana took a direct hit. My cousin Jon and his family evacuated to Texas for a few days. We got to spend some time with them before they headed home to assess the damage. Getting home was a chore in and of itself with all of the roadblocks, re-routes, and down power lines. What usually is a 2-hour drive home, ended up taking them over 10 hours. Nevertheless, the damage to their neighborhood was catastrophic.

Fences were down, trees were down, rooftops were blown into the streets, broken glass, and a ton of debris was all they could see for miles. Many lives were completely turned upside down by this horrific category 4 storm.

There I was making dinner, eavesdropping, feeling guilty, and giggling at the same time. Guilty because I set my husband up for a virtual solar consultation without his permission, and giggling because Sean’s presentation was going so smoothly. Sean does an excellent job of making it seem more like a conversation and less like a sales pitch, which works well for Mark. He doesn’t like to be sold anything, and he wants to be in control and feel like he’s making the best decision for his family. 

Schools back in session and guess who the teacher is? Me! Never thought I’d ever have to teach my kids anything but morals, values, and making good choices. But insert 2020, COVID –19, and the world being shut down, and here I am teaching reading, writing, and arithmetic! Not to mention transforming my guest bedroom to a classroom complete with desks, chairs, and a chalkboard.

With the kids being at home full-time, my electricity bill has been consistently in the $300 to $400 range each month, which is very uncommon for my family. Typically, the summer months are when we take vacations, so we are not at home for weeks at a time during the summer. Though we’ve saved money by not vacationing, we’ve spent more money on electricity. This is a bit concerning since there is no set date to when we will return to any type of normalcy.

Whether it’s the for sale sign on that beautiful home in Rice Village you have always admired during your morning jogs , or the friend that keeps talking about the vintage cottage she just purchased, or maybe it's the loud roommate that keeps you up at night. Nevertheless, moments like these make you question if renting is really worth it and if it's time for you to seriously consider home-ownership.

These past two weeks have been like a roller-coaster. Last week, the number of COVID – 19 cases in Texas was at an all-time high. This week, we have seen a significant decline in the numbers. This only proves that in this thing called life, change is inevitable. We go through seasons of highs and lows, tragedies and triumphs, good times and bad. The key is to stand strong through times of adversity because change always comes. The same is true when it comes to energy. For years, we have relied on electric companies to power our homes, but as the demand to replenish and restore mother earth increases, we must answer the call to change.