My phone rang at midnight last Tuesday night awakening me out of a dead sleep.
“Hello?,” I groggily mumbled.
“Mom, have you been watching the news?! The storm has shifted East and it looks bad for Pensacola Beach,” Jill exclaimed.
Wait, what?
It was a harrowing 12 hours early Wednesday as Hurricane Sally took its sweet time rolling ashore. Unlike many in the area, we were extremely fortunate to not suffer any major damage to our property.
Little did I realize when I left the office on Monday evening that the office would be closed the rest of the week.
With no power, water or internet at the office and most of the surrounding area, even working from home was not an option.
Fortunately, my former legal assistant, Olivia, who moved to Texas in June was able to transfer the phone lines remotely to her cell phone and, armed with her laptop, was able to answer phone calls to the office, reschedule appointments, and generally hold down the fort.
Redundancy at its best.
Well-crafted estate plans also build in redundancy and contingency plans because … well, you know, life happens.
Like unexpected hurricanes.
Or barges hitting bridges and knocking them out of commission.
Nope, not the best time to be living on the beach and working in Pensacola. My twenty minute office commute has tripled overnight, not even accounting for the extra traffic.
Like me, we have many clients who live in Gulf Breeze and Pensacola Beach. I’m brainstorming ways to accommodate them so they can avoid the extra-long commute and traffic to Pensacola via the Garcon Point bridge.
Virtual appointments are still available and I’m also exploring options to hold in-person signing appointments (which we cannot hold virtually yet) in Gulf Breeze proper several times a month.
Hopefully by the time you read this our office phones and internet will be back up and running on Monday morning. If not, you might still catch Olivia manning the phones if you give us a ring.
And, if you are coming into the office this week, you’ll be happy to know that with power and water restored at my condo, I am now showered and clean as a whistle – much to my husband’s delight.
Kristen “Finally Clean With a Hot Shower” Marks
