The 8th day
Okay, I'll try to be quick in this update b/c I still have tendonitis, I'm exhausted and am feeling so darn overwhelmed, but writing this stuff actually helps so here you go:
The benefit concert turned out pretty well. At first they were expecting a lot of military and we cooked a bunch of gumbo to feed them, as well as for the remaining people in this one temporary shelter. Well the military were gone on a night mission so they couldn't come, and the temporary shelter people were moved that afternoon to a more permanent one in Lake Charles (to the west of us, near Texas), so we were afraid we'd have nobody there and nobody to feed, so I was on standby to take all the gumbo to another shelter.
Then, these boys from Arkansas showed up. One of them is a pastor in Conway, Arkansas (about an hour north of Little Rock unless you're like the normal Arkansasian and drive 80 on that highway then it's 40 minutes or so north). Anyway, he had graduated from LSU down here, and just felt like he needed to do something, so he wrote to area churches and put an ad in the paper and came up with a large group of basically Arkansas rednecks and not so rednecks with chainsaws and they drove the 8 or 9 or however many hours it takes, and immediately began cutting up the trees blocking roadways in St. Tammany parish. That's one of the parishes that was hit very hard with a lot of wind damage, and we've had no communications in and out of the parish b/c of the damage, and the light company trucks and emergency personnel couldn't really get in there. So these 'good ol' boys' spent a 12 hour day cutting through the trees and moving them to the side, clearing the roads. They also met a few families who stayed for the storm, and brought them some water and offered to take them where they could get food, but I don't think any of them really wanted to leave their homes.
So our gumbo was eaten up by these hungry chainsaw bearing rednecks (and not-so-rednecks to be fair), and they all stayed for our concert, gave some testimonials themselves, and helped us raise some money.
They had some journalists and a cameraman there from New York, they were with some Episcopal/Anglican newspaper I think. One was british so of course they tried to get Pete to talk to him, but they were of course very busy so I don't think they really talked. They didn't have a place to stay but it took just a few seconds for someone to offer rooms, and there you go.
The next morning these guys came back and our church cooked them breakfast as well as the remaining evacuees at one of the temporary shelters who haven't been moved yet, and I guess the guys wanted to thank us, because by the time we got to the church a little later to sort donated supplies and haul it off in our truck to a shelter, it was already taken care of. So our church volunteers just found a new place to volunteer and spent the day there. It is mainly sorting donated supplies in an un-airconditioned warehouse so they wouldn't let me go, but Pete is going tomorrow I think. He spent today doing something at the church, and I took the day off... until my mother got me into vacuuming and dusting and cleaning the house.
A few other things - they're rescuing the pets that these evacuees left behind at the Superdome and all over, and bringing them to a few pet shelters here, one of them is very close to us. They're trying to reunite these pets w/the evacuees, and I hope that it happens. I also hope the health of these pets is okay, b/c since they found E Coli bacteria in the water in New Orleans, I'm afraid that's what the pets have been drinking while left behind.
And for the forgotten parishes - the ones the media ignores and that still desperately need rescuing and help - people are starting to make headway into those. Ever since the storm, all communications were lost, and because of downed trees and debris, it has been impossible to get in or out. But there are volunteers and relief workers now, trying to open the parishes up, and we're just now learning of the confirmed devastation in these places. They're talking about when the schools will be reopened, and while some have positive outlooks with October, others are saying at least another year. I know that there are many states who are opening their doors to these kids to be allowed into their school systems - but these families have to get there and find some sort of long-term housing in order to send their kids there. It's just not that easy.
I haven't heard from our Metairie houseguest/friend yet. The past two days he was staying with another family who finally regained power at their baton rouge home. I know that his place of work, the Sheraton in downtown New Orleans, is being used as a triage for patients from the hospital, so it must not be too damaged, so that is kinda good news... I suppose. I just don't know how they're going to get New Orleans up and running as a positive tourist destination again. It was always a dirty, crime-filled city to the rest of us that really know it, but we of course still loved going into downtown and the french quarter on weekends or days off for a good time... but who knows when the city will be drained, cleaned and bacteria free again to do that.
Anyway, in my search to try to do some sort of adopt-a-family thing, I've learned that there is something called the Angel project, which is flying families to wherever they want to go, to get housing. So those of you in the northeast and places too far to really drive that have told me that you'd love to open your home, try www.openyourhome.com or org or whatever it is and fill out a form, b/c I've heard some good happy stories of people being flown out to even Boston to stay with families, or to have churches up there put them up in an apartment. Get together with your work buddies or religious group or whatever and if you'd like to adopt a family and try to move them somewhere or put them up somewhere, or just try to buy them specific items - I'm going to try to go to the Lamar-Dixon Center which is the biggest shelter near us and find some families myself. That seems the best way so far.
I'm going to bed, long day tomorrow that includes doctor's appts now that they've found that I have gestational diabetes and more thyroid problems. Yay me. No wonder I've been feeling like crap lately instead of the great "you'll feel so good" second trimester I keep hearing about. Goodnight!
The benefit concert turned out pretty well. At first they were expecting a lot of military and we cooked a bunch of gumbo to feed them, as well as for the remaining people in this one temporary shelter. Well the military were gone on a night mission so they couldn't come, and the temporary shelter people were moved that afternoon to a more permanent one in Lake Charles (to the west of us, near Texas), so we were afraid we'd have nobody there and nobody to feed, so I was on standby to take all the gumbo to another shelter.
Then, these boys from Arkansas showed up. One of them is a pastor in Conway, Arkansas (about an hour north of Little Rock unless you're like the normal Arkansasian and drive 80 on that highway then it's 40 minutes or so north). Anyway, he had graduated from LSU down here, and just felt like he needed to do something, so he wrote to area churches and put an ad in the paper and came up with a large group of basically Arkansas rednecks and not so rednecks with chainsaws and they drove the 8 or 9 or however many hours it takes, and immediately began cutting up the trees blocking roadways in St. Tammany parish. That's one of the parishes that was hit very hard with a lot of wind damage, and we've had no communications in and out of the parish b/c of the damage, and the light company trucks and emergency personnel couldn't really get in there. So these 'good ol' boys' spent a 12 hour day cutting through the trees and moving them to the side, clearing the roads. They also met a few families who stayed for the storm, and brought them some water and offered to take them where they could get food, but I don't think any of them really wanted to leave their homes.
So our gumbo was eaten up by these hungry chainsaw bearing rednecks (and not-so-rednecks to be fair), and they all stayed for our concert, gave some testimonials themselves, and helped us raise some money.
They had some journalists and a cameraman there from New York, they were with some Episcopal/Anglican newspaper I think. One was british so of course they tried to get Pete to talk to him, but they were of course very busy so I don't think they really talked. They didn't have a place to stay but it took just a few seconds for someone to offer rooms, and there you go.
The next morning these guys came back and our church cooked them breakfast as well as the remaining evacuees at one of the temporary shelters who haven't been moved yet, and I guess the guys wanted to thank us, because by the time we got to the church a little later to sort donated supplies and haul it off in our truck to a shelter, it was already taken care of. So our church volunteers just found a new place to volunteer and spent the day there. It is mainly sorting donated supplies in an un-airconditioned warehouse so they wouldn't let me go, but Pete is going tomorrow I think. He spent today doing something at the church, and I took the day off... until my mother got me into vacuuming and dusting and cleaning the house.
A few other things - they're rescuing the pets that these evacuees left behind at the Superdome and all over, and bringing them to a few pet shelters here, one of them is very close to us. They're trying to reunite these pets w/the evacuees, and I hope that it happens. I also hope the health of these pets is okay, b/c since they found E Coli bacteria in the water in New Orleans, I'm afraid that's what the pets have been drinking while left behind.
And for the forgotten parishes - the ones the media ignores and that still desperately need rescuing and help - people are starting to make headway into those. Ever since the storm, all communications were lost, and because of downed trees and debris, it has been impossible to get in or out. But there are volunteers and relief workers now, trying to open the parishes up, and we're just now learning of the confirmed devastation in these places. They're talking about when the schools will be reopened, and while some have positive outlooks with October, others are saying at least another year. I know that there are many states who are opening their doors to these kids to be allowed into their school systems - but these families have to get there and find some sort of long-term housing in order to send their kids there. It's just not that easy.
I haven't heard from our Metairie houseguest/friend yet. The past two days he was staying with another family who finally regained power at their baton rouge home. I know that his place of work, the Sheraton in downtown New Orleans, is being used as a triage for patients from the hospital, so it must not be too damaged, so that is kinda good news... I suppose. I just don't know how they're going to get New Orleans up and running as a positive tourist destination again. It was always a dirty, crime-filled city to the rest of us that really know it, but we of course still loved going into downtown and the french quarter on weekends or days off for a good time... but who knows when the city will be drained, cleaned and bacteria free again to do that.
Anyway, in my search to try to do some sort of adopt-a-family thing, I've learned that there is something called the Angel project, which is flying families to wherever they want to go, to get housing. So those of you in the northeast and places too far to really drive that have told me that you'd love to open your home, try www.openyourhome.com or org or whatever it is and fill out a form, b/c I've heard some good happy stories of people being flown out to even Boston to stay with families, or to have churches up there put them up in an apartment. Get together with your work buddies or religious group or whatever and if you'd like to adopt a family and try to move them somewhere or put them up somewhere, or just try to buy them specific items - I'm going to try to go to the Lamar-Dixon Center which is the biggest shelter near us and find some families myself. That seems the best way so far.
I'm going to bed, long day tomorrow that includes doctor's appts now that they've found that I have gestational diabetes and more thyroid problems. Yay me. No wonder I've been feeling like crap lately instead of the great "you'll feel so good" second trimester I keep hearing about. Goodnight!
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