2: And the rains came ...
Washington, DC: On Sunday we drove from Slidell to Tuscaloosa. It was a beautiful day, but we couldn't help but think about what was bearing in on the folks back home. Ironically, our dearest ones went from the south to the north shores of Lake Pontchartrain, to two locations in Covington, which we had rejected as too close for comfort.
On the road, we touched base with everybody back home, and three couples that we are on a "keep track of" basis. Two couples had driven overnight to Houston, and another drove to Cape Girardeau MO. On our afternoon arrival in Tuscaloosa, Susan reminisced with her friends there while I was getting to know them (lovely people, the Cotters). We had a very pleasant dinner and an early bed time. Running away from hurricanes is stressful and exhausting.
Monday our cell phone/lifeline went out of commission. Whether the problem was excessive traffic on the New Orleans exchanges, or towers down we don't know, but it was pretty scary. Television and Internet reports had nowhere near the detail we needed. Early reports made no mention of the north shore, which we took as good news.
We stayed in Tuscaloosa until Wednesday, then drove to Birmingham to fly to Washington, DC for Susan to attend an APSA (AmerPoliSciAssn) convention. This is our approach to normal life. We had spent the recommended maximum of three days with our friends in Alabama, needed a place to stay and figured DC was as good a place as any.
By the way, Susan was interviewed by CNN, about the "perfect storm," and it should air at 6 pm tonight (9/1).
When we leave here on Sunday, we get our car at the B'ham airport, and the fact that we have nowhere to go may finally hit us. We have a niece's wedding to attend in Memphis on 9/10, and will then stay with Susan's brother in exurban Cincinnati until we have enough information to do whatever comes next.
We are incredibly lucky. Our loved ones are fine, even if we are all homeless. We have no idea if we have a house to return to, or when we might find out. We'll keep you posted.
On the road, we touched base with everybody back home, and three couples that we are on a "keep track of" basis. Two couples had driven overnight to Houston, and another drove to Cape Girardeau MO. On our afternoon arrival in Tuscaloosa, Susan reminisced with her friends there while I was getting to know them (lovely people, the Cotters). We had a very pleasant dinner and an early bed time. Running away from hurricanes is stressful and exhausting.
Monday our cell phone/lifeline went out of commission. Whether the problem was excessive traffic on the New Orleans exchanges, or towers down we don't know, but it was pretty scary. Television and Internet reports had nowhere near the detail we needed. Early reports made no mention of the north shore, which we took as good news.
We stayed in Tuscaloosa until Wednesday, then drove to Birmingham to fly to Washington, DC for Susan to attend an APSA (AmerPoliSciAssn) convention. This is our approach to normal life. We had spent the recommended maximum of three days with our friends in Alabama, needed a place to stay and figured DC was as good a place as any.
By the way, Susan was interviewed by CNN, about the "perfect storm," and it should air at 6 pm tonight (9/1).
When we leave here on Sunday, we get our car at the B'ham airport, and the fact that we have nowhere to go may finally hit us. We have a niece's wedding to attend in Memphis on 9/10, and will then stay with Susan's brother in exurban Cincinnati until we have enough information to do whatever comes next.
We are incredibly lucky. Our loved ones are fine, even if we are all homeless. We have no idea if we have a house to return to, or when we might find out. We'll keep you posted.
posted by John V at 2:21 PM
2 Comments:
I'm glad to hear that everything is okay, despite not knowing about the house. That has to be tough.
When I was younger and living in New Jersey, our town flooded. It was exciting for about 2 or 3 hours because we were released from school early. After that, it was a hassle. We ended up staying in a hotel for about a week while waiting for the water to recede enough that our basement could be pumped out.
The destruction from our flood wasn't that bad. Most of the water went into the basement. Nothing on the main living areas was affected because of the way the house was built.
While it doesn't really compare, I can imagine just a little bit of what people are going through not having a house to go home to.
My prayers go out to you and everyone affected by Hurricane Katrina.
Chris
Deliberate Chaos
BA~~32
I have not heard from my relatives in NO. No contact with cousins, uncles. Anyone. Grand mother and mother and father got out Sunday. Most of Metairie is fine. But I have relatives and friends all over the city. Their businesses are not open, making no money. They have several shops in the Quarter and I've seen glimpses of them on the news. I would like to know how Royal Street made out. I've been watching stremaing news from WWL. It's much better than the sensational crap on all the cbale channels including FOX! I can't wait to go help out!
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