Kindness of strangers …
The little things add up to something really big. From Tuscaloosa, our first stop outside Louisiana, to Columbus Ohio, our first apartment since this odyssey began a month ago, Hurricane Katrina’s evacuees are being “adopted” across the country.
Columbus is the first place we can call “home.” We expect to be here as long as three months, but had to sign a nine-month lease. “Olentangy Village,” (OV), understands the situation and will let us out of the lease for a mere three months rent. We are paying so little that this will not be a big problem.
Yes, we are living in subsidized housing. I don’t know if our benefactor is OV or the feds (FEMA?). The apartment is pretty nice, but the furniture they are lending us (yes, for free) brings it down a little. How can we complain about stuff like that without sounding whiny?
We are in the “Rivers” section of OV, named for the adjacent Olentangy River. We have three couples-friends in OV, from UNO connections. We have been too busy to establish local friendships, or even to enjoy any of Columbus’ attractions.
How could we be so busy? Susan is putting in pretty full days at Ohio State, earning her continuing UNO pay by doing work related to her position in New Orleans. I am looking for work, taking charge of our finances while trying to advance our insurance claims, and running errands by the bushel. It takes time to set up a household from scratch. I may author a guide for evacuees after we have gotten all this together.
Susan is somewhat at home at OSU. She got her Ph.D. at OSU almost 30 years ago, and has kept up with members of the PoliSci faculty at professional meetings. They have provided her an office (better than the one at UNO), and all the related accoutrements.
My situation is a bit more fluid. We evacuated only days after I had finished the MBA program at UNO. I did some job-hunting in N.O. before Katrina, but cannot say that my attempts were making me hopeful. Columbus seems to have a bit more “vitality” in its job market.
As I register at a county job bank, and with an agency specializing in employment for seniors, I seem to be describing myself as an academic. In parallel I am emailing résumés to local colleges at which I feel I am qualified.
Columbus is the first place we can call “home.” We expect to be here as long as three months, but had to sign a nine-month lease. “Olentangy Village,” (OV), understands the situation and will let us out of the lease for a mere three months rent. We are paying so little that this will not be a big problem.
Yes, we are living in subsidized housing. I don’t know if our benefactor is OV or the feds (FEMA?). The apartment is pretty nice, but the furniture they are lending us (yes, for free) brings it down a little. How can we complain about stuff like that without sounding whiny?
We are in the “Rivers” section of OV, named for the adjacent Olentangy River. We have three couples-friends in OV, from UNO connections. We have been too busy to establish local friendships, or even to enjoy any of Columbus’ attractions.
How could we be so busy? Susan is putting in pretty full days at Ohio State, earning her continuing UNO pay by doing work related to her position in New Orleans. I am looking for work, taking charge of our finances while trying to advance our insurance claims, and running errands by the bushel. It takes time to set up a household from scratch. I may author a guide for evacuees after we have gotten all this together.
Susan is somewhat at home at OSU. She got her Ph.D. at OSU almost 30 years ago, and has kept up with members of the PoliSci faculty at professional meetings. They have provided her an office (better than the one at UNO), and all the related accoutrements.
My situation is a bit more fluid. We evacuated only days after I had finished the MBA program at UNO. I did some job-hunting in N.O. before Katrina, but cannot say that my attempts were making me hopeful. Columbus seems to have a bit more “vitality” in its job market.
As I register at a county job bank, and with an agency specializing in employment for seniors, I seem to be describing myself as an academic. In parallel I am emailing résumés to local colleges at which I feel I am qualified.
posted by John V at 8:28 AM
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