well, i'm settling into the ship and am getting all of my stuff working again...but still no wireless or cable(even basic cable--just static) so all i have is my movies and dvds...not too bad since i really hate commercials anyways....
i have also started driving around the city and am taking some photos...the amount of damage that is still here is unbeleivable, and the 9th ward is still completely flattened....it seriously looks like a bomb went off and wiped everything out....
i was talking to this girl last night who is orginally from new orleans(family based here...or more like WAS based here...) she evacuated to houston and her parents stayed in nola for the hurricane....she went for three weeks thinking that they were dead and later found out that her mom was alive but was apparently shot, along with her dog....her dog died though...their house was flooded and they pretty much lost everything...she has no birth certificate...
her dad is a doctor and stayed in town to help everyone he could at the time....he apparently had 4 doctor friends that simply committed suicide because they just couldn't take the lack of control in helping people and not having any of the supplies to do so....unbeleivable...she attended 4 funerals last week....
she didn't live with her family, she had an apartment....that was also badly flooded and molded over....so now she is living on the ship with the rest of us and she is so pleased with just having a roof(or what would constitute a roof) over her head....she is currently on medication for depression and post traumatic stress disorder...but she never cried during telling her story....i can't even imagine what i would do if i were her, and i honestly think this girl must have such a strong character to still have a smile on her face, which she does....
her parents are now living in new york because that was where her parents found employment...they are both doctors.
hearing this story over dinner really put things in perspective for me and honestly her strength and determination to stay positive really made me embarrassed about all the bitching i've been doing recently about the accomadations on the ship.....and if i compare it to my own, much less traumatic experience, times were more stressful in philadelphia for the first 3 weeks when i was close to homeless, almost completely broke(less than 50$ in the bank), and starting classes at a new school....
that girl is seriously amazing to me and reflects the character of the city at large...determined and dedicated, come hell or high water, to rebuild new orleans...
TAKE THAT BUERACRATS AND NAY SAYERS THAT KEEP SAYING THAT NOLA ISN"T WORTH REBUILDING OR IS TOO EXPENSIVE!!!
Bush is visiting with Mayor Ray Nagin today and has "dedicated" the nation to rebuilding the region, but even getting the requested FEMA trailers down here is slow-going....i was listening to a local radio station interviewing a councilman for NO and he was saying that over 65 percent of the requested trailers still haven't come in yet...and it is unknown when they arrive...
katrina's rath is still being delt with both physically and emotionally here, and i truly hope that the nation has not forgotten the people and what they are having to deal with because it's still really fresh in the people's minds...
i'll upload the photos she took of the 9th ward asap...you have GOT to see to believe...
posted by ekeith @ 1:38 PM
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