We're HOME!
And it is so good to be here.
Still no power, but that's ok. We have gas, water, and plenty of light during the day. We have a cooler full of food, ice is available at multiple locations within a half mile of our house, and candles work pretty well for general visibility in the evening. And yes, we are being careful not to set our home on fire. We also have friends to visit when it's dark, and our local movie theater about 8 blocks away is open, too.
Last night we headed up to the Prytania Theater to see In Her Shoes; it didn't really matter what the movie was -- we were just happy to have a diversion. And it worked marvelously. For two solid hours, I completely forgot about all Katrina-related information. It was actually a shock to emerge from the theater and see giant tree trunks chainsawed into piles by the side of the street. The last time I remember a movie having this effect was toward the end of September during my very first year of teaching. I emerged from Enchanted April with this incredibly rested feeling -- the longest block of time that I had not thought about my students and my struggles with teaching and planning new and exciting content every day-- first year teaching is tough! Makes you realize why happy escapist movies were such hits during the Great Depression. They really work.
Happily, each day life feels less stressful. We still need to get a roofer, deal with getting power restored, repair our fences, etc., but we have cleared, sawed, and piled up most of our downed trees. The weather has been lovely -- breezy and cool enough in the evenings to be comfortable while sleeping. Our cats are thrilled to be home. They have gone right back into their old routines. And as Judy Garland said in that great happy escapist depression movie, there's no place like home.
Last night we sat on our front porch with two of our neighbors, enjoying wine and cheese and fruit, talking about our visions for the rebuilding of New Orleans. And already there's a lot of normalcy. The Walgreens looks totally normal -- full of Halloween candy as promised -- the Winn Dixie is practically fully stocked, there's beer, gas, ice, restaurants, movie rentals -- all of the basic amenities.
Plus, if you spend enough time outside doing yard work, eventually the Salvation Army will come along and offer you a hot meal. Beef stew, a slice of white bread, apple sauce, and a giant Gatorade. So that's kind of weird, along with the streets lined with taped up refrigerators. Some folks have taken to writing clever phrases on the outside in permanent ink -- "Eau de Katrina #9" , "Surprise inside -- don't open until Halloween", "Free Food!" Ok, not so clever.
Gotta go. time to leave here and go home and light candles. But know that we are happy and safe and life is good.
Still no power, but that's ok. We have gas, water, and plenty of light during the day. We have a cooler full of food, ice is available at multiple locations within a half mile of our house, and candles work pretty well for general visibility in the evening. And yes, we are being careful not to set our home on fire. We also have friends to visit when it's dark, and our local movie theater about 8 blocks away is open, too.
Last night we headed up to the Prytania Theater to see In Her Shoes; it didn't really matter what the movie was -- we were just happy to have a diversion. And it worked marvelously. For two solid hours, I completely forgot about all Katrina-related information. It was actually a shock to emerge from the theater and see giant tree trunks chainsawed into piles by the side of the street. The last time I remember a movie having this effect was toward the end of September during my very first year of teaching. I emerged from Enchanted April with this incredibly rested feeling -- the longest block of time that I had not thought about my students and my struggles with teaching and planning new and exciting content every day-- first year teaching is tough! Makes you realize why happy escapist movies were such hits during the Great Depression. They really work.
Happily, each day life feels less stressful. We still need to get a roofer, deal with getting power restored, repair our fences, etc., but we have cleared, sawed, and piled up most of our downed trees. The weather has been lovely -- breezy and cool enough in the evenings to be comfortable while sleeping. Our cats are thrilled to be home. They have gone right back into their old routines. And as Judy Garland said in that great happy escapist depression movie, there's no place like home.
Last night we sat on our front porch with two of our neighbors, enjoying wine and cheese and fruit, talking about our visions for the rebuilding of New Orleans. And already there's a lot of normalcy. The Walgreens looks totally normal -- full of Halloween candy as promised -- the Winn Dixie is practically fully stocked, there's beer, gas, ice, restaurants, movie rentals -- all of the basic amenities.
Plus, if you spend enough time outside doing yard work, eventually the Salvation Army will come along and offer you a hot meal. Beef stew, a slice of white bread, apple sauce, and a giant Gatorade. So that's kind of weird, along with the streets lined with taped up refrigerators. Some folks have taken to writing clever phrases on the outside in permanent ink -- "Eau de Katrina #9" , "Surprise inside -- don't open until Halloween", "Free Food!" Ok, not so clever.
Gotta go. time to leave here and go home and light candles. But know that we are happy and safe and life is good.
posted by carla at 9:05 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home