Photo's here

So I feel compelled to tell the story of the last three weeks to anyone that
will read past this line.  I went from the white beach sands of San Juan to
the utterly devastating and helpless feeling of New Orleans.  I recommend
taking the vacation second, not first.  But anyway, I wanted to tell my
experience in New Orleans.

It all started with an overwhelming sense to help out in a crisis, like so
many people have and always do, except me.  Well, this time I got a great
opportunity.  I hooked up with the Heritage Conservation Network, who set me
up as the facilitator for a what ended up to be a 12 day volunteer effort.
I went with a co-worker/apprentice Nick Jaquith.  He and I went down pretty
much blind, only seeing a few photographs of the actual buildings we were to
work on. 

The first weekend, Jan 10-13, we worked at the Willie Mae Restaurant, on St.
Ann Street on the 7th Ward.  Not a great area, but Ms Willie Mae is a
renowned person and institution, winning the prestigious James Beard Award,
the Oscar's of the culinary world.  She calls everybody "baby".  So poor
Willie Mae, got 4 feet of water and lost her restaurant.  No insurance,
nothing.  So HCN and the Southern Foodway Alliance got anywhere from 13-19
volunteers to help clean out this building.  We all showed up on Friday, met
and talked for the first time, checked out the building together, and
started tearing in and out.  And I had to tell them that there is limited
water, no electricity, and if you gotta pee, go for a long drive or stand in
the corner.  Of course we had personal protection.  For mold that is.

So what of the buildings down there you ask.  Well, imagine this, you soak
your house, rugs, clothing and general stuff in water mixed with gas, sewage
and anything else you can pick up as you're rushing in.  Then you let the
water sit anywhere from two days to what, four weeks?.  Then you mix in a
bit of really hot weather, a lack of electricity, services like garbage pick
up, people gone, and a fridge full of stuff that turns into what my brother
Andy like to call "Genesis".  Then let it sit, and sit, and sit till now.
Yes, till now.  And even tomorrow, and most likely the next day, even year.
Then stick on top of that some egregious, incompetent leadership, that
apparently has been that way for, let's see, forever.

So you kinda get the picture.  Soak, hot, then drain.  Then get a lot of
people to come in and tear into things.  We have your standard black mold
anywhere from 2' to 4 feet up.  Tear out your drywall, then another layer of
paneling, then another layer, and then, oh wow, rot.  Rot from neglect, not
floods.  So here I am with over a dozen volunteers who have no experience
telling the difference between a hammer and a screwdriver (Where were you
Uncle John?).  Then have them pull out mold, rat and general funky junky
stuff and put it into a whole heap of crap on the sidewalk.  Yes the
sidewalk, cause there are not enough dumpsters to demo 80% of a city.  So we
pile up, trucks come by and clean things up.  The Army Corps of engineers, a
private contractor, or just anyone looking for some scrap.

And did I mention there is only maybe one or two families (and that is a
lot, some none) per neighborhood living there!!!!! Don't worry, the cops
will look aft.......well, maybe not.  People trying to fix up there houses
are getting robbed at night, since no one lives in the neighborhood.  And
they have been getting robbed since the storm.  And then some neighborhoods
have to declare themselves viable, meaning they have to see who and how many
will come back.  And not all will ever come back.  And it has nothing to do
with how much water you got, just really the politics of the land.
Remember, 80% of the city was flooded, not demolished.  After proving
themselves, then they can repair.  Oh wait, the city is not allowing people
to hook up their electricity until they are finished with the drywall.
WHAT????  And it goes on.

Then the stories of survivors.  The water went from 6" to 6' in twenty
minutes, two hours after the storm.  One woman climbed in her kayak, that
was floating by her front door.  She put her 60 lb dog in, rowed across the
street and slept on her neighbors open ceiling joists.  She is a retired
city worker.  Another was a retired school principle, who was fortunate to
leave at 2AM Sunday.  Another was wading through the water, it got above her
head and she grabbed onto an empty 5 gallon jug.  She ended up at the dome,
and then the stories started.  Let's just say it was not Club Med.  What we
heard on TV was definitely "watered down". Over 1200 dead, and 3200 missing.

Stories of a mobile convoy of surgical units being turned away 1/2 mile from
the dome because no one could give clearance to go in after 3 days.  Or the
large deposit of gas and oil reserves under the 9th ward, where they will
not allow people to pull permits, or have to justify their neighborhoods.
Huh, wonder why?

So it was very disappointing.  You know, if the house were leveled, then it
would be easy.  But these are houses and neighborhoods decades old, some
over a hundred.  These are teachers, policeman, restaurant workers, and yes,
the very poor.  I have never seen projects so big.  But these are PEOPLE of
various income levels.  They had modest houses, and not all thought of "the
flood".  Even if they should have, it is too late now.  It is just amazing
that after 5 months, they do not have a good plan for a massive rebuilding.
No call for contractors or any other help.  Billions go to the Red Cross,
but they can't help rebuild.  They are still keeping people sheltered and
fed (us too, since there was not a food joint for miles, the meal was pretty
good). 

It was not all doom and gloom.  Someone planning a long time ago, built the
French Quarter above flood level.  Only a foot or so.  Might as well keep
the watering hole dry they said.  We had some good food (only 30% of
restaurants open), and lots of drink.  Everyone was extremely thankful,
amazingly thankful.  Good people, could talk to anyone, anywhere.  Not like
the Northeast at all.  Or maybe cause all of the bad people are now in
Houston.

Looking at this place for the first time, I was astounded.  Before then, I
was thinking, "turn it into a park".  But then I see the buildings, met the
people, and I just can't think of taking what they had away.  This is mainly
a man made problem, WE did this, and we have to fix it.  So, if you can,
give money to a project, or a local group.  They really need the help from
US now, since the U.S. can't make a decision.

For more info, visit http://www.southernfoodways.com/ about Willie Mae

Or http://www.prcno.org/ , for the Preservation Resource Center, who is
really helping the neighborhoods out.

Or volunteer, but be cautious and do your research.  It is not so much
dangerous, but frustrating.

Thanks for reading this.


Love,

Rob