The Boy Has Skils

Last weekend, just before I came down, I decided we need more shelves in the pantry. (Having free time has released my inner handy man -- well, my inner trying-to-be-handy man.) As with the tile, the wife had her doubts, especially when she found out the shelves had to be cut to fit. She openly mocked my ability to use a circular saw, though to be honest, I have to agree with her opinion.

Today, we moved again -- this time to a house that needed to have its roof put on. (For the curious, we moved because our team leader yesterday was busy and due to the fact that there were so few volunteers today.) One of the tasks needed was to notch the gable on the end of the tresses so that the roof supports could be placed in it. And the notching required use of a circular saw! Quickly realizing I could expand my talents (and make the wife happier that I am here), I volunteered.

Following the training of Rachel (from Habitat), Gale (a volunteer from Minnesota) and I quickly got to it and finished in no time. Now, I am no construction expert but I think our notches are both perfectly placed and very well cut. And I am a bona fide Skil saw stud! (Plus pretty handy with a miter saw as well.)

The new location is amongst a series of destroyed homes. Not as bad as yesterday's -- but still pretty empty. You sort of get numb to all to destruction, until you take 10 seconds to consider the reality for the people involved. In the rubble by my car, I yanked on an electrical cord and finally pulled up a hair-straigtener -- not unlike the one the wife uses at times. Certainly makes it real again.

They are just material things, they can be replaced

I hear this expression all the time. I use it myself (usually followed or preceded by "I am so glad you are okay"). But imagine that you lost everything of meaning to you -- your photos, keepsakes, furniture, books, pictures, etc -- except (hopefully) your loved ones.

We moved to a new home site today -- and did more traditional house-building activities. (I put up siding and did pretty well, though being on a 24-foot ladder all day is pretty nerve racking.) My sore body appreciated the change of effort.

But the new site was on one of those ghost streets where almost no one lives. Immediately next door was a home that has been totally destroyed. The water line for the house was about 7 or 8 feet high, with higher surges likely according to our team leader. (For perspective, the Lower 9th Ward across the Industrial Canal had 20-30 feet of water.) Peering in from the street, I could see the house was still full of its contents. At lunch, I went over and took these pictures from the front door.

Everything this family had has been destroyed, velvet tiger cub painting and all (h/t Audrey for the comments to correct me) - except for their Mardi Gras beads. There is a bowl on a table that looks like there was food in it. Their TV is slammed against the front door and laying on top of some pictures and books. Their washing machine is crushed like a Coke can. Oh, and the owner has a month to come back and claim the house or it will be destroyed. The family did all escape (per the markings on the side of the house) and they probably lost all their mementos of their life on Rocheblave Street. But all they can replace their material possessions.

Every single item...

Owwww!

I arrived on schedule (7AM) on a bright, cold Monday morning in New Orleans (cold for New Orleans in January is 32). I met a few people already there and there was about 20 of us ready to work. Clearly, the work that needed to be done was roofing -- 4 houses needs roofing work done, so I prepared to do that. But then 4 buses from IBM pulled up -- 200 strong. Props to IBM! They had a team meeting in New Orleans and decided to take one day and do volunteering. Excellent idea IMO.

They arranged us into groups and indeed, I was going to do roofing. But due to a lack of supervisors (and ladders), I went to do "landscaping" (some IBM zealots were really into roofing). Basically, we had to spread about 10 huge mounds of sand and dirt over the backyards of completed houses. I quickly took on wheelbarrow duty and moved what seemed like 200 wheelbarrows full of heavy sand by the houses. We completed that before lunch. Then we dug post holes for the fence behind the houses. The top soil was soft and easy -- but a foot down it was heavy, thick clay. But we made great progress and completed many pieces of the fence line.

But now, my body aches. The wheelbarrow duty was torture on the arms and shoulders. The digging ripped my back and arms again. I am so damn sore, I am afraid I will not be able to move tomorrow. Anyone who does this kind of work regularly (including the Habitat supervisors) is amazing. After not sleeping last night (nervous energy!), I am expecting to collapse any minute now.

The highlight was meeting Latetia.

Originally from New Orleans East, she lost her home and her business (she owned a beauty salon). Habitat owners have to put in 350 hours of "sweat equity" before they get their house and she was starting today. Her spirit was so great-- she had no bitterness over what happened, was so kind and appreciative, and was so eager to learn about how her house was being built -- that working hard knowing it helps her was a pleasure. One of the reasons I love this city is that New Orleans natives are always so pleasant and friendly. And Latetia was a prime example. People like her are why I am here, even if she can't paint. Good luck Latetia!

First Impressions

I landed early Sunday morning and for the first time I can remember, peered out my window to see the city. Everything looked very normal -- until I looked a bit closer. Many neighborhoods had normal looking houses but a small white trailers dotting the yards. FEMA trailers I soon realized.

After checking into my hotel, I decided to take a drive to the work site. Habitat works just west of the Industrial Canal which I thought was the 9th Ward. My good buddy Paul (a New Orleans native) pointed out that the 9th Ward is actually east of the canal and when the levees broke, the canal flooded to the east. (Thanks Paul for all the suggestions and for actually reading this blog!) Apparently my first impressions are not from the areas most severely affected. I will visit there (Lower 9th Ward) tomorrow.

My initial thoughts were the physical damage was substantial -- but not overwhelming. I got lost driving around (I assume one of the effects of the flooding was that many street signs were destroyed since a large number were missing.) and found a stretch of streets that were literally a ghost town. No one could be seen, no cars, no bicycles, nothing. The emptiness was very depressing and eerie. It reminded me of downtown Detroit -- with empty shells of homes everywhere. However, these homes were damaged beyond repair. These pictures show the kinds of damage pretty well.

There were a few FEMA towns" -- basically parking lots packed with FEMA trailers. But again, no one was visible (save for the security guard at the gate). I was encouraged by the number of houses with the FEMA trailer sitting in front of the home. " I assumed this meant people were returning to New Orleans - which has to be good.

I finally found the Habitat location and there were rows of newly built houses (about 20-25) that looked very nice. I saw another guy doing the same things as I am (makes one feel less crazy to share the experience). Tomorrow I will discover the work required.

We have lift off

Heading for the airport soon. I am staying at the Courtyard in Metairie (thanks Michael!) so drop by if you are in the area. Or call my cell - I expect I will have a lot of time at night.

Look for some pictures tomorrow. And thanks again for all the words of support.

The Freedom Writers

For the wife's birthday, she wanted to see "The Freedom Writer's" so the whole family went to it. I did not know much about it -- but was so glad I saw it. It has a very inspirational message that touched all of us. Hope, courage, dedication, doing the right thing when it is the hardest thing to do.

We all say we want to do that - but so few us do. Some I respect told me a great Ghandi quote, "Actions express priorities." Erin Gruwell, here's to you.

When the Levees Broke

I just finished watching Spike Lee's "When the Levees Broke" -- an HBO documentary on Katrina and its aftermath. It was excellent -- poignant moments mixed with history, humor and outrage. Not so much a fan of Spike, but this is well worth watching if you care about Katrina and New Orleans.

Some of the more memorable parts:

• At one point, a cameraman is filming the empty streets (it looks like Canal Street to me) and another man walks up to him. The cameraman can be heard excitedly saying the city dodged the bullet as the storm had turned East. The other man shook his head and explained that the levees had failed and water was pouring into the city. The cameraman did not believe him but ran off to investigate. I remember watching TV in the office at the time and some people I work with laughing at the scene of a house on fire in the flood. I was pretty angry at their reaction and was kind of an ass to them. But they deserved it.
  
• One scene shows a lifelong resident of the Lower 9th returning to her home for the first time. It is heartbreaking to see her reaction to the destruction of her home.
• Someone working for the city explained that, 9 months after Katrina, they had removed 25 times the amount of debris of the World Trade Centers and were barely 2/3 of the way done. I saw the mound of debris from the WTC from a few blocks away. The idea that New Orleans had a pile of debris 40 times as large is mind-boggling.
  
• Finally, there are two stories of sons losing their mothers -- one died at the Convention Center and one who died in her own home. The Convention Center story was incredible, the man had to leave his mother's dead body by the side of the road (she sat their for a week at least). How can someone be asked to do that? The other was also tragic -- FEMA checked the house once and missed the body, as it was under the refrigerator. The son was just speechless at times, the pain etched on his face, as he explained what happened.
  

The images are stark and amazing. It is just unbelievable to watch and think this happened in America.

Preparation

One of the first things people ask me about my trip is - "Do you have any idea how to do house construction?" The answer is a big NO! Still, one has to try to help, even when that person is not so good at the task.

But I can also prepare by "practicing" at home. We had a few tiles loose in our shower and the wife decided they needed to be fixed ASAP. Since I have a bit more time on my hands, I thought I could take it on. The wife thought this was a terrible idea (see first paragraph) as I would surely mess it up. Shockingly, I ignored her suggestions and comments and pushed ahead. Pulling up the loose tiles revealed even more loose tiles and well, the project grew. Some seriously cracked grout further complicated the efforts.

Still, I pressed onward. I decided I needed colored grout - and the local hardware store did not carry it. I found a tile store and managed to get the correct (I prayed) grout. With all the right pieces, I was ready to do the work.

Using a grout rake, I sanded down some of the grout that was cracked. I replaced the loose tile with tile cement and let it sit for a night. Then I mixed the grout (with the expert help of my construction specialist brother-in-law from the ski slopes - B Square Construction for those of you in the Frederick Maryland area) and started to fill in the areas needing it. Following the cleanup, I had an anxious 24 hours of waiting until the grout had finally cured.

And the results are now visible (left). The repaired tiles and grout are shown with some of the existing tiles. It is a decent effort that even the wife appreciated. Someone who had no clue would never know which tiles I had replaced.

So armed with my skills as a "tiler", I am now fully prepared to head to New Orleans and build a house!

Confirmed

After a bit of confusion, it is "all systems go" (finally) for my trip down to New Orleans. I am confirmed with Habitat for Humanity starting on the 29th of January. I head down on the 28th and will have most of the day Sunday to tour and see the area.

I am very excited to finally be getting down there. Watching Spike Lee's "When the Levees Broke" has been a new inspiration and I just want to help.

Delayed

Due to some scheduling issues (on both ends), my adventure in New Orleans has been delayed a week or so (and subsequently extended so I will be there as long.) In the interim, I am going out to buy Spike Lee's "When the Levees Broke" to get a more detailed perspective on what happened during and after Katrina.

I am also kind of bummed that I will miss being in New Orleans when the Saints play the Bears this Sunday. They are fanatical about that team and I am hoping the success of the Saints will help bring the city back. I am also hoping the Saints make the Super Bowl, because I will in the city for that and it will be a great event to witness.

Crime in NOLA - UPDATE

There is another issue to deal with for those areas affected by Katrina -- crime. It seems as if New Orleans is in the middle of a crime wave and they are considering a curfew. (I hope my wife doesn't find about this before I go -- or she'll probably make me cancel.)

I suppose it makes sense -- people are not in a place where they feel connected and so many workers are there temporarily (though it is reprehensible). But I am beginning to really think New Orleans may never recover.

I guess that gives me another reason to do what I am doing -- albeit carefully I think.

UPDATE: Well, my wife did find out about the crime and is (understandably) very nervous. I admit I am slightly scared at the prospect, but think I am at little risk (I will be out of the bad areas) and it really calls for more help, not less.