Thaw before reheating.
{ Category Archives }
While Paul and Alex were here working on cleaning up Alex’s house (see posts from October 5th) they took a walk around our neighborhood and came across this guy stealing a stoplight. They confronted him. He cursed and threatened them, but when he saw they weren’t kidding (and at the pleading of a woman inside the car) he stormed off and drove away. His car has Vermont plates (“NVRM1ND”). What a jerk.
From The Times Picayune:
WASHINGTON — Immediately before and after Hurricane Katrina hit the New Orleans area, the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s lone official in the city e-mailed agency leaders warning of a desperate need for medical help, oxygen canisters, even food and water.
Marty Bahamonde, a FEMA public affairs official with 12 years of experience in disaster areas, on Thursday told a Senate panel investigating the disaster that for reasons he still can’t quite comprehend, most of his pleas for help got little or no response.
His testimony, and the printouts of his e-mails to FEMA colleagues, give the clearest indication to date of the chaotic federal response to the disaster. They also directly contradict statements by former FEMA Director Michael Brown that he wasn’t aware of the grave conditions in the city for days after the hurricane, as well as his claim in recent House testimony that he had assembled a team of FEMA officials, including doctors, before Katrina made landfall.
“There was only one (FEMA) person there, and that was me,” Bahamonde said.
A Sept. 3 e-mail to a FEMA colleague seemed to sum up his assessment of the Katrina relief efforts: “The leadership from top down in our agency is unprepared and out of touch. But while I am horrified at some of the cluelessness and self-concern that persists, I try to focus on those that have put their lives on hold to help those they have never met and never will,” he said.
—
Read the full article here.
Paul received a surpise message from the owner of the Travel Bug we brought to Cafe du Monde from our first geocache find. Following the system, Paul posted the photos to the geocache site regarding the Bug. The owner, who lives in Cardiff, Wales, must have checked it out… then sent a friendly note wishing us well in re-building our city and lives and thanked us for the fun beignet-filled photos with the tea house. It was a wonderful surprise from across the ocean and made our day!
This day is getting better and better!
Today was a great day. We found a school for Will!! He loved (cried when we left), the facility is beautiful, the staff nice, and (best of all) they have an opening and he’ll start on Monday!! This is just about the most wonderful news we’ve had in a long time. It’s at University Montessori, the program runs from 8:30-2:30 (you can come as early as 7:30 and leave as late as 5:30 for an extra $4.50 an hour) and includes snacks, you pack lunch everyday but Friday (pizza day). It will cost us $225/week — $75/week more than what we are currently paying, but for twice the hours. (We forget… are we putting money aside for Will’s college fund or pre-school fund?)
While Will took his afternoon nap, I braved Winn-Dixie… and found it surprisingly pleasant! I must have timed it right — I had no wait, shelves were mostly stocked (got everything on my list except tofu), and it was clean and clear.
Then — we took a drive downtown to be a part of Cafe du Monde’s re-opening. It was wonderful (how can Cafe du Monde ever not be?) and we had fun with Will. We also took our travel bug, the “Tea Bug.” Travel bugs travel through special caches (we’re talking geocaching again) and go around the country. You take pictures with them in various places or in certain specific activities (for example, you take the “swinging Goofy” bug swing dancing) and you log the activity with a picture and send it to the geocache sight. Our Tea Bug started in the UK and likes to visit tea and coffee houses — so we took it to Cafe du Monde on this historic re-opening!
We then enjoyed a leisurely walk around the Quarter and returned home. Pictures from our city tour and outings today are below.
