Today is Thursday... where did the previous days go? I take it as a good sign as I have been so busy with other things that time seems to fly as it did before Katrina. The problems I am attempting to take care of are not "fun" ... they involve the dreaded "doctor". My last appomtment was with a neurologist that wants to take care of the two numb fingers on my left hand. I sat and listened to what the surgery would be like and the complications that can follow and then made up my mind. At this writing I can live with numb fingers.

On the anniversary of Katrina, I didn't attend the "celebration" as it is called ... there were only a handful in attendance and most of those were officials. We (Dave and Anita) marked the occasion in a personal way by visiting one another. Of course, we reiterated the storm. In my writings there are things that I didn't speak about that we went through, as I considered them too personal. We had no bathroom privileges at all. The sewage had backed up into the house and thus we could not flush the toilets. There were three children , the fourth being the newborn baby. So my daughter (Anita) put each of the children's name on a large coffee can and labeled it their "potty". My grandson George was the oldest and he absolutely refused this "atrocity" saying "I will never, never go to the bathroom for the rest of my life." Luckily, we didn't have to use these primitive cans as we didn't have enough to eat or drink. Anita also put a makeshift clothesline in the backyard where she hung underwear that she had washed using a gallon of drinking water. The few towels that were on the line dried as hard as concrete. Seemingly, overnight, we were setback to what existed over 100 yrs. ago.

What I didn't tell you was, when I went to my home on August 31st and stayed the night, as I lay in the recliner I thought I would die that night. The heat was unbearable so I opened the door that leads to the garage hoping to create a draft. I had laid a flashlight on the washing machine to give me some light in the darkness.. there were roaches everywhere. I closed my eyes and went to sleep knowing if it be God's will that I would wake up in the recliner or paradise. I awakened in the recliner. went back to my daughter and her family. God is great, later that day we would all come back to my house and air conditioning. All of us who experienced Katrina will never forget nor will we ever take for granted the things we do have. I have posted a few pics below of ongoing construction. We are progressing but personally I don't think we will have all the things that were envisioned.

Westwood

Westwood

Washington