day 4

Slept so hard last night and woke up after some crazy dreams.

Right now we're at camp chilling out and recovering from our heaviest work day yet.

Anthony is keeping a journal complete with names and addresses of the people we helped. This is such a nice town, and the people are so great. I didn't touch this thing all day, so I'll update as we recap the day.

After breakfast we met a lady that said she needed a lot of help, but her house was mostly in tact, although there was a lot of sand in the back yard- we estimated 4 feet, judging by the basketball hoop, which was at head level.

Afterward, we went to the first name on the list, and helped chop up a tree in the back yard, and then moved out a refrigerator/freezer that was full of seafood that had not been refridgerated for three weeks- we tied it shut to keep it from opening up, but it was leaking and, well, disgusting. Then Oscar used his tractor to shove some cars around to get them out of the way- there are so many abandoned cars, and cars that just floated into yards.

The next job was two trees on top of a house. Oscar was able to tug the first one off with the tractor, and for the second one, Anthony got to use the tractor to lift Scott and Oscar onto the roof with chainsaws. For a while, the other four of us were useless, so we helped tote trees and scrap metal out of the driveway across the street.

In the middle of the second tree we took a break for lunch, but got here after they stopped serving lunch, so we had MREs.

We went back and pulled all the logs and branches out while Scott and Oscar finished cutting up the tree. Anthony said he thought we were more productive yesterday because that house took up so much of the day, but the way I see it there is so much to do that the quality of the work matters more than quantity, and that it's better to do as much as we can per person than to just move some of the stuff for more people. IMHO.

One break the people of Bay St Louis is that FEMA finally came through and they're getting some relief money. Another break is that it still hasn't rained. A DuPont plant nearby washed chemicals all over this area in the storm, so any mid here is considered toxic- we are advised not to touch any of it.

Oh, the Blackberry is finally losing power; we're lucky it has healf out this long. I'll finish this off after we get home, and I'll borrow anthony's journal and post it here, too.

Good night.

day 3 part 2

It's going to rain.
We met up with Oscar yesterday evening, who came in from TX with a tractor and a chainsaw. Pulling down a tree this afternoon we realized what commodities these are... In half an hour he did as much work as we would have done in a full day without.

I would say that the most useful things that can come into this area are tents, chainsaws (and people to operate them), and now tarps to put over the tents.

I don't remember if I mentioned it, but New Orleans is set for help, Biloxi is set for help, but most in between is at the mercy of volunteers like us. The place we're staying at is a school which somebody broke into and stayed in. Since then it has become a distribution point. We have tons and tons of food, water, diapers (there are no kids here), and we're all camping out in a field across the street.

While pulling that tree out, we met two guys who helped with the chainsaw, named Scott and Brad. Now we are six, and ready to start out right after breakfast and help folks like gangbusters.

The high point of the day, for me, was when I got to climb that splintered tree and stood on my head so I could use my hands to hook up the chain.

I enjoy the craziest things...

Now we're cracking open some MREs and having a beer, then I'll get my phone (charging in oscar's truck) and go to sleep.

day 3

It is, like, 10 degrees hotter today. We've got a cooler and some ice and water and we're tearing through it.

Almost 1 o'clock, and we've just about finished oil list of things to do today. We're about to have some lunch and then head a little north to refuel.

So far today:

We pulled two trees off jim's house, with the help of Oscar and his tractor.

Oscar's tractor helped moving a whole pile containing what seemed to be an entire family's possessions. The tractor lifted two couches and a mattress, while Anthony and I carried loads using closet doors to support more than we could carry by hand, and Justin and the handful other guys helping carried by hand and in wheelbarrows. We moved it all across the street to an empty lot in a little over an hour.

Right now Justin and I are chilling in the car while Anthony buys some gas and beer.

I'm trying to reach my boss at work and see what it would take to get some T-Mobile phones down here for people that have no way of contacting family, or insurance companies.

day 2

It is hot. We are drinking water constantly and driving around offering help where we see a need.

We borrowed a generator for an older lady and got her A/C, refridgerator and television running.

Justin and I shoveled mid-caked belongings unp a wheelbarrow and dumped it on the side of the road, while Anthony replaced Jim's television antenna.

Anthony asked Jim what organization seemed to be doing the most. "Just... People. Just people."

We disassembled the back seat of a car to crawl in and unlock the doors that wouldn't unlock from the outside. The car was filled to the bottom of the doors with stagnant water.

Right now we're on our way to our tents, for a shower at the shelter, and for the two bottles of wine Anthony brought.

day1

hey, we just got into Madison, MS and are staying at the Red Cross shelter here for the night.. I'd write more but instead I'm going to sleep. I started this blog so I can post from my blackberry, since other internet access after we leave here is unlikely.

feel free to email me at alasalack@aol.com, since that is how anthony and i will be communicating, mostly. i knew i got that blackberry for a reason...