Saturday!!::::::::::::::::::

Saturday!!::::::::::::::::::

Sorry for the distance between postings lately. It has been very similar to the movie “Groundhog Day” the last almost three weeks with little to capture the attention or imagination of anyone. I quit eating breakfast………… I know you were all dying to hear that. Something happened yesterday though that got my mind going again. I got contacted by someone from my days at IBM, someone I had not spoken to in a couple years, tracked me down among other ways, through my blog.

I am not a fan of IBM, I did make a lot of money out of them and learned a lot and made at least a couple of very long term friends out of it. They are not a good stock company and I would not own it, and they spit out people all chewed up, even when it is not necessary. I was reflecting with my friend from IBM that it was very odd that the attributes that limited my career with IBM were assets to me at FEMA.; hmmmmm..

Spring flowers are up here. Rhododendron are a red riot, lots of bushes with fragrant white flowers and trees with yellow and white flowers plus the spring bulbs you would all recognize from all over the place are up and flowering like mad. There are roadside flowers in the ditches, seems to be just the one species that is so yellow and showy so far but I expect more as the season progresses.

The state and parish of NO are being all wishy washy about the DMORT people doing searches in the 9th ward. Everyone agrees there are bodies there, maybe hundreds, but somehow the politics have brewed up so that actually going to get them has turned into a scene. There are still houses sitting in the middle of streets there now 152 days after Katrina hit. In the mean time DMORT and the VIC are filling time, trying to organize things and shipping bodies. Yep, one convoy the other day left here with 173 casketed remains for two of the southern parishes.

Louisiana is complaining that Mississippi got more money than they did in block grants … turns out the Mississippi plan was well developed, clear and efficient…… There seems to be plenty to do everywhere you turn down here, Everyone is busy but it is making little impact that is visible. I think that everyone is coming to grips with New Orleans present and future being about a maximum of 1/3 the size it was before the storm for years and years. School started again this spring and even now, there are only about 9,000 students in class in all of New Orleans (I am sure Arvada has way more than that). Politicians have lost their entire voting base in some cases, it affects seats in congress, in the state, number of police and fire fighters, teachers, infrastructure workers, state and local hires.. all permanently downsized. Ultimate recovery here does not mean returning everyone to their homes, as far as I can tell they are permanently gone. I think of a term Diaspora….

Otherwise life is good. I am heading home in mid to late april depending on the work here. Lets plan a big dinner!!!