Well that sucked...
We're okay. The house is okay. We were 'lucky' to get the weaker, left side of the eyewall of Gustav so all we got was about seven or eight hours of really heavy winds and rain.
Contrary to what the national news say Terrebonne, Assumption, Lafourche, St. Mary, Baton Rouge, and Lafayette parishes are the ones that got hammered the most not New Orleans. And, also contrary to what the national news men believe, there are, in fact, other cities in Louisiana other than New Orleans. Apparently, however, we just aren't important enough to spend the same amount of time on as Katrina. We didn't even rate the fancy graphics or the scary/sad music it did, either.
Nevermind that the estimates to return power to Terrebonne and Assumption are 4 to 6 weeks. That that whole area is completely without power, and that a great number of those parishes were utterly leveled, or that the National Guard is having to evacuate the people from that area on boat and helicopter.
They weren't New Orleans so they don't count.
Yes, that was my bitterness showing.
We lost power yesterday at 1:43pm and didn't get it back until 10:24am today. It seems to have stabilized a bit later than that.
Everything in the fridge and freezer was lost so we've cataloged it, taken pictures of it, and bagged it for trash pickup tomorrow. (If the food you lost is more than $200 worth, your home insurance will give you the cost back. You just have to have photographic evidence and turn over an itemized list with the cost of replacement beside it.)
Last night was hot and miserable. I "slept" in my chair in the living room with the window wide open. Actually, more accurately, I got a series of ridiculously short catnaps since some assholes didn't observe curfew and kept coming around the corner with their high beams on. It was also fairly loud since our new neighbors had to buy a generator that was big enough to run their AC. Damn thing sounded like a massive tractor.
(I couldn't sleep in my room because the rain was falling pretty heavily in that direction all night.)
Two positives did come out of the storm.
The people of Louisiana got to see what a wholly affective leader Bobby Jindal is. Where Blanco, our last governor, appeared frazzled and teary-eyed after Katrina, Jindal showed up to every press conference with answers. It's rather telling that the man knew them all without pausing to ask an aid. He also managed to have the supplies and help we needed in place, waiting for the storm to pass before moving in. There was no waiting on FEMA for food and tarps or electricity crews and the National Guard to come in; they were already waiting out of state and moved in as the storm moved northwestward.
I might not agree with Jindal's political views on hot button topics, but, for once, I find myself relieved that there isn't an idiot in the state capital.
The other positive is that my sister taught me how to knit. I have a rather respectable start to a scarf...potholder...square thing. LOL! It only took me about four hours to learn how to get going.
Contrary to what the national news say Terrebonne, Assumption, Lafourche, St. Mary, Baton Rouge, and Lafayette parishes are the ones that got hammered the most not New Orleans. And, also contrary to what the national news men believe, there are, in fact, other cities in Louisiana other than New Orleans. Apparently, however, we just aren't important enough to spend the same amount of time on as Katrina. We didn't even rate the fancy graphics or the scary/sad music it did, either.
Nevermind that the estimates to return power to Terrebonne and Assumption are 4 to 6 weeks. That that whole area is completely without power, and that a great number of those parishes were utterly leveled, or that the National Guard is having to evacuate the people from that area on boat and helicopter.
They weren't New Orleans so they don't count.
Yes, that was my bitterness showing.
We lost power yesterday at 1:43pm and didn't get it back until 10:24am today. It seems to have stabilized a bit later than that.
Everything in the fridge and freezer was lost so we've cataloged it, taken pictures of it, and bagged it for trash pickup tomorrow. (If the food you lost is more than $200 worth, your home insurance will give you the cost back. You just have to have photographic evidence and turn over an itemized list with the cost of replacement beside it.)
Last night was hot and miserable. I "slept" in my chair in the living room with the window wide open. Actually, more accurately, I got a series of ridiculously short catnaps since some assholes didn't observe curfew and kept coming around the corner with their high beams on. It was also fairly loud since our new neighbors had to buy a generator that was big enough to run their AC. Damn thing sounded like a massive tractor.
(I couldn't sleep in my room because the rain was falling pretty heavily in that direction all night.)
Two positives did come out of the storm.
The people of Louisiana got to see what a wholly affective leader Bobby Jindal is. Where Blanco, our last governor, appeared frazzled and teary-eyed after Katrina, Jindal showed up to every press conference with answers. It's rather telling that the man knew them all without pausing to ask an aid. He also managed to have the supplies and help we needed in place, waiting for the storm to pass before moving in. There was no waiting on FEMA for food and tarps or electricity crews and the National Guard to come in; they were already waiting out of state and moved in as the storm moved northwestward.
I might not agree with Jindal's political views on hot button topics, but, for once, I find myself relieved that there isn't an idiot in the state capital.
The other positive is that my sister taught me how to knit. I have a rather respectable start to a scarf...potholder...square thing. LOL! It only took me about four hours to learn how to get going.