the hazards of gift wrapping

[cris]

I spent my last day in Biloxi in a FEMA distribution center, wrapping holiday presents for hurricane victims. I had a flight out of Biloxi at 6pm on a Monday evening, and I needed to leave early to pack my gear, return the rental and check in to my flight. Supposedly, the FEMA gig was an easy choice. I could bail whenever, and I wasn't going to

Comments

[cris]

I should probably point out that this entry is now, like, two weeks overdue.

I coughed up black phlegm every morning for about ten days after returning to Massachusetts. I wasn't around long enough to get a real "Katrina cough" which, I've heard, can linger for about a year or so; but enough to illustrate that the air down there is "not right"

The sinus infection went away after two days of early bedtimes and Theraflu. Work tempo didn't change much, though (two 12 hour days in two weeks, dude)

The job change can't happen soon enough.

[panzerkunst]

Well, my extreme allergies ensure that I could never have done that trip.

[cris]

"extreme allergies" make me imagine tattooed allergens cliff diving into your nostrils while you sleep. Little molecular iPods strapped to their cell walls blasting Propaghandi while doing so.

[badriyaz]

stuffed animals are more dangerous than toxic mold, who knew?

hey, did you see the article in Salon last week about the outfit you volunteered with? They were held up as an example of how smaller groups with less bureaucracy can often get more done despite also having less budget.

[cris]

It's all cooties, you know.

I saw the article; though it's coming in at a weird time. The group's just put itself into a partnership with a larger organization, HandsOn Network, and there's some ambivalence within the volunteer corps about the added bureaucracy.

In a lot of ways, it's similar to the reaction that startups get when they're acquired or picked up by a VC firm ... except without the stock option money. But, like startups, you can do a lot with small size and motivated workforce. The challenge is how to manage your growth and ensure that you can do more without sacrificing all of that vaunted efficiency.

[dethany]

Yikes, I thought I was the only one who got full-blown sinus infections from mold allergies - I had to stop my urban exploration photo essay over the summer due to that. I can explore in the winter because there are far less organisms, but man is it uncomfortable!

[cris]

I can imagine. Even with the dust mask and HEPA filters, my nose was still not ok. Nothing debilitating, but I hear you with the discomfort factor.

fwiw, you came to mind a few times during the house gutting projects. Lots of scenes of beautiful decay taunting me because I left my camera back at the base. I remember walking into one room with four guys gouging out drywall with crowbars, dust flying everywhere, and in the center was this poor, water damaged piano with a couple of porcelain cats sitting on it, smiling and looking pristine.