Blog Reader Roll Call
Thanks to an anonymous reader/commenter from Detroit for this idea.
I'd love to see where everybody who's reading this is from. Please take a moment to leave a comment on this post giving me and everyone else your locale.
Thanks again everyone.
I'd love to see where everybody who's reading this is from. Please take a moment to leave a comment on this post giving me and everyone else your locale.
Thanks again everyone.
posted by TAG at 11:55 PM
133 Comments:
Troy,
As you know, but your readers do not I am in Tucson, AZ. I have sent one email a day to Sen. Mccain lobbying for support. Right now it is all I can do.
By the way I got the renewnola bracelets, Mike has been a great help.
PJ "Caesar"
I'm stopping in from La Crescenta, CA
I'm reading from the Sacrameto River delta on the side of a levee built from peat and sand by coolies in the 1800s. Levees break every few years and it floods out here too. Land is hard to find so developers keep on building thousands of homes behind weak levees. Major portions of newly developed Sacramento and Stockton could end up like NOLA, come the next El Nino. Heaven help us if there is a major earthquake while the river is high.
Portland, Oregon....my sink flooded today and it was a major hassle. Then I thought...what if it was my whole apartment? My whole street? My whole city? Most of the state? Yikes. I can't even begin to comprehend what you all are going through, but your blog begins to give me more of a sense of how it is to be from nola. Power to you all. Anything we can do - come have a beer, pizza & a movie in the great Pacific NW anytime.
Best wishes from the land of earthquakes and volcanoes,
Amanda, Portland
Hi Troy,
I have been following your blog since just after Katrina.It has opened my eyes and helped me understand better than any media source.Thank you - especially for the animals.
I live in SWITZERLAND and I am British
gExcellent work you do - experience which is really eye-opening for us here close to Nokia HQ in Finland. All those animals will thank you, and remember it when in disbelief.
Hey,
I'm from Germany reading your bloggs once in a while since the hurricane Katrina. Did you know you look a bit like a german comedian:
http://www.mario-barth.de/
I'm praying that you'd be blessed heaps, having a lot of strength and getting some perspective.
Fallon, Nevada, here. Lots of "beach", but not a whole lot of sailing despite the Navy Base parked just outside of town (Top Gun School and bombing range)
It looks like you have quite an international fan club, T~ ;) I'm guessing it's because you've shared your ordeal as something REAL, not just "news". You're the "there but for the grace of God..." Poster Boy of 2005 :) (Cool, you can add "Icon" to your resume' ~grin~)
And ~psssst~ I'd like to take a moment to congratulate your parents for a job well done. Sounds like they've raised a special family: independent yet inter-dependent, strong yet caring. Kudos Dad and Mom. :)
And T~, thank you for being an inspiration to "future survivalists"...I was afraid it was a lost attribute.
Fair winds,
Sunny~
...who can't for the life of her remember how she dropped in. Something to do with YC pickup stix pics, methinks.
from Chicago, live in Los Angeles now, following you while I'm currently in Spain and Portugal, have been visiting New Orleans at least twice a year since 1997, still plan on visiting New Orleans twice a year.
Stay strong, T.
Hi! I'm Andy from Hannover, Germany. I'm a big fan of NO and La and so I regularly checked your site to see how the situation at 'ground zero' looks like. What you reported about your neighborhood, the spirit of the rescuers and the other guys refusing to abandon the place raised my confidence that the area will blossom again. Keep up the great work!
an austrian living in austria - born in new orleans, only lived there until 2 years old.
Washington, D.C. - A New Orleans native (and River Ridge resident) currently serving in the Navy. Your blog has been the best source of news for me, particularly during the first few days. Keep up the good work!
Cheers, Patrick Huete
9513 Robin Lane!
I'm reading from Wilkes-Barre, PA. Have many friends who live in NOLA and its like my second home...
Indianapolis, In
I've been reading your blog since Katrina and I live in Reading, PA. Your kindness, humour and determination have been wonderful to witness and I raise my glass to you and wish you strength, friendship equal to what you have given and the sailing vacation of your wildest dreams.
Hi, Troy,
South Carolina-dwelling sister of SWAT brother here -- native of New Orleans, grew up in your neck of the woods, thank you for feeding Patsy the cat in the dark days and for keeping the faith! -- K.
New Orleans, Mid city is where I'm from.
see www.scottharney.com
Native New Orleanian exiled in Vermont.....I read your site everyday before any other. Thanks for being there for the animals. It's heart wrenching to know that rescuers gave evacuees no choice but to leave their pets behind. I couldn't do it. I understand the reasoning but can only hope that this contingency is planned for in case of future catastrophes such as this. It's seem as simple as shelters for people with pets or bringing along your crate for them. People with allergies are much smaller in number than people with pets. Why not sequester the people with allergies?
Lived in NOLA 1953-1959 and 1975-1988. Now live in NoVA.
My family has lived in Louisiana since 1720's.
Husband and I have 5 Tulane degrees between us.
We miss New Orleans but thankful we aren't living there! God bless the people who do. You are in our prayers.
Stopping in from Falcon, Colorado.
Best wishes to you!
NOLA 2000-2004, now, Houston, TX
Hi Troy, I live in Madison, Wisconsin. I've been reading your blog since you fired it up right after the storm. I really appreciate the perspective you give on the day to day small, and no so small, events of your life.
Keep up your strengh and humor. Per your per post yesterday, a few days away is certianly deserving.
Make sure there isn't any time limit to file for FEMA or other assistance. These agencies never seem to be forthcoming with this information. Ya know, ya paid your taxes all these years for a reason.
Best wishes.
Lois Ginter
Madison, WI
Ontario, Canada. I read this to get a view from "inside", which balances the stuff on CNN.
Seabrook, Texas
Hang in there!!!!
Currently in Austin, TX.
Metairie native, Jesuit grad. It was so hard to get in touch with the family back home after the storm hit. I checked your site all too frequently looking for pics. Thanks Troy.
Columbus, Ohio
Annapolis, MD. Thanks for presenting a realistic perspective unlike the talking heads on TV. Stop by EYC any time you're up this way.
Great idea to do a roll call! I'm following from Michigan. Even though I have no ties to NOLA, I do have friends in Thibodaux and Houma, and family in MS. Thanks for your honest and fresh perspective!
I live in New York City, but I am originally from Eunice,Louisiana.
I have been reading your blog from day one and am so thankful someone is down in New Orleans keeping us connected to what is really going on.
Because of you, I learned about the New Iberia Humane Society and was able to send them supplies that they were in need of. It felt good to be doing something.
And, your comments about Codrescu, Nagin and Brown are right on.
Thank you , thank you.
If you are in need of more rum, let me know. Don't know if the mail system is working yet, but I may have some connections.
G. Keller
This morning Madisonville.
Tonight NOLA cbd.
Some-day Pier 5, Orleans Marina
Greetings from Chicago. I've been following your blog since Katrina. Thanks much for your frontline perspective. Gulfsails is a first-rate example of the power of the blog.
I've visited New Orleans many times. Love love love the city. Thanks for being a lifeline. Good luck.
Indiana. i grew up in Louisiana, though. Most of my family is spread across Louisiana and Texas.
Closer than most it seems... Orlando, Florida and another soul from what appears to have turned into hurricane alley. Can somewhat relate after what went on here last year.
We never saw any official federal gov't types here after each of our 3 hurricanes, had at the time assumed they were busy with harder hit areas. After what I saw with NO and the Gulf Coast this year have decided they just stink and could care less.
Take a chill, relax for a few, get yourself together - it's needed by now. Though it will be a long road it will get better!
Somerset, KY is where I'm reading from! Thanks for keeping us informed.
I am reading from Indian Harbour Beach, Florida.
God Bless You!
from Philadelphia, now in Jersey. I don't have any ties to NOLA, but was down there once for a job interview. I come to your site to read about pets and animals who is suffering from the hurricans since there isn't a lot of detailed news out there about pets. Thank you for all your work.
I grew up in Algiers, went to Ben Franklin High School when it was still Uptown. Left for Houston in 1982 to go to college, and currently located in Austin.
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
I'm in Memphis, TN, but LA is where my heart is. So much of what I have known and loved is probably gone now, but I'm glad for whatever was spared or saved.Thank you so much for the stories - happy and sad- about the pets. I sure have given Barney, my 16-year old dog, some extra hugs these past few weeks.
Reading from Nassau, Bahamas.
Just want to say that I totally admire your fortitude to press on regardless.
Thanks for all your work saving the animals.
I am only sorry I never got to see New Orleans in all its glory and hope to one day visit when it has returned stronger than ever!
Good luck and all the best.!!
PS. Take a break - you deserve it.
Houstonian with family in ABQ and CT. If you decide to head toward New England or NM for your little vacation, let me know. I might be able to arrange something for you.
Hi Troy,
I'm from Alabama, living in NYC. New Orleans is my favorite place on earth and has been since I was a child. I've been reading your blog since right after the storm. I totally enjoy your writing and think you're dead on about everything. I especially enjoyed your M. Brown rebuttal. Thanks for the great service that you've done us all by giving us the real information from on the ground. I'd be only too happy to buy you drinks if you're ever in NYC and/or the next time I'm in NOLA.
You rock!!
Sylvia
Des Moines, Iowa- thanks for the updates.
I'm in Austin, Texas but I grew up in Metairie and went to high school in NOLA (Dominican). Thanks for posting so many photos of the area post-Katrina.
--Jette
nola (jesuit alum). but i'm in brooklyn, right now.
hyacinthe
I am living in SF, but originally from NO. Your blog is the best perspective on Katrina/Rita as far as I am concerned. Hang in there- and take some time for yourself
I so admire your strength, determination and humor! You need to be published - your "at the scene" observations and ability to scold and laugh at the same time has the kind of draw that others would love to read. You are such and inspiration!!
Take care, stay safe and take time to laugh!!
Many hugs,
Melissa
Ladera Ranch, CA (SoCal)
Raleigh, North Carolina
Started reading as you signed off of Sailing Anarchy at the beginning of the storm.
(I sail at FYC... If you go there, for a get-away, Zane will know who to sign your drinks up to.)
BucYC, Mobile AL. Came to your blog via NOYC.info. You're doing good work Troy. It's good to read reality rather than what the national media portrays. Keep the faith. If you're in Mobile, come have a drink.
Metro Detroit - Rock on, Troy! ; )
...hope you might have heard from a couple of my friends re: publishing, but fear not - someone is going to see this and know its value real soon, I am sure.
...Do you, btw, have the ability to drive far away (gas, etc.?) One would assume you do, but post us about it if you have time...
...Also, approximately how many sailboats made it in addition to "The Reason Why"?
...I bet you could hand out one-page newsletters to those without internet hookup at various places around NOLA (leads on jobs, where to go to get what, etc., etc.) and they could cost a "stamp"... This isn't carpetbagging...but it could fund your burgeoning news business -- an info source that is relevant and that they can trust, what a concept : )
Good luck!
Sam from Little Rock, AR
Been following you since Katrina. Keep your spirits up.
Hey Troy-
Curt and Alice here. We're staying in Virginia until St. Bernard has a functional infrastucture and we can return.
Evidently you have a couple of fans in Little Rock. I have been following your blog from the start of Katrina; referred from a commenter on the Interdictor blog. My wife and I honeymooned in NO five years ago and went back for our 1 yr anniversary -- July 28. As you know, the French Quarter in late July is a unique entity with an olfactory dimension that can't be described. Alternating aromas of amazing culinary delights and ...whatever that smell is. We have laughed and cried at your posts. We can't wait to return to see the next NO incarnation.
As a scientist my curiosity was piqued by one your party posts. You said that some of your friends that returned were scientists. Are they working yet? And where?
Hoisting a glass to you and yours--
Eric from Little Rock, AR
Currently exiled on the New Jersey shore.
Hey There...
Reading your BLOG daily since "Katrina" landed....From Toronto, Ontario CANADA. If you feel like a L-O-N-G Drive...you'll have a place to stay...!!! Do you like Canadian Beer ?? It'll wash away some of your blues...guaranteed.
Jackie
I currently live in the San Francisco bay area but grew up in New Jersey where hurricanes touched our lives. My grandfather died of a heart attack a month after a hurricane nearly flooded their house at the beach and we once evacuated our cousins from their beach rental house during Hurricane Belle.
I've never been to New Orleans but have wanted to visit and hope to visit someday.
I wish you and your family all the best.
Cynthia- from Springfield, Missouri.
Thanks for all that you are doing!
I'm from Mid-Ciiiity, baby. But I'm in Bloomington IN at the moment.
Thanks for keeping the info flowing.
Mountainair, NM; 35+ years in south Louisiana (mostly Lafayette but including New Iberia, Abbeville, Grand Chenier & other places now all but gone) with, of course, the obligatory and tradtional treks to & memories of NO. Thank you so much for your blog.
Colorado Springs, CO
where the heck are Sunshine Canyon and Neopolitan's?
Found you linked via another blog linked via Appetites.us, which is a food blog I'm subscribed to.
I'm out here in Soquel, California (Santa Cruz county) on the central coast. My blog normally covers small, sustainable farms, but I interrupted that focus to write an entry called "New Orleans Turned Me Into a Foodie."
Love your city, and I am especially gratified to know there is a Blue State left in the Deep South. I grew up in Georgia, and I haven't been back since before the term "Red State" was coined. I'm afraid everyone's been assimilated into the Borg: I don't know which of my cousins have turned into Republicans and defiled the values we grew up with, or who I can trust. (Feel free to edit this paragraph if it's too much.)
Keep up the good work: as one woman said on another food blog, "New Orleans truly is God's garden."
Troy,
I'm reading from Exile here in Baton Rouge. Went into the "Forbidden City" yesterday to assess damage. House not that bad, except for one huge roof leak going down two floors. My classic cars, which I've spent hundreds of hours on, are a complete and total loss. Jennie, Ivy and will return to NOLA as soon as it's safe for 18 month-olds.
Cliff
Your blog was plugged by a reader of my blog. (www.dancingwithkatrina.blogspot.com)
It's interesting to get the La. perspective on this.
I've been in Biloxi for a little over three months now working at a newspaper here.
A friend of mine and I rode out Katrina in our newsroom about 400 yards from the beach. It was frickin terrifying.
It's bene interesting surfing through your blog seeing you go through many of the same emotions we have. I'd like to say I have some advice, but I fear myself to be doing as poorly as you sometimes.
I guess all we can do now is dig deep inside and start over. Below is a story I wrote a couple of weeks ago on exhaustion. I thought you might find it relevant, given your recent postings.
Feel free to stop by ours and otherwise be in touch. I know your pain.
-----------
I am exhausted and it shows.
There has been no moment since Aug. 29 that I have not felt tired in
some way.
I went to WLOX unshaven, dirty and with bags under my eyes the Wednesday
after the storm having gotten only five hours of bad sleep in three
nights. I was there to talk live on air about Long Beach and Pass
Christian. Anchorman Jeff Lawson interrupted me when I started slurring
my words and naming places wrong.
"Well, you’re obviously dog tired like the rest of us," Lawson said.
My vision is sometimes blurry. I lose stuff while just sitting at my
desk. I tell the same story twice.
Worst of all, I have locked my keys in my car twice in the last five
days, having never done so before.
However, I discovered Thursday at the Gulfport Fire Station on 23rd Ave
that I am not alone.
"We’ve gotten more calls for people locking their keys in the car today
than we’ve had in the last year," said Kevin Bodiford, a Gulfport
Paramedic who listens to the fire and rescue scanners all day.
Bodiford, 37, had been working nearly everyday since Hurricane Katrina
hit and he too showed the sometimes embarrassing results of exhaustion.
"On my first day off, I went to the gas station and filled up a bunch of
gas cans," said Bodiford, who has been a paramedic for nearly 6 years.
"There was nothing but me and a bunch of cops in the gas station and I
still drove off without paying."
The cops caught up with him quickly, Bodiford said. He added he was so
embarrassed by his forgetfulness he went back and paid nearly double
what the gas actually cost.
Fatigue is almost inevitable after a major disaster. Sleep can be scarce
when you bed down in strange places, helicopters whir nearby, it is hot
and you are trying to deal with the enormity of the situation. Beyond
producing embarrassing moments, it can be dangerous and unhealthy.
Being aware of and fighting against fatigue after a major disaster is
necessary for first responders, said Gulfport Fire Chief Pat Sullivan.
"This is one of those jobs that the fatigue factor can be dangerous,"
Sullivan said. "It’s one of those things that’s so hard to spot. Is it
exhaustion? Is it emotion?"
Besides resulting in bad judgment, which can be deadly when your job is
saving lives, fatigue frequently makes people irritable, Sullivan said.
On a rescue team, cohesion and happiness is often the key to success.
While there are now scores of firefighters and police in from elsewhere
to relieve local crews, the dangers of fatigue were high in the week
after the storm.
Firefighter Jeff Waltman, 45, said he has been keeping a close eye on
the guys on his team since the storm hit to make sure things everyone is
at or near 100 percent.
"After about the third or fourth day, my hoseman, the most calm person
normally…you wouldn’t even know who he is," said Waltman, adding that
the hoseman would snap at firemen who were longtime friends. "At one
point he just laid down on the concrete and went to sleep."
Dr. Barbara Rothbaum, president of the International Society for
Traumatic Stress Studies, said Friday in an interview that being unable
to stop working and allowing fatigue to set in could make normal people
useless and rescuers a liability.
"On an airplane going down, you are told to put your mask on first
before your child," Rothbaum said. "Everyone’s first reaction would be
to put your mask on the child first. If we don’t put it on ourselves
first, we might not be doing anybody any good."
Rothbaum said this unwavering need to help others and to keep doing your
job despite the negative effects of fatigue occurs for four reasons:
There’s so much to be done.
People feel guilty when they do have a dry house and air conditioning.
They feel guilty about not doing everything they can.
It is rewarding. Besides the constant thank-yous, you are often
genuinely accomplishing something and that is addicting.
It is an escape for people who have lost everything and for people who
have not. If you have lost everything, it is a way to avoid thinking too
much about it. If you have not, it is an escape from the overwhelming
emotional trauma such dramatic situations can brew up.
There are some positive aspects to working exhaustively though, Rothbaum
added.
"It’s a double edged sword," said Rothbaum, who is also a professor of
psychiatry at Emory University in Atlanta. "If you can use it to
motivate you, great, but you have to give yourself time to grieve and go
ahead and deal with the pain and move on."
Sullivan said he has been struggling with this idea since the beginning.
He said he has asked for counselors to talk to the men and has sometimes
forced guys to go home for a day or two. Getting the right kind of work
out of his men has proved immensely difficult, Sullivan said.
"There’s no easy answer to how to balance this disaster response and the
quantity and quality that you need," Sullivan said. "There’s always one
more thing to do."
Adding to the exhaustion problem is the difficulty in getting quality
sleep, Sullivan said. So many people are sleeping in strange and
uncomfortable places, without air conditioning, with a mountain of
stress.
Even if you get to lie down for the night, you might not be giving your
body the break it needs, Rothbaum said. While the amount of sleep
everyone needs to regenerate differs from person to person, Rothbaum
said most people need six to eight hours of uninterrupted dreaming and
that being able to "catch up on sleep" is largely a myth.
Rothbaum said exhaustion could not only lower your immune system’s
ability to fight sickness, it could build stress to unhealthy levels.
"It’s been a torture that people have used," Rothbaum said. "If you an
exhaust an animal it eventually dies."
While I am no animal and am not near death, I know I need some quality
sleep. Now, about that phone call I have to make…
I'm from River Ridge, had evacuated to Houston for Katrina until Rita hit. Then on to Shreveport, where my husband has been working since 3 days after Katrina. Will be there until the end of November, then ...who knows? His office won't tell us if we are being relocated or not.
Love your blog, have been reading it every day!
Catching you from the warm and muggy (and supposedly a bit cooler) Houston, TX.
I see I'm your second visitor in Portland, OR (originally from Philly). I lived in NOLA for four too-short years (Loyola) and have wanted to return since the day I left. I have family in Metairie, off Clearview up by the lake - although their homes are uninhabitable, so they're staying with friends in Mandeville for the time being. I wish I could do something to help you all! Stay strong...
From New York City...it has been amazing to hear your experiences first hand, when the media was showing the same thing over and over again. My prayers are with you all - keep up the great work and take care of yourself.
Picked up the site from your Sailing Anarchy post. Also from Toronto, Ontario. Your posts have made the event "personal".
I promise to stop bitching about our winters...
I agree with you about Nagin - heard a radio interview done a few days after Katrina. Made me and my hisband weep.
wl
Nina from Helsinki Finland ( a scandinavian country in northern Europe, just in case...)
Been following you and another one since Katrina.
Am a media pro, trying to find the truth out there ;)
Hugs from SantaClausLand
Houston, TX here.
From Eastern Washington. Been checking in on you daily after catching a recommendation on another blog that I found on nola.com. Have a good friend whose home was in Mid-City. She has been staying with family in Houston and your posts help me see just how much she's lost.
TJ
San Francisco, CA here, found you clicking through blogs linked to mine.
I'll probably go through what you're going through at some point when San Francisco gets destroyed by the next big earthquake.
hskHouston/NOLA resident in exile. Sure hope we get the opportunity to meet you when we're back.
Houston TX here!
Been reading daily ("hourly" at first!) for a month from Muncie, Indiana.
Dave
I live in Arlington, Virginia. I really appreciate your blog and am praying hard for a full recovery for the entire Gulf coast, and New Orleans in particular.
Boston, Mass!
Grew up in New Orleans, though, not too far from where you live, TAG... on Newman Ave, near Jefferson Highway. (Also lived in West Metairie, Mid-City near City Park, a house a few blocks away from the 17th Street Canal breach -- that one's a goner -- and Abita Springs. We had a sailboat in the inner harbor for years; Pier 6, slip 12, knew it as well as my home address!)
I have been reading, from Detroit, since the days following the hurricane.
your cousin, Amber here at LSU in Baton Rouge.
I'm a GBCA member in Houston. I grew up in Algiers and went to Franklin.
We'll have to get you out on Galveston Bay or Clear Lake if you make it out this way.
Katrina "Kat" Miesch
Chicago here, just back from a week in Colorado. The aspen are peaking, it's sunny and dry and glorious.
Go. New Orleans will still be there when you get back.
I'm in Houston, but my heart is in New Orleans (and most of my DNA originates from Louisiana).
I used to live in the French Quarter, in a younger life. I brought my kids to New Orleans 2 years ago this coming Thanksgiving, to show them where I lived and where I used to hang out.
None of us can believe it's not there anymore. Summing up your emotions while watching a city that you love die is beyond words.
I'm reading in Michigan, and have been following of the animal rescue activity by Kelsey and other's, they are truly angels!
Thanks for keeping us updated.
Nova Scotia,Canada; first time to your site; wish I'd known about it earlier on...keep it going; I'm sure ,many people, including myself, would love to hear how you make out well into the future!
Duvall (near Seattle) WA: I learn so much more about the hurricanes' aftermath from blogs like yours than from national news media. Thanks for the effort.
My grandmother and Aunt evacuated Tyler Co, TX, before Rita hit. We don't know the state of the family home yet, but it is probably lost; I am glad my relatives are safe, though. I worry about the people displaced by both hurricanes and remember you in my prayers.
Hi Troy, I'm Becky from Cincinnati. Have been reading your blog since right after Katrina hit. Will keep praying for you as you head west to rest. I too, love the Rockies, and can completely understand why you would seek solace there. Although I understand why you will be at some point "killing" GulfSails, I will miss you. Godspeed.
Hi from Las Vegas, NV! Send us some of your water... we could use it.
Hi, I'm sixteen and I think your hilarious and I'm in Pensacola,Flordia. Hey keep blogging i love it. I loved the post when you wrote to the generator company about they're faulty generator.luv,bre.
Through PJ "Caesar," I am reading from Tucson as well. I hope you know he's been one of NOLA's biggest advocates here in our part of the country, especially in our department. Hang in there.
~A Friend in Tucson
I'm in Lakeland FL, I've been stopping by every day since Katrina. I really like your writing style and enjoy seeing NOLA from your perspective, as someone else said it really balances the coverage we see on tv. Thanks so much for your work with the animals.
I'm Susi from Mid Virginia. Thanks to you I have seen (but not smelled) more clearly the calamity that's befallen one of our National treasures. Thanks so very much.
Lenny, in Ann Arbor, but am N'awlins expat...
Born and Bred South Louisiana girl, love me some New Orleans baby!
I grew up in New Iberia and now live in Baton Rouge. I have loved reading this and log in a couple times a day. Drop a email if you head over here to B.R. We have Abita here too.
Good luck and stay safe sha!
Jenny Gauthier
cj1996@cox.net
I am from Lakeview but currently displaced in San Antonio. I read you everyday and will miss it when you are gone!!!! My husband is a new orleans police officer and I am flying to NOLA on Tuesday to see him. I will see the house for the first time. I know we had water to the roof and everything is gone but i just have to see it for myself. Your blog has really helped me through this time. You are sooo funny. Through my tears I found laughter and I thank you for that!
I'm reading from Mobile, AL. I don't know when I began reading (it's been quite some time) or how I found the site. Probably through the Interdictor Blog or one of their links.
Thanks for all of the updates. I've spent so much time in New Orleans...Uptown, the Quarter, the Westbank, etc. I can't imagine the city nearly empty. It however will once again be filled with people, life and creativity...sooner than most of the world will believe.
I will be back to support her just as soon as she is ready for my return.
Stay strong.
Lea
Salem, Oregon, just south of the 45th parallel. I figured out sometime ago that blogs are where to find genuine insight, the personal viewpoint, and actual experiences within a community, especially in circumstances such as these. Shortly after Katrina hit I went looking for the 'real New Orleans'--I found you. You’ve provided a truly compelling inside look throughout. Thanks for keeping it real. I hope you continue blogging, if not GulfSails then archive it within a new blog--your own NOLA rebuild.
Yet another Portlander here. I've been following Katrina since the morning of August 28; I found your blog sometime that Sunday.
Here in the Willamette Valley we've had our Cat 3 windstorm, the Columbus Day Storm of 1962. We had our 100-year flood in 1964, then another one in 1996. I can't imagine being hit by that much wind and water in less than 2 days.
Although I haven't posted much, I've been checking in on you at least once a day since the storm hit. I admire your grit, your sense of humor, and your willingness to help where you can. I appreciate both your factual reporting and your emotional commentaries. We all have to be real and we all have to help each other--it's the only way we're going to make it through the bewildering days ahead.
Enjoy your trip! I'm an ex of both Santa Fe and Boulder--the Rockies really are the place to clear out your head.
Mark in Oregon
Washington, D.C. area - live in northern Virginia (Dumfries). A New Orleans native (lived on Green Acres Rd in Metairie and in River Ridge). Jesuit and Tulane grad. Retired Navy.
Your blog has been one of the best sources of news, particularly during the first few days. You countered the idiots of the national press - I especially liked your smack of Peter Jennings and the MSNBC witch.
Keep up the good work!
Cheers, Mike Huete, formerly of
9513 Robin Lane! (My brother CDR Pat posted earlier)
THANKS FOR THE OBSERVATIONS IN DAYS PAST. WHEN YOU GET TO FRANKLIN I'LL BUY YOU A BEER.
RABBIT
Boston - been checking in with you since the beginning. Thanks for staying strong as a voice of reason through all this. Safe travels!
Memphis, TN by way of Bay St. Louis.
LOL at the marriage proposals Nancy!! But i have to say i bet u are right! Heck if i wasnt married, id be down in N.O. ages ago looking to "save" him.!!
Jenny
Greenwell Springs, La.
Jersey City, NJ on New York Harbor.
From Los Angeles... have been reading your blog since Katrina began. Thank you for sharing so freely of your experience. We spend the first few weeks helping family members of a dear friend of ours. It was mayhem -- no one knew where anyone else was. It was easier for us to run point from Los Angeles, then for them to do so locally. It's all given me much to contemplate regarding our peparedness should another big earthquake impact Los Angeles.
Again, thank you. I'm sending lots of prayers, light and grace for a restful road trip. You deserve to take a deep breath and unwind a bit. You've been through quite a journey!
Know that you've made a huge difference by writing this blog. It's allowed so many of us to connect with what it must be like for so many impacted by these events.
I'm up in North Carolina. My daughter was at LSU Med. downtown. We evacuated her up here, she went to visit her sister at UNCW on the coast & ended riding out Ophelia there. The school was relocated to B.R., so we sent her down just in time to catch Rita.
Her comment: "this is not funny"
Good job again with keeping a "homeboy" view alive with all the B.S. on the national news channels.From a former East N.O. boy.
Barry Bruggers, MD
Checkin in from near Tampa, FL. Been reading your blog since the event. You have been my source for the real news about new orleans. Thanks for telling like it is.
Michael in Valrico, FL.
I've been reading (in constant amazement) from Roseville MN. I'm pretty sure that "Anonymous" from Raleigh NC who has a tab for you at FYC is my sister-in-law... Her husband (my baby Bro') pointed me to GulfSails about a week after Katrina hit.
Your commentary is so valuable, and what you are doing is both brave and mad. Enjoy your well deserved R&R and then please come back and tell us more about the status of NOLA and her residents!
Checking in from Seawall Blvd. on Galveston Island.
Rita brought roof damage to my place, but I'm not complainin'. It could've been so much worse.
C'mon down and check out our music scene sometime; I'll buy ya a beer. My fav place to listen to music: The Old Quarter Acoustic Cafe
rancher in south Texas, found you thru some young but good amateur meteorologist brendanloy's blog, watched you since that now infamous Sunday .
I visited Nola only twice, we always wanna go back, and will. Wife and I are big fans of The Iguanas, a New Orleans "roots" rockband with a unique style.----Kinda like you.
Remember, this blogs for you. You choose when to end.
Good luck, travel joyfully, praise the maker of big Rocks and big country.
Dios bendiga, hombre.
Baton Rouge native reading from Brooklyn. Thanks for the level headed perspective.
29 year old female reading in Los Angeles, originally from Minneapolis.
houston, tx. resident of uptown, NO from 1997-2003.
Late, but finally here.
Claire, Hill Country of Texas.
Albany, Georgia
melbourne australia - fellow Sailing Anarchy member
St Simons Island, Georgia. My Uncle, Aunt, Cousin, her husband, two second cousins and all their family and friends live in Uptown and New Orleans: my aunt will be seeing her home for the first time since the evacuation tomorrow. Take a break, but don't stop the blog, I love the commentary and I refrence you often on my own blogspot page. I caught the refrence to Gulfsails from MSNBC.com, under Blogs.etc Section, the blog name is "Clicked." Sorry, I should have kept that URL for the specific refrence.
I'm reading from Fairfield, CT. I found your blog from Ames of Metro
Detroit - we sailors have to stick together!!!!
Keep the faith....
MM
I've read since the beginning, learned of the blog from Sailing Anarchy. The perspective from this blog have been useful and insightful. Thank you! Enjoy your well deserved break.
Also, to help ensure regular people get assistance, I started a web site last week. See www.FEMAanswers.org and contribute what you know. Thanks,
Craig
am writing from up north in milwaukee wisconsin...and my heart is with you all....have visited New Orleans many times in the last few years, always renting an apartment in the quarter, so it feels a little more like really living there, than staying in a hotel would...originally connected to your spot because of a pug rescue link ..
Hennessey Court - River Ridge. I've been catching up since Sunday. Thanks for providing information about our RR and NOLA. I grew up on State Street and figure the family home which was raised and built in 1925 had water inside. We haven't been able to go in there.
Carol
Paris, France.
Reading from the begining :)
Gidday Troy,
I'm from New Zealand and have been reading your blog daily since around August 27 when you commented something like "Looks like this is going to be a big one"
Reason I keep coming back here is that you give the real man on the ground position. I have a profound mistrust of mainstream media; they are all owned or controlled by vested interests, so to see you reporting the reality is refreshing, if sometimes heartbreaking and disturbing.
I have huge admiration for people like you who have been able to stay and see the distance, despite personal loss, and, more importantly, to become involved in the recovery and assistance work.
Kudos to you, Troy. And strength.
Alison.
San Diego, CA. Take a break, do what you have to do. But then go back, hang in there and keep fighting. VIVA NAGIN - VIVA NOLA!
Troy,
Reading from Oakland, CA. Found the link to your blog at corknola right after Katrina and have read regularly since then. Bless you for your passion and loyalty. New Orleans is my most favorite place in this country. We visit several times a year and stay with a friend on Grand Route St. John. We will continue to support your city any way we can.
Waving from the West End of Vancouver,British Columbia,Canada.
Hey,
New Orleanian hanging out in Atlanta until I can return for good to N O. I will be returning home this weekend to salvage my second floor furniture. Loved your perspective.
Thanks and see you soon at a well deserved Rabble reunion.
Take Care,
Chris H. and family
Reading from Ottawa, Ontario (Canada) and wishing you all the best. Thanks for the great writing, interesting pics, and especially the animal rescue work (and for not mincing words re: the people with their hissyfits about how things were or were not organised to their standards--hopefully they will never have the opportunity to discover that same could happen anywhere including to them).
Michele and Geoff here from Vancouver BC, Canada
Been with you since the very begining! Thank you
Dennis Strain here from Sauk Rapids, MN ... Right across the Mississippi River from St. Cloud, MN (Hi Natty!)
I have been following your posts since you first announced you were going to "ride out" the first hurricane. Your reporting and photography is super, and the dialog is dramatic.
Keep going and follow this through to the end and you will have something of great value for you, and the rest of us who are trying to comprehend this thing.
Cheers!
DCStrain
dennis_strain@hotmail.com
Better to post late than never. Central Ohio checking in.
I think I first heard of you from a scrapbooking message board. It was so great to hear front line info. I've been reading your blog and Interdictor's since right after the storm.
My husband had a high school friend with whom he stayed several years ago. We looked them up and found the father lived on Pontchartrain Blvd and the daughter and her SO were under about 9' of water several blocks south of her folks. Luckily she was camping out of state when the storm hit, but we still haven't heard what happened to her parents.
Hope you're enjoying your vacation.
D. in Hilliard OH
Hey from SW Ohio.
Been reading your blog off and on since the hurricane. Saw your posts about animal rescue and the animal radicals. Guess i must be an animal radical.
Anyways, I spent some time a couple of weeks ago in SBP with the temporary animal shelter. Heartbreaking when the owners came in looking for their pets. Heartbreaking when the rescuers came in with emaciated pets. Basically just heartbreaking.
Good luck to you. I hope the nightmares stop and you can get back to a normal life, whatever that will be from now on.
Next time you're in Ohio, I'll buy you a beer. Or six. :-)
Julie in Centerville, OH
Troy,
I am reading this blog from the wireless connection at NOYC.
Cheers,
David Erwin
Guess I'm "fashionably late" in joining this thread.
Just returned from New Year's in NOLA and found your blog today. I just can't shake what I saw while at the heart of the devastation (my boyfriend's family lives in Lakeview). Since returning to my home in Gainesville, FL, I've spent way too much time slogging the net for information about the city's post-K fate.
I know in my heart that the city will come back. Folks like you cement that belief. The city's people love it too much to let it slide away and be forgotten.
Ever since I set foot in New Orleans several years ago, I've known that it was a special place with an amazing talent for sucking the good out of life. Here's to rebirth and renewal! See ya at Mardi Gras and Jazz Fest, if not before...
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