Turning The Corner??

Before I begin, I want to again thank everyone for their support. I also want to mention that, yeah, I've heard the reports that everyone knows when I've been drinking because my spelling suffers... Well here we go.

Exploratory mission through Uptown, Mid-City, Esplanade and the Lakefront. You can actually drive now from the river to the lake in Orleans Parish. The water is receeding rapidly. Uptown is completely dry. Mid-City is mostly dry. Lakeview is under water still. The Esplanade area up to Broad St. is dry.

My biggest takeaway from today's reconnaisance is how many houses actually have not gotten water in them - including in Mid-City. Trust me, there is plenty of water to go around, for example a large area between Freret and Claiborne had water in homes. But there were some areas where I was completely blown away by what appears to be non-inundated homes.

There is a new issue though -- I spoke with an engineer today and he explained that part of the reason that the water has dropped so rapidly, is that at least a few feet of it has been absorbed by the Earth. The problem with this, as Lakeview residents already know, is that this causes the ground to buckle, expand and then after it dries out... to retract. Expect some homes to be off kilter when you return.

Not only can you determine flood levels by waterlines, you can also read this by grass and gardens. Any lawns, gardens, neutral grounds, whatever that were covered by water are now a dark hay brown and completely dead. There is also a inch of skanky muck and silt over everything - especially the closer you get to the lake. This is a sidewalk in the picture on the left.

I drove Claiborne, Tulane, Jeff Davis, Carrollton, Canal St., Wisner, Esplanade, Robert E. Lee, Lakeshore Dr., City Park, etc.

Speaking of City Park... it is really messed up. The park is mostly under water and the world's largest collection of live oak trees has lost plenty. Our trees are a big concern to me. In areas where there was standing water, all the trees are beginning to brown in their extremes. I'm not a tree doc - so I don't know if this means imminent death or is a temporary thing.

Throughout all of my travels in the city, I still have seen NO evidence of private residences having been looted and I would call the businesses that have been looted - minor. There are reports of a large amount of automobile thefts, although I attribute this mainly to individuals trying to flee the city and floodwaters. I am not making an excuse for them in any way, but I guarantee this explanation will make up for a large percentage of these stolen vehicles.

The military presence in all of these areas is massive. I had to drive through at least five checkpoints today showing ID and explaining myself. The traffic in these areas is very light, with the only exceptions military or government agencys.

I am aware that there is a growing outcry regarding rumours of soldiers systematically breaking down doors in order to check for survivors or the dead -- In the areas I was in, this simply is NOT true. Troops are systematically going house by house, but they are banging on the doors and yelling out and then leaving the mow famous markings ON THE SIDEWALKS in front of the homes. Moreover, even if they were breaking down the doors -- there is NO ONE left in the city to loot anything.

I have seen a fair amount of evidence of fire damage, though they may be getting a handle on this issue. To the left is Jesuit High School in Mid-City.

I am concerned now more than ever, especially as I realize that many neighborhoods in New Orleans will be salvageable, that the government will try and come in and bulldoze entire swaths of historic neighborhoods.

WE MUST FEAR AND RAIL AGAINST SOME GOVERNMENT BEAUREACRAT UP IN WASHINGTON DESTROYING THE ALLURE OF NEW ORLEANS WITH THE STROKE OF A PEN.

Also, with the incredible outcry against beaureacratic red tape, we must be wary of the government bypassing the rules and guidelines of the National Historic Registry and Districts. There are plenty of homes and structures that indeed must come down, but this has to be done surgically and thoughtfully. New Orleanians under the guidance of preservationists must be in charge of this upcoming phase of the rebuilding... I don't know who this goofball developer is that I keep hearing about out of New York, talking about how he wants to come down here and rebuild the city so that it looks like Times Square with all the jumbotrons and fancy shiny lights... Sir, thank you for your interest in helping us, but have you ever been to New Orleans?

Every day I am feeling that New Orleans is going to come back, better and quicker than anyone may realize. In fact, their are large portions of the city which could realistically be repopulated in two weeks.

Until next time...

Below: Intersection of Magazine and Leake.














Below is a military base at Audubon Park/Zoo















Below: Canal St. in Mid-City















Below: Cowboy's House in Mid-City















Below: Tulane Ave.















Below: Another shot of Tulane Ave.














One last comment -- I heard on the news tonight that they are taking all of the downed trees to a landfill to either be burned or chipped... Come on people, we have to think outside of the box here. Remember how we dispose of our Christmas Trees? The parishes take them and use them to rebuild the marshes... Wouldn't this be a great way to discard of all that organic debris and at the same time help to restore some of the marshes?? THINK GOVERNMENT.