What more do I really have to say? Not much. The events that happened 6 years ago were life changing for a lot of us. Around this time of the day six years ago, the FP and I were walking around Canal Street in downtown New Orleans after the storm had passed. It was still really windy, and dirt and shards of glass and metal parts of signs were still blowing around. Countless windows were blown out, and brick walls were collapsed on cars. It was bad, but we thought the city had gotten off easy. We thought the power would be on in a few hours. That's laughable to think of now.
So, what has happened to me in six years. Well, a lot. Six years is a long time. We moved to San Diego. I was ready to leave, but the FP really didn't want to go. My parents wanted us to leave New Orleans. They told me there was no way we should buy a house or open a restaurant there. They tricked me into believing that if we moved, they would help us buy a house or open a restaurant in another city. So, we moved to San Diego. The chances of a hurricane hitting here are pretty slim. There are earthquakes here, but it's not like Los Angeles. And, there is drought here. But it's not New Orleans. Not at all.
We've lived in two different apartments here that were more expensive, but not nearly as charming as any of the places we lived in in New Orleans. I mean, the first apartment here only had occasional ants and flies. No roaches, mice, rats or gigantic spiders. Sure, it's beautiful here. It's beautiful there too. It's not the same here. Our circumstances are different here, and we haven't been able to connect in quite the same way we did in New Orleans. The great glue in New Orleans is alcohol...and food. Here, we don't go out as much, mainly because we can't afford it, and we don't have friends like we did in New Orleans. Obviously, you can't compare the two cities.
Our one cat, Chester, died within a year of moving to San Diego. He was a big loveable dumb cat, but honestly, the move from coast to coast was too much for him. That and his renal problems that he also shared with his brother Tiki Tee who had passed away the year before Chester. Chester had always been the follower, and he did not like being the protector and dominant cat to Stinksy, who was still a young cat when Katrina hit. Chester had survived the move from Boston to New Orleans with Tiki Tee, but New Orleans had become their home. He was eventually replaced with The Fuzz, who is also kinda dumb. I guess our fate is to always have one dumb cat.
When we moved out here to San Diego, I had to fly out after the FP and the cats, because I had gotten hit by another car and had to wait to deal with insurance. When I walked into the new apartment, Chester meowed at me and went to sit in the FP's lap. It took him a couple of days to forgive me. The Fuzz gets pissed at me and holds a 24 hour grudge when I give her a bath or flea medicine. I can't imagine how she would hold up if we ever moved out of state.
As far a jobs go, I've had a couple. None have been better than most of my jobs in New Orleans, but then again, I've never been truly satisfied with any job I've had. One job here paid me well, and gave me benefits, but I couldn't abide working for a crazy lady who didn't care whatsoever about proper sanitation practices. I know, restaurants in New Orleans are known to be dirty - but this lady was the dining services director for a retirement property. I swear there were spikes in the number of deaths during her tenure there.
The job after that ended up paying very well, but the chef there seemed intent on killing someone as well. He was just an old french chef who did what he did. Glass plate shattered in the cooler? Just clean the fridge out. Girl ingested glass? Hm... I don't know how that happened. I'm busy plating this salad and I got these raw chicken breasts on the cutting board that I need to portion out too.
The last job... I don't really feel like discussing this one. But here I am,unemployed. Six years ago, Katrina forced me into unemployment.
The FP has had the same job the whole time. It's been a great job for him, but the fact that he never gets paid regularly basically is a detriment.
As far as music goes, the move here has been great for us. We reformed our band and played gigs for over five years. And now we are working on another slightly different project. The FP has been in two other bands over the past couple of years. His musical knowledge has grown by leaps and bounds, and he has learned so much about recording.
And then, my mom's unexpected stroke which led to her death last year was devastating. This probably has hit me harder than Katrina, and it's been over a year that I've been dealing with my grief. My dad's issues complicate things even more.
Where do we go from here? Who knows. I have no idea what's in store for me for the future, but I'm going to try to get the most out of this life. No waiting around for things to happen. I could die tomorrow.
Oh, and I apologize that this one isn't funny.
Showing posts with label hurricane katrina. Show all posts
Showing posts with label hurricane katrina. Show all posts
Monday, August 29, 2011
Sunday, August 28, 2011
Katrina Eve
So, 6 years ago today, the FP and I were scrambling around, preparing for the worst hurricane we were ever going to experience to date. (I'm not going to say that was the worst we will ever experience in our lifetime, because, I don't want to jinx myself.) We never prepared properly for hurricanes, but this was the big one, and everyone was taking it seriously. Some people who were going to stay decided to get the hell out at the last minute. The FP decided to check into the Marriott downtown, because he figured it was way safer than our flimsy little double shotgun. The roof was already leaking, so we were pretty sure it was going to come off.
We bought our supplies, packed our guitars and computers, and our cats and headed downtown. Once we checked in and got settled, we started drinking. I was drinking some cocktail, and I got shitfaced and passed out. When we woke up, Katrina had really started to plow through. It was quite surreal.
I imagine, with Hurricane Irene blowing through, there are a lot of people on the east coast who are drunk or hungover at this moment. Watching all those people at a seawall in Rhode Island made me jealous. They were all...having a good time watching the waves crashing around, and trying to get on TV. People have died. Houses are flooded. Streets have turned into rivers with an oil slick rushing through. Power is out. But you have to appreciate that it wasn't nearly as bad as it could have been.
All the media and meteorologists were getting prepared to get some good footage and maybe get a little boost for their career, but it's not very memorable to be standing by the docks knee deep in water with a light breeze blowing. I think since every 3 out of 5 people have iphones, and the other 2 have a phone with a camera or a digital camera, the residents generally get more interesting footage than the TV crews in a situation like this. But don't worry, I guess there's another low pressure system forming, which when the time comes will be named Katia. Sounds kinda like....Katrina, just take out two consonants. That's a good name. I knew a Katia. And she could be a hurricane when she got the momentum going.
What we should do, is tear down all development on the coast and move more inland, because there's still plenty of land there. Then we can build these bubbled hurricane safe complexes on the coastlines where we can all go and vacation whenever there is an impending storm, from the safety of the bubbles, say in a casino, or hanging out by the swimming pool. You're probably asking, then why don't they just build these bubbles around current infrastructures? Well, because most of us can't afford property on the beach. This way, we could tear down all those lovely mansions, villas and condo rentals on the beach which we so covet and envy. And then we can set up some good old fashioned tacky beachside hurricane watching resorts. Although, there are going to have to be a hell of a lot more storms for this to be profitable. They might have to figure out how to simulate hurricanes.
So, I'll have to eat some smoked oysters in commemoration of the Katrina Eve anniversary, oh, and I should get shitfaced too. So, I'll drink a toast to all my friends who, since Katrina, I've separated from. And I'll drink another toast for every other hurricane people have had to suffer through since my lifetime. I better stock up on the booze.
We bought our supplies, packed our guitars and computers, and our cats and headed downtown. Once we checked in and got settled, we started drinking. I was drinking some cocktail, and I got shitfaced and passed out. When we woke up, Katrina had really started to plow through. It was quite surreal.
I imagine, with Hurricane Irene blowing through, there are a lot of people on the east coast who are drunk or hungover at this moment. Watching all those people at a seawall in Rhode Island made me jealous. They were all...having a good time watching the waves crashing around, and trying to get on TV. People have died. Houses are flooded. Streets have turned into rivers with an oil slick rushing through. Power is out. But you have to appreciate that it wasn't nearly as bad as it could have been.
All the media and meteorologists were getting prepared to get some good footage and maybe get a little boost for their career, but it's not very memorable to be standing by the docks knee deep in water with a light breeze blowing. I think since every 3 out of 5 people have iphones, and the other 2 have a phone with a camera or a digital camera, the residents generally get more interesting footage than the TV crews in a situation like this. But don't worry, I guess there's another low pressure system forming, which when the time comes will be named Katia. Sounds kinda like....Katrina, just take out two consonants. That's a good name. I knew a Katia. And she could be a hurricane when she got the momentum going.
What we should do, is tear down all development on the coast and move more inland, because there's still plenty of land there. Then we can build these bubbled hurricane safe complexes on the coastlines where we can all go and vacation whenever there is an impending storm, from the safety of the bubbles, say in a casino, or hanging out by the swimming pool. You're probably asking, then why don't they just build these bubbles around current infrastructures? Well, because most of us can't afford property on the beach. This way, we could tear down all those lovely mansions, villas and condo rentals on the beach which we so covet and envy. And then we can set up some good old fashioned tacky beachside hurricane watching resorts. Although, there are going to have to be a hell of a lot more storms for this to be profitable. They might have to figure out how to simulate hurricanes.
So, I'll have to eat some smoked oysters in commemoration of the Katrina Eve anniversary, oh, and I should get shitfaced too. So, I'll drink a toast to all my friends who, since Katrina, I've separated from. And I'll drink another toast for every other hurricane people have had to suffer through since my lifetime. I better stock up on the booze.
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