Masked: Hurricane Katrina You know nothing...
All you're doing is sitting on the computer e-mailing homeless people. That's as dumb as trying to teach a fish how to breathe without water.
Almost exactly yesterday (around 10:50-11:30pm) my dad recieved news that hisbrother-in-law's relatives have been separated after losing everything during the hurricane in New Orleans. My dad told me to come and my sister to stay at home. I called Fred and told her what was going on and was going to post this here but my internet connection was down; not enough time to fix it. I had to sacrifice First Friday (something I've planned on going to for two months) to help 10 people. Getting out of the house was not easy, especially during 10pm or so. I tried to sleep while my dad drove but too many things including how uncomfortable the seat was, bothered me. Around 3:45am it was my turn to drive and I managed to reach the Cajundome in Lafayette without the need to sleep. When we got there at about 8:00, it was depressing enough to see everyone lying down on blankets with frowns on their faces. One particularly sad lady didn't even know where she was. Apparently she had lost her mother and may have taken care of her for quite some time. "She cannot walk, she cannot talk, she cannot sing... I want my momma! I want my momma! Where's my momma?...". Not knowing whether or not your loved one is dead or alive really sucks; that was just one person. I've seen so many terrible things in Louisianna that I'm not willing to disclose. After a good hour or so, a red cross staff member called out the names of my uncle's relatives on the microphone. My dad and I waited another 10-15 minutes to find four strangers happy to see us. Though we weren't familiar with them, we were technically related. After they told me how they managed after the hurricane I wasn't surprised at their reaction to the trip to Houston. They loved it! We had to bring them to the Astrodome in Houston to meet up with 6 more of their relatives. The Astrodome was larger and far more overwhelming. There had to be at least 50,000 evacuees waiting for someone to save them. There was garbage all over the place, a real mess. After we met with the remaining family, I helped carry some of their belongings up the ramp, out of the Astrodome, and to the parkinglot where 5 of us waited for my dad to drop the rest off at the city Greyhound station. I waited with 5 of them for about 3 hours before my dad finally returned. While we were driving though downtown Houston, they were amazed at all the buildings and said this was the best vacation they have ever had. When we got to the station, my dad and I stayed for a few hours before leaving. They are still waiting for their bus to arrive so they can see Uncle Richard in Missouri. It's been a loooooooong day of driving, working, driving, and working... I am tired but I learned some valuable lessons I will never forget.
I learned that people don't need material things (a house, car, job) to represent who they are, they need their family more than anything else. There were thousands of people with a different story but they all have the same relationship to the events that have occurred. The news is full of crap, "Dirty Refugees plea for their lives". The lady depicted crying by a pile of trash was the worst of the aftermath you would've seen during the day. Most of them didn't cry, but may have at night, trying to go to sleep. Despite all that have been lucky enough to go to a cozy home, there were still thousands who had to stay in the domes. Of those thousands of people, there were children scattered about looking for their parents and wondering if they will ever see them again. It made me sick to my stomach thinking about how they'll manage to survive, if they can.
Gym 
LUV 
Harry Pwner 
Pac-Man Pizza 
The Little Girl 
I Still Love You