Memories of New Orleans and the Coast
As you can tell, I haven't posted since Monday, when first indications were that Katrina was going to destroy both of my home towns, New Orleans and Bay-Waveland. My post then was too cute by half. Katrina, turned out to be an all-time bitch whose destruction is brutish, nasty and short.
Below: Bay St. Louis, MS. Dad's apartment was near the beach between the Bay Bridge to the north and the RR Bridge to the south.
I spoke with Boots and Trish at Di's in Plaquemines: All family is accounted for and safe. But most have lost their homes and many their livelyhood. My father lost his apartment, though Davey and Julie were able to walk over mounds of debris to collect some of his clothes. His apartment on Demontluzin Avenue in Bay St Louis is at the very highest point of Bay St Louis, just north of downtown. His apartment is on the second floor. The surge rose to the eight step. That means to me that the surge was at least forty feet. At the foot of Demontluzin at the beach, if you remember, it is at least 25 feet down to the waterline. Dad's apartment is a long block from the beach.
Below: Dad's view of the train bridge
Where we have lived in Bay St Louis (the Lambs, two houses from the Bay bridge, Boardman Ave, Cedar Point) are flat marsh lands now. In Waveland (on Pine Ridge Drive), including Mimi & Poppy's house on Vacation Lane, are all flat marsh lands now. I saw a video of St Stanislaus and Our Lady of the Gulf. Both were still standing. OLG has survived the hurricanes of 49, 69 (Camille), 64 (Betsy), 65 (Hilda), several others the dates of which I can't recall, and now Katrina.
I haven't heard from any of the Fausts but I understand all are safe. Susie and Don are staying with Mug and Penny in Atlanta.
Below: View of New Orleans from Uptown
As for my siblings, Tim and Laura still don't know about their house n Kenner. They are staying with Stu and his family in Lafayette. Julie and Brad will likely relocate for now to Brad's hometown in New Mexico. I understand St Tammany Parish School District will pay their teachers 65%. So, with that and the fact that Julie is a certified elementary ed teacher, they should land OK in the Land of Enchanment. Davey, as you may know, worked for Lockeed in Slidell. Good news, he landed immediately with SAIC and will consult on DLA projects. That's my gaining command. He's worked hard transitioning into IT from geology and with back to back hires at Lockeed and SAIC, he's rolling.
Annie and I have a decision to make soon. I've been offered good IT positions with federal agencies in Philly and Northern Virginia...to move or commute, that is the question...or stay active duty and seek work closer to Jackson. Trip and Emmy, in their own humerous way, have told us, enjoy xx, we're not moving!
Below: an Uptown style that's likely lost forever.
The devastation in New Orleans and the coast has uprooted so many people that many other southern cities will be impacted. Good impacts and bad impacts. One bad impact is that New Orleans' drug and crime wave will ripple over these southern cites, Jackson included.
REMEMBERING NEW ORLEANS...I remember riding bikes down the old Tulane Stadium ramps...walking into the Superdome for the first time...jogging on St Charles (in fact, as a high school trackster, I "made" paths on St Charles before the jogging fad started)...playing football at Tad Gormley and baseball at Larry Gilbert for Jesuit and Odeco Drillers during the summer...Having my first trifecta at Pat O'Briens and not remembering bringing my date home...Walking to Holy Name before sun up to serve mass, then over to Loyola for eggs and bacon, a free perk for altar boys...I remember one of my dogs (Rebel) following me on my paper route only to give its life to a Sunbeam truck (I dumped all of the papers on the street and placed Rebel into the basket and drove her home for proper burial in our back yard)...I remember one summer jogging from our house on Audubon Street, through Tulane, around Audubon Park and the Riverwalk, and back, every day - six miles - after shoveling asphalt from 6:00 AM to 6:00 PM on Airline Highway...I remember taking four buses to Jesuit for school, hoping a few Dominican girls would be on board...I remember Tulane beating LSU after a 25 year drought...I remember my summer as a Please Escort during Meg Farris's debut...I remember doing the waltz badly in front of all of Mardi Gras at the Comus ball (Dr Simon Ward's daughter's date).
I haven't lived in New Orleans since 1981. But this tragedy brings to mind how many good times and memories we had. The Big Easy is gone, but so was Chigago, Galveston, Washington DC, Atlanta, etc. New Orleans will be back, but won't be the same. Like Thomas Wolfe wrote, you can never go home.
Below: The old Archie Manning homestead in the Garden District (between uptown and the CBD).
Below: Bay St. Louis, MS. Dad's apartment was near the beach between the Bay Bridge to the north and the RR Bridge to the south.
I spoke with Boots and Trish at Di's in Plaquemines: All family is accounted for and safe. But most have lost their homes and many their livelyhood. My father lost his apartment, though Davey and Julie were able to walk over mounds of debris to collect some of his clothes. His apartment on Demontluzin Avenue in Bay St Louis is at the very highest point of Bay St Louis, just north of downtown. His apartment is on the second floor. The surge rose to the eight step. That means to me that the surge was at least forty feet. At the foot of Demontluzin at the beach, if you remember, it is at least 25 feet down to the waterline. Dad's apartment is a long block from the beach.
Below: Dad's view of the train bridge
Where we have lived in Bay St Louis (the Lambs, two houses from the Bay bridge, Boardman Ave, Cedar Point) are flat marsh lands now. In Waveland (on Pine Ridge Drive), including Mimi & Poppy's house on Vacation Lane, are all flat marsh lands now. I saw a video of St Stanislaus and Our Lady of the Gulf. Both were still standing. OLG has survived the hurricanes of 49, 69 (Camille), 64 (Betsy), 65 (Hilda), several others the dates of which I can't recall, and now Katrina.
I haven't heard from any of the Fausts but I understand all are safe. Susie and Don are staying with Mug and Penny in Atlanta.
Below: View of New Orleans from Uptown
As for my siblings, Tim and Laura still don't know about their house n Kenner. They are staying with Stu and his family in Lafayette. Julie and Brad will likely relocate for now to Brad's hometown in New Mexico. I understand St Tammany Parish School District will pay their teachers 65%. So, with that and the fact that Julie is a certified elementary ed teacher, they should land OK in the Land of Enchanment. Davey, as you may know, worked for Lockeed in Slidell. Good news, he landed immediately with SAIC and will consult on DLA projects. That's my gaining command. He's worked hard transitioning into IT from geology and with back to back hires at Lockeed and SAIC, he's rolling.
Annie and I have a decision to make soon. I've been offered good IT positions with federal agencies in Philly and Northern Virginia...to move or commute, that is the question...or stay active duty and seek work closer to Jackson. Trip and Emmy, in their own humerous way, have told us, enjoy xx, we're not moving!
Below: an Uptown style that's likely lost forever.
The devastation in New Orleans and the coast has uprooted so many people that many other southern cities will be impacted. Good impacts and bad impacts. One bad impact is that New Orleans' drug and crime wave will ripple over these southern cites, Jackson included.
REMEMBERING NEW ORLEANS...I remember riding bikes down the old Tulane Stadium ramps...walking into the Superdome for the first time...jogging on St Charles (in fact, as a high school trackster, I "made" paths on St Charles before the jogging fad started)...playing football at Tad Gormley and baseball at Larry Gilbert for Jesuit and Odeco Drillers during the summer...Having my first trifecta at Pat O'Briens and not remembering bringing my date home...Walking to Holy Name before sun up to serve mass, then over to Loyola for eggs and bacon, a free perk for altar boys...I remember one of my dogs (Rebel) following me on my paper route only to give its life to a Sunbeam truck (I dumped all of the papers on the street and placed Rebel into the basket and drove her home for proper burial in our back yard)...I remember one summer jogging from our house on Audubon Street, through Tulane, around Audubon Park and the Riverwalk, and back, every day - six miles - after shoveling asphalt from 6:00 AM to 6:00 PM on Airline Highway...I remember taking four buses to Jesuit for school, hoping a few Dominican girls would be on board...I remember Tulane beating LSU after a 25 year drought...I remember my summer as a Please Escort during Meg Farris's debut...I remember doing the waltz badly in front of all of Mardi Gras at the Comus ball (Dr Simon Ward's daughter's date).
I haven't lived in New Orleans since 1981. But this tragedy brings to mind how many good times and memories we had. The Big Easy is gone, but so was Chigago, Galveston, Washington DC, Atlanta, etc. New Orleans will be back, but won't be the same. Like Thomas Wolfe wrote, you can never go home.
Below: The old Archie Manning homestead in the Garden District (between uptown and the CBD).
posted by Rope Burns at 9/03/2005 03:57:00 AM
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