K-Ville

I have seen billboards for this new show called "K-Ville" all over Hollywood.
I recognized the 'Fleur-de-lis" and believe it or not, the New Orleans police car in the bottom of the design. Then I saw the New Orleans police badge on the guy in the front with the crescent and star so I knew it must be about New Orleans. I figured "K" was Hurricane Katrina. I was a little correct. (It does not happen very often.)

'K-Ville' is about the aftermath and police drama after the hurricane as the town tries to rebuild. You can find out more on the Fox website at www.fox.com/kville or on at http://www.tv.com/k-ville/show/68692/summary.html.

I downloaded the pilot episode on iTunes to watch on my iPod while I en route to Berlin in 5 days. I haven't watched it yet, but I can let you know what I think next week.
You know I get fiesty and shows about New Orleans hit close to home. (Literally and figuratively.)

Where Is It? New Orleans and Hurricane Katrina Debris

After this trip to New Orleans and seeing that the debris from Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans East was gone, I was excited.
Now that I am home and processing what I saw, I am worried.
It has to go somewhere.

Where the fuck is that debris going?
I mean, okay, it's gone, it's looks better, the world thinks it's clean, but ummmmm... where is all that stuff?

Just one of the apartment complexes that is not leveled and patchy grass means that 400 some units that each had one refrigerator that is technically toxic waste had to go somewhere.

Where?
Did they dump it in a swamp somewhere?
Did they burn it?
It must have gone under the carpeting somewhere. ...that's it.
It's not just refrigerators for that complex I am worried about, what about the air conditioning, the couches, the walls of the old building itself.

...for goodness sake, where are all the bodies for that matter? (This photo was particularly disturbing to me, so I made sure to add it here.)

Oh no.
I am going to lose sleep over this.

Here's the official plan according to the EPA, but that just can't be that simple.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2005/10/31/tech/main995971.shtml
http://risingfromruin.msnbc.com/2006/01/fighting_over_t.html
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9315740/
http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2007-03-25-katrina-dumps_N.htm

Toxic FEMA Trailers

Can you believe this story about the FEMA trailers in New Orleans being "toxic?"
This is crazy!
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20165754/

OutHouse in OurHouse

...as my parents put their house back together after the storm in New Orleans, I think how in some ways, it was a blessing in disguise.

They now have the opportunity to redo parts of the house that they want to differently. Not just in structure, but in design too.
I think I heard my mom say she was excited she could get all new black appliances. The one that were in the house pre-Katrina were white and I think she thought they got too dirty. See, it's good in my parents hood. *wink*

When I was home last time, I liked the changes my dad made to the downstairs bathroom. They went with an outhouse decor. It is a bathroom after all, so it seems fitting. Here are some snapshots of the design. Where she found so much outhouse stuff, I will never know.

My favorite part is the faucet. I TOTALLY love it! It reminds me of the family cabin where we had a real outhouse. The cabin didn't have running water. If wanted running water, we had to run outside and get it. It came out of a pump like this one that we had to prime and pull from a well.
I kept running to the downstairs bathroom to wash my hands with the cool faucet.

That small family cabin was probably as small as my 483 square feet in Hollywood. My family would go as a whole probably once or twice a summer. Rarely, but a few times, we did go in the winter. I was so little the grass was often taller than I was. My brother and dad did all the butch stuff like lawn mowing, I didn't get into all that nature stuff. If I wanted nature, I'd turn on the discovery channel. *wink*

I gotta hand it to my mom and dad as they put things back together. They are handling it well for the most part. (My mom goes off the deep end sometimes and it taking so long and that frustrates me, but I am not there, so I have little room to talk.) I am proud of them for returning to New Orleans and being a part of the rebuilding. ...at time, I even think I am jealous.

Who would have thought I would be revisiting that childhood outhouse? Not me.

Hurricane Katrina - 1 Year, 6 Months, 9 Days Later.

I originally blogged these photos HERE in my blog. (...so these may look familiar and this is NOT a new post by definition.)

I was thinking about the damage in New Orleans from the hurricane.

These photos are when it was about a year later.
They were taken September 6, 2006.
The actual hurricane hit New Orleans August 29, 2005. (http://zfacts.com/p/108.html)
That is 373 days. Or 1 year, 8 days. (www.timeanddate.com)

Rusty, Tom, Angel and I pulled over to the Read Blvd. exit off the I-10 in East New Orleans and Rusty was bold and brazen and actually got out and walked into one of the abandoned apartment complexes at that exit.
I couldn't do it, it made me uncomfortable.
These photos are what Rusty saw inside the apartment. (Keep in mind, this is 1 year and 8 days later.)

On a lighter note, this photo was at dinner in New Orleans at my parents house, 1 year and 9 days later.

Today, it's 557 days from the date Katrina blew into town. 1 year, 6 months, 9 days later.