When Aimee met Katrina

If, for any reason, you can't put a face on this disaster, go to aimee's blog. I don't know her. I only found out about her by visiting Colleen's blog.

It was a breezy little blog by a woman who loved animals, scrapbooking, her husband, and her new house near the Gulf of Mexico.

Now it's an archive of a life forever changed.

Some entries:

We're the proud owners of a fancy new grill. Darren wanted a nice one, but space & $ limitations made us wait. They're on clearance now, so yesterday he got a stainless steel one with all kinds of do dads. This afternoon he put it together & now I'm waiting for my steak. Ahhh grilled goodness.

--mmmmmm, August 24, 2005

I was having a fabulous day shopping with my sil for a dress to the wedding I'm obligated to attend. About 3/4 of the way through the day I get a call from my mom. Hurricane Katrina is forecasted to hit us Monday as a Cat 4. Good day instantly ruined. Our neighbors are already preparing to evacuate in the morning.

-Weather Sucks, August 27, 2005

If anyone reads this, please say a prayer for me & my family. We're boarding up & are about to evacuate. I'm scared nothing will be here when we return. They expect my area to suffer catastrophic damage. God be with all those in the path of this monster storm.

Prayer Request, August 28, 2005

I am forever changed. Last Thursday I returned to a place I used to call home. I lost 2 houses, my parents lost theirs & so did my grandmother (along with one of her dogs). My charming little beach town looks like a war zone. Military vehicles everywhere. Helicopters flying over all the time. It smells of sewage & decay. I received medical treatment in a military tent becauase of the sludge I came into contact with.

-Not For the Faint of Heart, September 6, 2005

It's only been over a week & Darren & I are already starting to fall through the cracks of red tape/beaurocracy. I don't even know where to begin. The left hand doesn't know what the right hand is doing. I know the country wasn't prepared for this, but aren't they suppossed to figure things out FAST?

-Falling Through the Cracks, September 8, 2005

And there you have it. From a life of comfort and promise, to a desparate refugee. Fourteen days flat. Where were you fourteen days ago? That's where aimee was.

I would invite all of you whose attitude towards those who have stayed has been "they should have left--they got what they deserved," to read again the August 27 entry. Yes, they left, but it seems that there was a debate. Imagine how you would react if you were told to pick up and leave your life. It is a hard, hard decision to make--especially in an area that's somewhat used to storms. It's always a debate. And few things are more frustrating than packing up, shuttering up, gassing up and heading out with a few thousand others--only to discover it's a false alarm.

Remember: no one knew how strong this hurricane was going to be...just ask the President.

Speaking of whom--here's what he said today when he signed his latest twelve digit bill:

In all the steps we take, our goal is not to simply provide benefits but to make them easy and simple as possible to collect.

And here's aimee:

When my dad called in desperation last week saying help had not gotten to our area, that people needed food- Darren & I went out at midnight & spent close to $1,000 for food/water/toothbrushes/etc for our neighborhood. FEMA will reimburse us $134 we spent for a chainsaw out of all that. We were told FEMA would be responsible for temp housing-they said the Red Cross is responsible. Called the Red Cross-they said FEMA is responsible. So we all remain homeless because everyone is pointing fingers trying to get out of taking responsibility.

-September 8, 2005

Aren't they supposed to figure out things FAST?

Yeharr