9/9/05

L, I’m so glad to hear from you and that you are OK.  I appreciate you letting me know.  I have thought alot about you and your family.

My kitties are OK.   My nephew tried last night breaking in the apartment (we still can’t get home) and couldn’t.  He actually went back today.   He fed and watered them and will go back in a few days to check on them again.  Seems all of this "no going into Jeff parish after Thursday" was a bunch of crap.   My apartment stunk to high heaven from the cats urine.  I’ll never get that smell out. Now I’m worried about the landlady and what she’ll say.

A guy the hubby works with has an old van for sale cheap.  He’s holding it for us.  We just need to get back there.

The hubby’s work is actually running.  It’s one of only three grain elevators working and the men are working seven days a week.  Again. The hubby needs to get down there.  His niece is coming back from what ever state she evacuated to, tomorrow.  She said after she gets home and gets things situated she’ll come get us.  I hope it’s true.

As for getting help.  The food stamps is all we’ve been able to get.  People tell me constantly, call FEMA.  Call Red Cross.  These are people that aren’t in the same situation and haven’t tried getting in touch with these places.  We register online with them last week.  I finally got some one to talk to tonight and all I get is "you can find that out online".  WTF are they answering the damn phone for then if they can’t help.  I can’t find anything out online either.  At this point, I really don’t care.  I just want to go home, clean and deoderize the place the best I can and get on with my life.  They are saying approximately three weeks until the power and stuff is working in my area. That is a long time.  I know it’s not as long as people who completely lost their homes, but it is devasting to us none the less.

I’m trying to think of what else has been going on.  Been talking with Lisa a lot.  She has been doing stuff for me online because the house phone here just started working tonight.   The Friend has been emailing quite a bit, asking alot of questions and saying he’s worried.  The Connecticut sister’s work got together and raised some money for us.  I wonder what she’s been telling them.  It was very wonderful of them.  In the grand scheme of things, it wasn’t a lot of money, but for people who don’t make much to begin with it was a fortune.  I wish I could thank them all personally.

I guess that’s about it for now.  Take care.

Bye.