There really are no words for the horror that is going on just east of me, my favorite city in the entire world has been transformed into a watery hell. My best friend's valiant husband actually returned to the city to help and work (he's a doctor), but there is no word on the fate of their home yet. She, her baby, mom and three cats are staying in Beaumont with an aunt and uncle. Beaumont is not too far from Houston, maybe I can make a day trip over and see her and the new baby, it sounds like they're going to be there for awhile. At least her aunt's house has two extra bedrooms so the cats can have their own and there is room to set up the baby's crib. I spoke with her on the phone Tuesday night, but she is cellphone-less now, and she was out running errands when I called earlier. Her aunt said that they had not heard from her husband since he'd gone back to New Orleans. He was going to try and get to their house, and if it was not underwater, stay in it. I hope he's still got his shotgun with him...
Sparky has been saying it's the end of the world (oh and Dubya got his happy ass back to work today, what a lousy vacation he must have had), and now he is seriously freaking out because they are moving 20,000 or more hurricane refugees from the Superdome to the Astrodome. People have already been trying to get into the Dome, a stolen school bus actually made it to Houston tonight before the official buses arrived, they were going to turn them away but finally relented. The reason Sparky is worried is because we live maybe 7 or 8 miles from the Dome, I actually went to that area today to pick up several prescriptions from Sam's Club before the chaos descended on the Astrodomain (now known as Reliant Park, blecch). Sam's was busier than usual and there were several extra HPD officers in the store, looking a little alarmed. I looked at all the gas station prices when I was on the way to Sam's, I was down to half a tank, and actually tried to fill up at Sam's discount gas pumps. The SVU in front of me's bill was $74.14. But my membership card must be scratched up or something, because the machine told me it was unreadable and spit it back out.
What the hell, their gas was the same price as the Chevron in my neighborhood, $2.89 a gallon for premium, so I decided to just go back there on the way home. I pulled into Chevron, which is busy most of the time anyway, but it was a fricking circus tonight. People coming from all directions to try and get to the pumps. I got mister "too cool to walk fast, pay inside then go get his change" guy (he got change back?), and while I was sitting in line, trying not to get rear-ended by the cars whipping in off the street behind me, mister "crazy end of the world street preacher" began making his way towards me. I used to see these guys all the time when I worked downtown, but this guy seems to like to hang out at the Chevron. He has a nice captive audience. Luckily he went over to one of the sisters, who was merely amused by his ranting about "there's no more money" and "the pretty women with makeup", I think he was calling her a prostitute, he kept poking her in the arm to make his point, but she just smiled and nodded.
She was finishing up just as change guy ambled back to his car and left. And the street preacher began looking around for someone else to scream at. But when I worked downtown I got pretty good at the "leave me the fuck alone" stare, which amazingly worked through the car window, because he wandered on off to rant at some people waiting with their car windows down. Usually when I'm in the car, dodging windshield washers, I have to violently shake my head and yell NO to keep them away from my car. I guess I just didn't look like I'd be any fun. And I also have a handgun in my purse, which seems to magically help. Too many years working security to look like the unarmed innocent. Good.
My little half tank was $25. I usually get a full tank for a little over $30 with the Maxima. Wow, that means it would take over $50 to fill it up now. I'm surprised people aren't rioting in the streets. Somehow I really don't think Katrina caused the oil prices to actually go up in just a few days, she was just a convenient excuse to fleece the already broke American people.
I hope I hear from Mary tomorrow... I've gone back into 9/11 mode, I've looked at every single photo gallery of the hurricane devastation I can find, I feel like I HAVE to, I can't stop looking at them. I know New Orleans so well I look at every photo for some sort of landmarks, I feel so helpless just sitting here 350 miles away. I know I'm obsessive compulsive, but I have some sort of masochistic streak also that won't let me look away. I did give to the Red Cross (specify Hurricane 2005). I don't have the physical health or stamina to do much else, but every dollar helps. The country should have plenty of money for natural disasters, but all of our surplus has been sucked into the pockets of Halliburton and friends. OK, I don't want to go there...