The Bullseye Again

"It is time to allow yourself to be made aware of the fact of Isaac." Friend on Facebook

I started this blog when I stayed for Gustav. This was when blogging was new to me. It felt uncomfortable and I didn't use Twitter, but I believe now what I believed then, that mainstream media will never accurately report that happens during storms (see my Gustav posts) and that I can take care of myself here. 

Tonight I livestreamed the line for gas Uptown just for the hell of it as I filled up. If I stay I'll update everything as long as I can. Because it looks like I am going to stay in New Orleans for Isaac. I'm having a hard time with this because I want to stay and believe I can do this and not endanger rescue workers or myself or others.  But I am in love and don't want the person I am in love with to stay here because I want to. The "should I stay or should I go discussion" hurts my heart.  We don't know yet exactly where the storm is going to go or where we'd go with pets and other people if we left or how we'd get there. He said he'd do what I would do and stay with me, but if it got really bad he'd be quite angry. This is not something I want to do to us as there have been no wedges between us yet. Four months seems much longer in "Occupy time." I love him with all my heart, and if I do decide to go it will be because of that and only that.

Since I started this blog years ago, Twitter and livestream have become part of my life; tonight I'm trying not to say too much the Twitters because I don't want to debate staying. I have to be able to believe in myself and trust myself and know that my contributions to citizen journalism will matter. That I won't die or make anyone else die.  These are things I have thought about. Because it's not a game to me.  A lot of people are referring to Katrina as what will happen and arguing that the aftermath of Katrina is what the aftermath of a hurricane will be like. But the aftermath of Ivan and Gustav and many others were not like that.  Sitting on the highway with a car with no AC that will probably break down, two cats and a dog and grid-lock traffic, contra flow, no radio in the car, nobody else who can drive the car that will break down anyway and needs a brake tag does not seem healthy. I live on high ground that won't flood and have a generator.

(Unbelievably, I do not own a waterproof cape).

Some of the things I have:

A generator.
Several level-headed friends staying.
Apartment on very high ground.
 A dog.
A cat.
A broken 1996 Subaru.
Empty plastic water bottles to be used as flotation devices.
Food.
Water.
Ice.
Cigarettes
Red Cross Radio that can stay charged by winding and charge a cell phone
3 different cell phones with mega batteries (can switch SIM)
Candles.Enough batteries and flashlights to last a very long time.
Life jackets.
Power tools.
Plywood. 
An air mattress that could be used as a raft.
Ice.
Coolers.
Verizon hotspot. 
T-Mobile phone (two different towers)
Cox wireless at home
Rainboots
Survival gear commonly carried by occupy activists including waterproof backpack that can charge a phone via the sun
MREs 
Sunscreen.
Bic lighters.
A waterproof fireproof safe. 
Access to an axe. 
More things on Bob Breck's list.

THIS -> "OK, I have it on good advice that now is when we believe the safest position is dead in the middle. Knew the track was likely to make a significant westward shift again, but this.... wow!"

NOLA Lat 29 57 8 N Long 90 03 8 W

 
I am begging anyone who knows me. Please know I'm keeping all eyes on this storm and weighing the consequences of my decisions. Please know that I can only respond to so much and can't respond to every tweet with an update about this storm. Thank you for caring about us. Much love always.





Atlantic Tropical Storm ISAAC Discussion Number 24
You are subscribed to NHC Forecast Discussions (Atlantic) for NOAA's N=
ational Weather Service.
Atlantic Tropical Storm ISAAC Discussion Number 24
=
08/26/2012 10:51 PM EDT

000
WTNT44 KNHC 270250
TCDAT4

TROPICAL STORM ISAAC DISCUSSION NUMBER 24
NWS NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER MIAMI FL AL092012
1100 PM EDT SUN AUG 26 2012
SATELLITE IMAGERY HAS SHOWN AN INCREASE IN THE AREA OF COLD CLOUD
TOPS NEAR THE CENTER OF ISAAC. HOWEVER...THERE HAS NOT BEEN ANY
SIGNIFICANT CHANGE IN ORGANIZATION IN RADAR DATA FROM KEY WEST
THIS EVENING. IN FACT...THE AIRCRAFT FIXES HAVE BEEN NEAR THE
SOUTHEASTERN EDGE OF THE CONVECTIVE CLUSTER SEEN IN BOTH SATELLITE
=
AND RADAR IMAGERY. AN EARLIER SHIP OBSERVATION AND SFMR
MEASUREMENTS OF 50-55 KT SUPPORTED INCREASING THE INTENSITY TO 55
KT ON THE INTERMEDIATE ADVISORY. SINCE THAT TIME...THE AIRCRAFT
HAS NOT FOUND ANY STRONGER WINDS SO THE INITIAL WIND SPEED REMAINS
=
UNCHANGED. THE LARGE SCALE ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS...WARM
WATERS...AND A CONDUCIVE UPPER-AIR PATTERN FAVOR STRENGTHENING
DURING THE NEXT COUPLE OF DAYS. HOWEVER...THE LACK OF AN INNER CORE
AND LARGE WIND FIELD COULD CONTINUE TO BE IMPEDING FACTORS FOR
SIGNIFICANT STRENGTHENING IN THE SHORT TERM. THE NHC INTENSITY
FORECAST SHOWS A GRADUAL INCREASE IN WIND SPEED DURING THE NEXT 12
=
HOURS OR SO...FOLLOWED BY MORE STEADY STRENGTHENING. THE OFFICIAL
=
FORECAST IS CLOSE TO THE SHIPS/LGEM GUIDANCE AND THE INTENSITY
CONSENSUS.
AIRCRAFT AND RADAR CENTER FIXES INDICATE THAT ISAAC JOGGED WESTWARD
AND SLOWED DOWN THIS EVENING. HOWEVER...THE LONGER TERM MOTION IS
=
285/12 KT. THE MODELS SHOW ISAAC TURNING TOWARD THE NORTHWEST INTO
A BREAK IN THE SUBTROPICAL RIDGE. ALTHOUGH THE MODELS AGREE ON
THIS TURN...THERE IS AN UNUSUALLY LARGE SPREAD IN THE TRACK GUIDANCE
AFTER 24 HOURS. THE SPREAD OF LANDFALL LOCATIONS ALONG THE NORTHERN
GULF COAST RANGES FROM THE TEXAS/LOUISIANA BORDER EASTWARD TO THE
ALABAMA/FLORIDA BORDER WITH THE HWRF...GFDL...AND GFS NEAR THE
WESTERN EDGE AND THE UKMET AND ECMWF ALONG THE EASTERN EDGE OF THE
=
ENVELOPE. OVERALL...THE CONSENSUS HAS SHIFTED A LITTLE WESTWARD
AND THE OFFICIAL FORECAST AS BEEN MOVED IN THAT DIRECTION. THE NHC
FORECAST IS BETWEEN THE ECMWF AND GFS ENSEMBLE MEANS AND NEAR THE
HFIP MULTI-MODEL CONSENSUS. BECAUSE OF THE VERY LARGE SPREAD IN
THE GUIDANCE...THERE CONTINUES TO BE GREATER THAN USUAL TRACK
FORECAST UNCERTAINTY.
THROUGHOUT THE PERIOD...IT IS IMPORTANT NOT TO FOCUS ON THE EXACT
FORECAST TRACK DUE TO FORECAST UNCERTAINTIES AND THE FACT THAT
SIGNIFICANT HAZARDS EXTEND WELL AWAY FROM THE CENTER.
FORECAST POSITIONS AND MAX WINDS
INIT 27/0300Z 24.2N 82.9W 55 KT 65 MPH
12H 27/1200Z 25.2N 84.8W 60 KT 70 MPH
24H 28/0000Z 26.5N 86.7W 70 KT 80 MPH
36H 28/1200Z 27.9N 88.3W 80 KT 90 MPH
48H 29/0000Z 28.9N 89.3W 85 KT 100 MPH
72H 30/0000Z 30.6N 90.3W 70 KT 80 MPH...INLAND
96H 31/0000Z 33.0N 91.0W 30 KT 35 MPH...INLAND
120H 01/0000Z 36.0N 91.0W 20 KT 25 MPH...INLAND
$$
FORECASTER BROWN

Isaac 10:51 pm Sunday

NOLA
Lat 29 57 8 N
Long 90 03 8 W

Atlantic Tropical Storm ISAAC Discussion Number 24
You are subscribed to NHC Forecast Discussions (Atlantic) for NOAA's National Weather Service.
Atlantic Tropical Storm ISAAC Discussion Number 24
=
08/26/2012 10:51 PM EDT

000
WTNT44 KNHC 270250
TCDAT4

TROPICAL STORM ISAAC DISCUSSION NUMBER 24
NWS NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER MIAMI FL AL092012
1100 PM EDT SUN AUG 26 2012
SATELLITE IMAGERY HAS SHOWN AN INCREASE IN THE AREA OF COLD CLOUD
TOPS NEAR THE CENTER OF ISAAC. HOWEVER...THERE HAS NOT BEEN ANY
SIGNIFICANT CHANGE IN ORGANIZATION IN RADAR DATA FROM KEY WEST
THIS EVENING. IN FACT...THE AIRCRAFT FIXES HAVE BEEN NEAR THE
SOUTHEASTERN EDGE OF THE CONVECTIVE CLUSTER SEEN IN BOTH SATELLITE
=
AND RADAR IMAGERY. AN EARLIER SHIP OBSERVATION AND SFMR
MEASUREMENTS OF 50-55 KT SUPPORTED INCREASING THE INTENSITY TO 55
KT ON THE INTERMEDIATE ADVISORY. SINCE THAT TIME...THE AIRCRAFT
HAS NOT FOUND ANY STRONGER WINDS SO THE INITIAL WIND SPEED REMAINS
=
UNCHANGED. THE LARGE SCALE ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS...WARM
WATERS...AND A CONDUCIVE UPPER-AIR PATTERN FAVOR STRENGTHENING
DURING THE NEXT COUPLE OF DAYS. HOWEVER...THE LACK OF AN INNER CORE
AND LARGE WIND FIELD COULD CONTINUE TO BE IMPEDING FACTORS FOR
SIGNIFICANT STRENGTHENING IN THE SHORT TERM. THE NHC INTENSITY
FORECAST SHOWS A GRADUAL INCREASE IN WIND SPEED DURING THE NEXT 12
=
HOURS OR SO...FOLLOWED BY MORE STEADY STRENGTHENING. THE OFFICIAL
=
FORECAST IS CLOSE TO THE SHIPS/LGEM GUIDANCE AND THE INTENSITY
CONSENSUS.
AIRCRAFT AND RADAR CENTER FIXES INDICATE THAT ISAAC JOGGED WESTWARD
AND SLOWED DOWN THIS EVENING. HOWEVER...THE LONGER TERM MOTION IS
=
285/12 KT. THE MODELS SHOW ISAAC TURNING TOWARD THE NORTHWEST INTO
A BREAK IN THE SUBTROPICAL RIDGE. ALTHOUGH THE MODELS AGREE ON
THIS TURN...THERE IS AN UNUSUALLY LARGE SPREAD IN THE TRACK GUIDANCE
AFTER 24 HOURS. THE SPREAD OF LANDFALL LOCATIONS ALONG THE NORTHERN
GULF COAST RANGES FROM THE TEXAS/LOUISIANA BORDER EASTWARD TO THE
ALABAMA/FLORIDA BORDER WITH THE HWRF...GFDL...AND GFS NEAR THE
WESTERN EDGE AND THE UKMET AND ECMWF ALONG THE EASTERN EDGE OF THE
=
ENVELOPE. OVERALL...THE CONSENSUS HAS SHIFTED A LITTLE WESTWARD
AND THE OFFICIAL FORECAST AS BEEN MOVED IN THAT DIRECTION. THE NHC
FORECAST IS BETWEEN THE ECMWF AND GFS ENSEMBLE MEANS AND NEAR THE
HFIP MULTI-MODEL CONSENSUS. BECAUSE OF THE VERY LARGE SPREAD IN
THE GUIDANCE...THERE CONTINUES TO BE GREATER THAN USUAL TRACK
FORECAST UNCERTAINTY.
THROUGHOUT THE PERIOD...IT IS IMPORTANT NOT TO FOCUS ON THE EXACT
FORECAST TRACK DUE TO FORECAST UNCERTAINTIES AND THE FACT THAT
SIGNIFICANT HAZARDS EXTEND WELL AWAY FROM THE CENTER.
FORECAST POSITIONS AND MAX WINDS
INIT 27/0300Z 24.2N 82.9W 55 KT 65 MPH
12H 27/1200Z 25.2N 84.8W 60 KT 70 MPH
24H 28/0000Z 26.5N 86.7W 70 KT 80 MPH
36H 28/1200Z 27.9N 88.3W 80 KT 90 MPH
48H 29/0000Z 28.9N 89.3W 85 KT 100 MPH
72H 30/0000Z 30.6N 90.3W 70 KT 80 MPH...INLAND
96H 31/0000Z 33.0N 91.0W 30 KT 35 MPH...INLAND
120H 01/0000Z 36.0N 91.0W 20 KT 25 MPH...INLAND
$$




FORECASTER BROWN

It Is Not My Fault I Do Not Evacuate and This Makes YOU Worry.

I posted this after Gustav on my In The Bull's Eye blog and revised it a bit here.

           From Wednesday, September 3, 2008.

Tonight, when residents were returning to the city, I went and met with some people and talked about how we felt about our reactions to the storm. A lot of people expressed distress that they'd evacuated because other people had begged and badgered them into doing so. There was an overall consensus that those of us who stayed were choosing to have confidence in ourselves and be true to that and risked making our loved ones very angry, and now felt unnecessarily guilty and ashamed (note: I no longer allow people to make me feel unnecessarily guilty and ashamed).

I'm just going to go ahead and say that I am annoyed that some people who urged me to evacuate are disappointed in me, or didn't think I could cope with staying here, or think I'm a selfish idiot. 

Note: Three years later, I am more aware that I remain calmer in a crisis than I do when it is not a crisis.

I'll never know what I could have coped with if things had been worse. I am going to say that I did stay on ground that did not flood during Katrina, so if the same areas that flooded had flooded this time, my generator would have functioned differently than the generators owned by people staying in areas that flooded. 

Maybe I was crazy for thinking that if an area didn't flood during Katrina, it wouldn't flood during Gustav. That's the logic most of the people who stayed who I've been interviewing followed.

I'm glad that those of you who evacuated are having a great time out there enjoying whatever vacation spot you've landed in, and I really mean that. Maybe the fact that I was camping for the past 2 months made me hesitant to see this evacuation as a vacation. I stand by the fact that I couldn't have handled evacuating. My car wouldn't start on Sunday. I could not have carried 3 animals in a friend's truck. Those are coincidences; I'd already decided to stay.

The main point that everyone I met with tonight at 8 p.m. and everyone I interviewed agreed upon is that it is not fair to yell at someone for staying, to ream someone out for staying, to accuse someone who is staying of causing one stress that he or she does not need.  

That is something for a person to discuss with his or her own  therapist. It is not my fault that certain people had nothing better to do than blame me for contributing to their stress. I am not talking about Joe or Sarah or Matt here, whose comments were brief and came from love and concern and not anger. I am speaking for everyone who chose to stay here and  didn't need to hear it from everyone who was watching CNN news or suffering from whatever affliction prevents them from staying out of other people's lives. 

It does not help to browbeat a person into evacuating. Some of my friends who evacuated because they were yelled at and blamed for others' anxiety are a mess now. They're either not back yet or here, crying and breaking down that they are more anxious than ever. They may be ingesting certain beverages that are deadly for them.

People make their own choices, and I am not blaming anyone who evacuated. I am not sitting here thinking I was smarter than anyone else. I was just lucky that it wasn't Nagin's "Mother of all storms" and that I had my wits together to prepare for the storm. The fact that my parents supported me speaks volumes, and they actually listened to my plan instead of telling me I was putting the life of a rescue worker at risk.

So for all of you out there who reamed out those of us who stayed, who yelled at us and belittled us and bombarded us with distracting text messages about how we contributed to your anxiety,  please try to keep the focus on yourselves next time. Your venting did not help. Whatever calm reaction/behavior the people who stayed held onto was in spite of the blame and anxiety of other people.  When you called and emailed me and asked me to drive by your house to see if it had flooded, I did. I took photographs and emailed them to you and uploaded them to my blog and even to Facebook immediately. 

So remember that the next time you want me to pack up my cat and sit in traffic on the interstate and not smoke in your car. Because if you manage to knock me unconscious and drive me out of here, it is then that you will have to worry about me. I cannot handle evacuating (I can provide a doctor's note), and you would not want me with you. 

And if a mandatory evacuation is called this summer, if I get even one angry email from a NOLA resident about how much of a burden I am for not evacuating, I will not respond to that person's requests for photographs, house checks, or tips for getting back into the city.

With love, 

Tara Jill

Sunday Night from During Hurricane Gustav

I imported this from my old blog that I started during Hurricane Gustav. The old blog New Orleans In The Bullseye is still around, but my complex relationship with Google made me want to link this blog to my other blogs. I imported the old blog and renamed it Flood Street.

Here is an early entry from the old blog, dated Sunday, August 31, 2008.

I'm not used to having a blog, and this feels really awkward. For one thing, I'm just giving this list of events and initial impressions that I haven't been able to analyze, so I feel like I'm just rambling. For another thing, I am not aiming for quality prose at this time. I don't know how people write these great blogs like antiplath.

I almost left this afternoon, and I thank the people who told me to, especially Sarah. I know that people are angry with me because now they have to worry about me. I don't want anyone to think that I imagine myself being tough or strong or that I think I have something special that anyone else doesn't have.

J and I keep getting text messages from people all over the country (people who were already in other parts of the country as opposed to those who evacuated). It seems many people have gotten the impression that if people in New Orleans metro leave their homes, they will be sent to Angola.

The curfew is when it gets dark, and looters will be taken to Angola. Anyone stopped who isn't looting should have a very good reason for being out after dark, and if they do, they will not be taken to Angola or anywhere else.

Bob Breck was on Fox around 7 p.m. Many people have written in on his blog that they can't get him on television. He has good news.

He began by saying, "I am addressing those people in New Orleans metro who did not evacuate."

He said confidently that Hurricane Gustav is not the mother of all storms as C. Ray Nagin described it. He also said this storm will not be nearly as bad as Katrina. According to Bob, the storm has shifted northwest and is moving quickly. Our side of the storm is not the strong side; it's being killed by a dry pocket of air. A miracle. He called this a dealable storm for people in New Orleans metro. "It won't be catastrophic," he said. He expects it to be a Category 2 or a high 3 when it makes landfall NW of New Orleans metro. Winds and Lake Pontchartrain will not be problems, he says. "It will not be anything like Hurricane Katrina," he added, and he meant that in a good way.

Rainfall is going to be the worst problem. The storm could very well stall in Western Louisiana, and New Orleans metro could get heavy rain all week, which will lead to flooding. Be careful Andrea.

I was up all night almost after I read the comment posted. I'm not going to argue with a word of it. This morning, Joe and Sarah got me thinking that I should get the hell out. Then my car wouldn't start. When it did, I got my friend Andrea's truck from Uptown (thank you everybody) and drove it downtown.

Lupe's godfather, K, has lived here all his life, and we'd been on the phone all night. At one point he called to say he was leaving, and then he called back to say he wasn't. K and his wife have a generator and supplies and have waited storms out and evacuated, and it was the phone calls from worried loved ones that finally was the deciding factor.

K knows me well and lately, he's been concerned that I never take his advice. When he decided to go, he gave me all of his gasoline. I felt like the ground was shaking. He'd sworn he'd be right down the street. I asked him to tell me honestly what he thought I should do, and we stood there in his yard on N. Rampart Street, and I asked him if he thought anything would happen to Lupe or to Lupe and me. I told him I would take his advice, but he wouldn't tell me to go. I was ready to leave if he told me to. I can't give the explanation right now for why I took his advice and not other people's advice except that he was standing there in person and the mandatory evacuation had begun. I don't like keeping a blog b/c I'm writing all this stuff as it comes and I haven't figured it out yet. I hope I figure out the reason I was ready to listen to K and not anyone else (I really thought he'd tell me to go), but right now I'm too tired to know. He said he didn't think anything horrible would happen if I stayed. Then he gave me all this ice and gas and left.

Josh boarded up all the windows and got the generator working and we organized all the batteries and flashlights and cooked up a lot of meat and filled up everything we could find with water.

On one hand, it seems like it might be really good for me that I trusted myself that I could handle staying and actually did something I wanted to do. People keep telling me that since I stopped drinking I have more confidence in myself. I have always been the kind of person who has done what I was told to make other people happy. On the other hand, it seems like it's scary and self destructive and crazy that I didn't take anyone's advice and leave. Obviously a therapist will be helpful in this area.

Right now, the forecast (according to B.B.) is better than anyone hoped for, so the reality is that New Orleans is lucky and that I'm lucky. Something is watching over this city, even if it's in the form of dry air.

I sincerely apologize to those whom I have worried.

I went to Flora's right before dark and Ali (sp) the owner was there with his son and a firefighter. His son is in his mid twenties and seems pretty in shape despite the Kool cigarette he offered me while smoking two. I interviewed them on camera, and his son, Mon, said he saved two people's lives during Katrina, and he came here to help his father and anyone else who needed it. The firefighter said he didn't think I was putting his life in danger by staying.

Scattered people wandered the Marigny in pairs. It seems like everyone who stayed has a dog.

The firefighter is assigned to Lakeview, and he he'd been boarding his house up somewhere near me. He expressed concern that I would tell him if I have a gun and insisted I needed one. Aside from that, he said he thought I was prepared. Already, people have approached him asking him for canned food b/c they don't have any.

What else???

The National Guard was everywhere this morning as I drove from Bywater to Gentilly to Uptown and down Tchopitoulas around the Convention Center and then down Decatur. They waved at me. The shell on Franklin and St. Claude was trying to close, but they still had gas. They wouldn't sell anybody anything else, and a few people were bitching that they couldn't buy alcohol or cigars.

I was turning up Dauphine from Elysian Fields around noon, and two people in a really nice looking S.U.V. flagged me down. At first I was confused b/c they didn't have anything in the car, so they obviously weren't evacuating. They asked me how to get to St. Bernard Parrish and they asked me where Claiborne was. I told them, and they explained that they were from A.B.C. news and had a hotel room in the quarter. I gave them directions and my phone number.

Soon after that, Mardi Gras Zone was the only store still open, and as I bought more water and cigarettes, the guy who always works there told me he was going to close and stay inside and open as soon as possible, using generators. I can't imagine how many generators they must have. That place is huge.

I met a man outside who had a Press Pass and was wearing a white T-shirt with PRESS written on it in huge blue letters. He gave me his number and we talked about being afraid of getting arrested/in trouble for being out. Rumors were flying about curfew at that time. He was not invited to wait out the storm with ABC even though he contacted them.

I know someone in the French Quarter who is staying on Dumaine with two doctors. He said he's staying because he can't deal with evacuating and not knowing. I don't know what it is that makes me think I can't deal with evacuating (aside from certain issues involving a companion of mine that I suppose should be reserved for my therapist). I really felt and feel like I couldn't do it. I'm sorry everybody who thinks this is selfish of me. If you think it was stupid of me, you're probably right.

Anyway, it's good to know doctors are around.

The neighbors went to the Nighthawks Diner to wait out the storm, and I guess anybody can go there if they want to get drunk (I am not going to even worry about pronoun number agreement in sentences like that one).

Josh helped all these people board up their windows and knows where a lot of people are staying. I ran into several people I know from the Marigny (know and like, I might add).

It's not raining yet. We've organized everything so we can grab whatever we need at any time. It's just kind of drizzling out and the wind's whipping out just a little bit.

Josh's mother told me that when a large number of people pray (substitute any other word like meditate, etc) it can change the weather. Thank you nuns. Thank you storm for calming down for now. His mother also said she wouldn't have left either and wanted to make sure we hadn't parked our cars under any trees.

For some reason, my parents have been oddly calm and supportive about this. I told them not to watch the news too much, but to read Bob Breck's blog and try not to panic, and they're not panicking. Now that tornados are much much less likely, they actually told me they were glad I stayed.

I made Lupe a floatation device out of styrofoam and we have a floatation device of our own. The animals are not acting like anything weird is going on like I thought they would. Aside from the fact that they've aquired fleas, they're just hanging around begging for chicken. Lupe's been humping her ugly dog toy for an hour now. There is a chicken in the yard by the way. A live one. It could kick Diesel's ass.

I still have a T-Mobile connection for my phone and internet. Something's wrong with my WiFi connection, but T-Mobile said they will send trucks with satellites on them to this area, which was nice of them since their internet service really sucks.

My friend has this alcoholic brother, a really bad one. We've all probably given him change on Decatur at some point in our lives. I guess he got on a plane and is now in a far away state (he was really really drunk). Good for him.

Thank you everybody who loved me enough to tell me to evacuate. Thank you storm for calming down. I'm sorry I made you worry, especially you Erica.

Oh, and my mother says she's glad I have a boyfriend who's not a wimp.

I hope everyone out there is safe and sleeping. If Bob Breck is right, we'll all be here by the end of the week, but you never know.

Good night and God Bless,

Tara Jill

My Motives

Originally posted Saturday, August 30, 2008  on the old blog.

I have left the comment below intact, but I did edit a few things in this post (the existence of a certain long-haired Chihuahua).

 

If anyone tries to convince me to evacuate New Orleans at any time, please read "It Is Not My Fault I Do Not Evacuate and This Makes YOU Worry" formerly titled Serenity (my post on the old blog from 09/03/08).

Besides the fact that I have never wanted to evacuate and have always been forced to by a certain extremely lame ex-boyfriend of mine, I have a real motive for deciding to ride Gustav out.

My motivation seems to stem from my distrust towards the media.

I remember sitting on a futon in Austin and watching the news and seeing all the houses with the water up to the roofs and some news lady saying, "80% of New Orleans is under water."

I, like everyone else, grew an umbilical cord that connected directly to my laptop and tried to find out how much water my neighborhood had, where my friends were, and if there were actually sharks swimming in the French Quarter.

In a bar bathroom in Austin, I kicked the shit out of a door because some guy from New Orleans had been crying to me, insisting that my apartment in Mid City had flooded because the Ford Dealership had. The 4600 block of Orleans Avenue did get flooded.

I remember a lady in the Schlotzky's who wouldn't shut up about how I had to come to terms with the fact that I would never return to New Orleans or my apartment again. This was while I was checking my email.

80% of the city. An image of water to the rooftops.

My boyfriend drunk and screaming at me that we could never go back.

I remember telling a good friend of mine that I flat out did not believe her that we would not ever be allowed to come back here. I was drunk, very drunk, and crying that Corey Henry would play the trombone in the French Quarter someday and we would be there.

It wasn't that I knew something other people didn't or was more practical or had more information than anyone else.

I did not trust the national news and refused to waste the energy mourning when I wasn't sure.

I was taking a shower outside on the bayou in Arnaudville when Jarret Lofstead called to tell us that he'd kicked in our backdoor and there was no water in our Mid-City apartment.

He had a press pass.

Right now, I don't care whether it will be hot and sticky; I have a generator and can eat cold beans out of a can. I don't care if holing up in C's apartment will be boring, or if I'll end up on some highway bridge waiting for help. As long as I can keep myself and my cat Lupe safe, I don't care what I see or how hot I feel or how crazy it makes me.

I would rather stay in the sweat and stink and terror of New Orleans than sit on some nice dry couch wondering if what I'm seeing on the television is true. And I have an ethical obligation to do my part.

So I am taking this opportunity to use my tools as a journalist to record whatever I can about New Orleans as Hurricane Gustav ravages the coast. I promise only to include information I have experienced first hand. At least I'll know what I'm seeing is true.

I also took swimming lessons for twelve years and earned my Girl Scout Silver Award.

Disaster Free Birthday

I was one of those teenagers who clung to her little girl things, and when I was a freshman in highschool, I had a pet snake made of blue clay. I named him Ike, and Ike was about an inch long and very skinny. I had to keep him on the back of one of those buttons people wear for school spirit. People were always telling me, "He's too little." I've actually been thinking that if I were to have a son, I would name him Ike. Last night, a beautiful brown moth flew through the window and hovered on the wall over my computer desk. I called Josh in to see it, and as he started to shoo it out of the room, I stopped him. I named him Ike and prayed for him to leave. It looks like I might break the curse this year and actually have a good 9-11 birthday. I think I had a blast two years ago in Mimi's, but I remember very little of the occasion. So I'm going to Vaughn's Thursday night. All ya'll working folks out there, I understand if you can't make it. I am going to have a housewarming/birthday party for me and Josh (9-11 is his birthday too) in about two weeks, when we hopefully have power.

 

WORD OF THE DAY

Lootering: loitering around with the intention of looting?

ABC news reports that it's a good thing that Mayor Nagin lifted the midnight return rule because according to Nagin, homeowners need to protect their own properties from looters who are organizing in groups. Also, groups of contractors are waiting outside the city to come back in and steal copper and appliances from homes they recently renovated. Yes, the NOPD and National Guard are still ready to protect all properties from looters, but if you see anyone "lootering" or looking suspicious, call 9-11 immediately. Can he even tell if he's taking his foot out of his mouth or shoving it further in?