Finally a little hurricane relief

I finally talked to my friend Julia down in New Orleans today. She had left me a message on Thursday saying that she was okay and that she'd talk to me soon. Of course, I didn't believe that and tried to call her repeatedly until I finally got her voicemail on Sunday (the first day that the lines were working again).

She got through to me tonight and told me that she is at her Mom's house north of Lake Ponchetrain and getting by for the time being. They have no running water, no electricity and a lot of fallen trees to clean up, but for the most part, everyone and the house are okay. Jules has had a chance to look at her Grandmother's house in Metarie (where she was living) and it looks like there is minimal damage. But her Father's house had 40 inches of water in it. And after being submerged for the past week and a half, he will have to totally gut out his first floor.

Although I'm still a bit angry about the entire situation (handling of it before, during and after), I am a bit more calm after talking to Jules on the phone. She's talking about visiting family in the eastern coast of North Caroline (which I reminded her is still a hurricane ridden area). I have offered her to stay with me if she wants to get away for a while, since she has no job and not much holding in one place at the moment. I haven't seen her in quite a long time, so I would be very happy for the visit. Maybe I'll be able to get a bit of sleep tonight for a change.