It’s not like the pseudo-sacking of FEMA director Mike Brown will change the past, but one has to feel at least marginally better about the future. FEMA needs a whole lot of institutional change, though, and we can only hope that the hue and cry raised by so many in the face of FEMA’s incompetence this time around will yield dividends going forward. Because this sort of thing will happen again.
In the meantime, you’ve got to be blind if you’ve not noticed the opportunities to help out hurricane victims. Only beware of scammers. I was at my monthly Police Liaison meeting on Wednesday, and the first thing Deputy Chief Ed Boyd mentioned was that online scammers had fake “help the victims” web sites running and emails sent within 24 hours of the disaster. Check things out before donating.
I said the other day that the federal government’s response would be funny if it weren’t so sad. Apparently, some think it’s funny anyway. Here’s a Top 25 list of Stupid Quotes About Hurricane Katrina from About.com’s Humor section, some of which are funny, many of which offer an illuminating look at the mindset of those in power.
And if you like those, I might add my own favorite funny (not stupid) quote from the newscape of recent days. Honda will be introducing this spring a motorcycle airbag in their Gold Wing models. Says the online article: “…the airbag opens in front of the rider, reducing the speed at which they get thrown off the motorcycle.” Maybe it’s just me finding that humorous.
As for the other events of the week, I’ve been remiss in not mentioning Dennis and Maria’s great BBQ last Sunday. We very much enjoyed seeing everyone and admired all the work Dennis and Maria put into their home. Our thanks to them and all the attendees (Matt, Ginger, Laura, Emily, Joe, Carol, Ella) for the great time.
I received word last night that Erin’s cousin Adam and his longtime girlfriend Nena officially tied the knot on Tuesday. Big congratulations to them!
I tried to give soccer a go Tuesday night at Bush Park, but twas not to be. My calf is still messed up enough that I can’t run on it. I skipped Thursday’s kick-around altogether in hopes that I’ll be adequately healed to play a bit in the first game of the Men’s Over-30 Outdoor Fall Soccer Season starting Sunday.
In other health news, my mom continues apace with her recovery—thank you all for your kind comments and thoughts—and Bret seems to be on the mend from his back surgery as well. Trying times healthwise lately for Clan Davison, but we seem to be pulling through.
Erin’s first week of school went well. She’s in Sprague’s basement (aka “The Pit”) this year in a classroom roughly double the size of a normal one. That’s to accommodate the Read 180 program, a specialized English class designed to help low-level readers improve. Students in the Read 180 class get split into one of three groups, and each group rotates around the huge classroom doing different reading activities. All well and good for them, but it makes for a bizarre French II teaching environment.
On Thursday, we had our babysitter Courtney out for the second time. If all goes well, she’ll be doing some four hour stints babysitting two or three times a week. The theory is that this will enable me to run SiteRev.com, work on my music, or do whatever else might need doing. Sleeping comes to mind.
This last Thursday, however, I spent the time up on the garage roof cleaning off moss in preparation for the Rain Handler gutter replacement installation. The truth is that the dead moss on the roof is a big problem because it obscures any view of cracked tiles. (Cracked tiles being a problem because they allow rain water to get into the structure which in turn causes dry rot.) I need another hour up there to finish the job, and I was hoping to do it today, but we’ve had such a torrential downpour this afternoon that I doubt I’ll get the chance until next Tuesday when Courtney returns. (I spent Friday evening and this morning doing SiteRev.com client work.)
Speaking of being on the roof, the attic fan we installed merits high praise. It’s not air conditioning, but it lowers the in-house temperature upstairs by a good 10 degrees. I’m inclined to say that we’ve solved our house cooling issues for the foreseeable future. What with fall and winter approaching, my thoughts now turn to warming the place for less than $200 a month. I’m thinking about a fireplace insert, but I have a lot more research that I need to do before I’m prepared to buy anything. In other words, I’m open to suggestion. If you’ve a heating solution you like, don’t keep it a secret.