In 1985 I painted one of my favorite oil paintings, "In Gloria's Wake". It was a seascape created as a composite of a couple of photos of the storm ravaged beach homes and a lighthouse from the Cape Hatteras area that summer when Hurricane Gloria tore up the east coast. Gloria affected New England as well so after seeing the photos in Time or some magazine like that I decided to paint a beach scene depicting a hurricane wasted landscape. It was a cool painting, very dramatic. I gave it to my friend Linda and she loved it. She proudly hung it in her front hall of her home and, I would expect, to this day it is still there.
Hurricane Gloria was the first time I experienced a hurricane first-hand. I was working at Wrentham State and being direct care staff at this institution, I had to drive into work despite the fact a state of emergency had been declared and driving was prohibited. Sure enough, with my luck with police, I was stopped but after I explained my job, I was alowed to proceed.
The hurricane was still a couple hours away but the feeder band gusts had caused some tree damage and I had to drive carefully since many branches were littering the roadways.
After I arrived at work, as the hurricane was passing over this area of southeastern Massachussetts, the windows of the residence building I worked in rattled and the scene outside of rain and wind was intimidating. We workers had to be subtle in our reaction to the storm so as not to distress the clients. But in fact the clients, being as they were mostly profound to severely MR were pretty much unaware of the hazards of such a storm.
Hurricane Bob was a more intense storm a few years later but it didn't pass over northern RI, it struck Newport hard but I think it veered northeast after that so I don't remember it so well.
Hurricanes have always scared me. I used to have nightmares as a kid of tornados and hurricanes alot.
Last year, I was fortunate to have not had to experience the hurricanes that hit here in Central Florida. I had left Florida for New Orleans in August and a few weeks later the Orlando area got hit by the first of three storms that summer/fall.
While in New Orleans, I did decide to stay in my little cottage to ride out Ivan.
All the same precursers and preparations for that storm were as with Katrina (except the Mandatory evac, it was Voluntary).
Ivan missed N.O. and it was no worse than a severe thunderstorm for much of the area. Except for the lakeside.
I lived near the intersection of Robert E. Lee Blvd. and Elysian Fields Blvd. The day after Ivan passed near, I walked to the nearby Lakeside Park bordering Lake Pontchartrain. The waters of the lake had flooded the park and Lakeside Drive. They eventually receded over the next few days and New Orleans soon got back to normal, thankful it had been spared again.
Well, not this time.
I'm distressed about what is going on right now in New Orleans. It will take a long time to recover.
My mind keeps bringing up memories of the friends, neighbors and co-workers I knew and what their fate might be right now...
Jay and his family...even Regan though she and I never really got along well. I'm sure their house is under water...I wonder if the ferret survived?
Alicison and Albert? Their homes were surely affected by the floods. Alicison evacuated for Ivan without a moments hesitation last year so I'm sure she got out...but what will she come back to? She'll probably move back closer to her family in Alabama. She's been through so much these past couple of years, she didn't need this. Albert's been through hell too. He won't leave N.O. though, it's his hometown. Everyone he knows and loves is in New Orleans. His family's been there for generations.
Parker, Murray co-workers Dixie, Robert, Cathy, Jennifer, and Chris?
John and Laurel from USG?
The streetcar operator with the cheap lime-green framed sunglasses?
Sandra on Dorgenois?
And I think of my favorite places...what has become of them.
I already saw my favorite mall in Metarie was heavily damaged.
What about the great chinese restaurant with the fabulous Mandarin Chicken a block away from there?
Jackson Square?
City Park and Audubon Park?
Oz and the Bourbon Pub?
Six Flags New Orleans and the great MegaZeph "wooden" rollercoaster?
My heart truely goes out to all these people and the great places of New Orleans and vicinity as they hopefully are safe, and remain so...in Katrina's wake.
Hurricane Gloria was the first time I experienced a hurricane first-hand. I was working at Wrentham State and being direct care staff at this institution, I had to drive into work despite the fact a state of emergency had been declared and driving was prohibited. Sure enough, with my luck with police, I was stopped but after I explained my job, I was alowed to proceed.
The hurricane was still a couple hours away but the feeder band gusts had caused some tree damage and I had to drive carefully since many branches were littering the roadways.
After I arrived at work, as the hurricane was passing over this area of southeastern Massachussetts, the windows of the residence building I worked in rattled and the scene outside of rain and wind was intimidating. We workers had to be subtle in our reaction to the storm so as not to distress the clients. But in fact the clients, being as they were mostly profound to severely MR were pretty much unaware of the hazards of such a storm.
Hurricane Bob was a more intense storm a few years later but it didn't pass over northern RI, it struck Newport hard but I think it veered northeast after that so I don't remember it so well.
Hurricanes have always scared me. I used to have nightmares as a kid of tornados and hurricanes alot.
Last year, I was fortunate to have not had to experience the hurricanes that hit here in Central Florida. I had left Florida for New Orleans in August and a few weeks later the Orlando area got hit by the first of three storms that summer/fall.
While in New Orleans, I did decide to stay in my little cottage to ride out Ivan.
All the same precursers and preparations for that storm were as with Katrina (except the Mandatory evac, it was Voluntary).
Ivan missed N.O. and it was no worse than a severe thunderstorm for much of the area. Except for the lakeside.
I lived near the intersection of Robert E. Lee Blvd. and Elysian Fields Blvd. The day after Ivan passed near, I walked to the nearby Lakeside Park bordering Lake Pontchartrain. The waters of the lake had flooded the park and Lakeside Drive. They eventually receded over the next few days and New Orleans soon got back to normal, thankful it had been spared again.
Well, not this time.
I'm distressed about what is going on right now in New Orleans. It will take a long time to recover.
My mind keeps bringing up memories of the friends, neighbors and co-workers I knew and what their fate might be right now...
Jay and his family...even Regan though she and I never really got along well. I'm sure their house is under water...I wonder if the ferret survived?
Alicison and Albert? Their homes were surely affected by the floods. Alicison evacuated for Ivan without a moments hesitation last year so I'm sure she got out...but what will she come back to? She'll probably move back closer to her family in Alabama. She's been through so much these past couple of years, she didn't need this. Albert's been through hell too. He won't leave N.O. though, it's his hometown. Everyone he knows and loves is in New Orleans. His family's been there for generations.
Parker, Murray co-workers Dixie, Robert, Cathy, Jennifer, and Chris?
John and Laurel from USG?
The streetcar operator with the cheap lime-green framed sunglasses?
Sandra on Dorgenois?
And I think of my favorite places...what has become of them.
I already saw my favorite mall in Metarie was heavily damaged.
What about the great chinese restaurant with the fabulous Mandarin Chicken a block away from there?
Jackson Square?
City Park and Audubon Park?
Oz and the Bourbon Pub?
Six Flags New Orleans and the great MegaZeph "wooden" rollercoaster?
My heart truely goes out to all these people and the great places of New Orleans and vicinity as they hopefully are safe, and remain so...in Katrina's wake.