Thoughts and prayers for the Gulf Cost Victims

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Post by Guest »

Vick, hope all is well with you. Don't let the stress eat at you...
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chef
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Raining mightily....yep!

Post by chef »

Boy, after hearing Rory's discussion of the violent mind and our reactions to violence, this hit too close to home.

The only thought after shock and intense anger was a feeling of being violated. That stayed with me all day.

Heck, I felt like I got raped without taking my clothes off. I guess, that is what I get for thinking my little old neighborhood is so safe.

I had come in from volleyball team tryouts with my daughter and my husband was in Cincinnati all week. I left the car parked right next to the house and forgot to lock it up. Discovered my error this morning.

I guess I am going to be spending much more time humming and contemplating till I can afford a new radio and CD player....that will be a while since we just got back from vacation and the start of a new school year.

.....just got to get a grip and realize, it is just 'things'....like the storm: at least we are okay and our home wasn't broken into.

Thanks for all of the kind thoughts and prayers for my family from my karate family.

Regards,
Vicki
"Cry in the dojo, laugh in the battlefield"
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chef
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Post by chef »

Sometimes life just ***** like a Hoover!

You bet, Tony, I am usually upbeat and don't stay down long. I have good friends who care and a loving family (in many ways) that support and pick up the pieces to put back together, if necessary.

Relationships are so much more important than material things. Sometimes when I am having my little pity party, I have to give myself an emotional slap in the face and get a grip.

Nichi (sp?) says 'what doesn't kill us makes us stronger'. Hope so.

Later,
Vicki
"Cry in the dojo, laugh in the battlefield"
Stryke

Post by Stryke »

Vicki bad times make us realise the strength we have .

Nietzsche had it right , youll come through this with much more personal resources than you thought possible .

My best wishes to you and your extended family .
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Post by Guest »

chef wrote: Nichi (sp?) says 'what doesn't kill us makes us stronger'. Hope so.

Later,
Vicki
Uh oh! She's quoting Nietchse! Watch out! :)

Does your neibhorhood have a watch program?
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chef
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Post by chef »

I thought they did, Tony, but I am not sure. I thought about that yesterday. I tried to call one of the women in our neighborhood (who always has the scoop on everything) to spread the word and alert the neighborhood civic organization ....I know she will.

Boy, I miss my radio and CD, especially when driving to work in the morning.

Vicki
"Cry in the dojo, laugh in the battlefield"
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gmattson
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Hey Vicky...

Post by gmattson »

Susan and I have a spare bedroom for you. Come on down to Florida for a bit of R & R.

I bet someone reading these pages has a spare CD/Radio player they can send you. If not, I'll start a fund called:

"Vicky's feel-good fund"

If you don't get an offer of a cd and radio player for your car by Monday, your friends will chip in and buy you one!

We can't have our favorite chocolate desert maker feeling depressed. It will affect the quality of your cooking!

Love from Tia, Sue and Me!
GEM
"Do or do not. there is no try!"
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chef
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Post by chef »

LOL!!! Oh Geoge, I love you to death. You are the best.

You don't have to do that though. I will survive without a radio or CD player....and I would visit you and Susan regardless.

....and I would make you both wonderful chocolates....cuz I love you guys!

I do plan to come visit pending my father-in-laws needs. I may have to get time off to fly down to help my parents or in-laws with their home.

I will come see you two and cook you some gumbo or jambalaya. I also make a mean peach bread pudding with whiskey sauce. Yum! Weight Watchers be damned that week.

Love,
Vicki
"Cry in the dojo, laugh in the battlefield"
Guest

Re: Hey Vicky...

Post by Guest »

gmattson wrote:If you don't get an offer of a cd and radio player for your car by Monday, your friends will chip in and buy you one!
George, you should start one with Paypal. I'll throw a few bucks to the cause!
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chef
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Post by chef »

What a crazy day! My in-laws have been staying with a cousin since the hurricane. Well, my father-in-law, who has been going through chemo, got agitated and made his wife drive them back to their water damaged home today (against the family's advice). He said they would stay in the upper floor tonight since he found out that they had electricity in that area. What a stubborn man!

They have an inch of mold on the walls and everything on the first floor, not to mention the refrigerators and freezer turned over with all of the spoil s out on the floor. No way they can stay in that house....not to mention breathing the air.

My daughter was reminding me that the stagnant water in the tray of the air-conditioner are what caused the Legionaire's disease years ago. Breathing that air could induce pneumonia and other respiratory problems.....something people don't realize.

Thank goodness they have some friends to stay a while with because there are no hotels available anywhere around them now.

My husband packed up his car at lunch today with camping gear and is headed down to Mississippi to stay the week. His brother has already spent a week there trying to contact FEMA, insurance agents, taking pictures, taking out anything worth salvaging. Not sure if he can do anything much but has insisted my parents let the insurance people take care of such a messy clean-up since their hard earned money has been paying that policy for years. That is what they get insurance for. We will see if that comes to fruitition (sp?) soon.

What a mess!

Vicki

PS Would you believe I got my hand caught in the sliding door of my parents van today as they door was shut? I hate that.....when your hand hurts so darn bad that you feel it in the pit of your stomach. Now I understand when they talk about presure points, like stomach nine somewhere else on the body not associated with the stomach. Hurts like hell! I think that some weeks are just better than others by a long shot.
"Cry in the dojo, laugh in the battlefield"
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Post by chef »

My parents, who are presently up here in Richmond, heard from one of my brothers. He drove down from Jackson, MS and went by their house on the west bank of New Orleans. Thank God, they still have a house! There was a fair amount of wind damage but at least they have a home. They still will have to wait until they are allowed back into New Orleans. We hope and pray that their home is not broken into before they can get back down there. That often is the case with houses intact.

As for my in-laws, there home is such a mess. My husband threw camping gear in the car and drove down to help them Saturday. He got there around lunch on Sunday and is camped out on their lawn while they stay with friends. They did just get their power back but the house is so awful on the first two floors of their tri-level. It is not safe or inhabitable.

They have hired a crew to come in today and start pulling out all of the sheet rock, floors, carpet, remove all the ruined furniture, clean up the spilled food that has gone bad from the last two weeks of heat, etc.: basically demolition of the two downstairs floors. They are charging $10,000.00 to just pull everything out. They will have to hire someone to replace all that was destroyed and replace all cabinets, appliances, furniture, possibly redo wiring....not to mention power tools, mower, generator, compressor, and car that was submerged.

They did not have flood insurance. Their land was considered high enough to be safe. They didn't get any damage with flooding during Camilleand that had such damage.

My husband said it was probably better that we were not down. It is so sad, especially all of the photo albums from a life-time of memories. There are still going through all of the wet files from his office looking for the title to the car to get the home owners insurance replace it.

In the midst of this they had to take my husband's Dad to the emergency room due to complications from the cancer.

I cannot imagine how awful it must be for those who have either lost loved ones or entire homes.

At least they are alive and relatively well. They, like many others, will rebuild. Tough when your are in your 80's!

May God less them and every other family during this crisis.

Vicki
"Cry in the dojo, laugh in the battlefield"
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Van Canna
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Post by Van Canna »

How awful. May God give your family strenght. :(
Van
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Dana Sheets
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Post by Dana Sheets »

It is all just beyond me to really try to understand the broad scope of the devastation to the region and then each personal struggle to rebuild. I hope your family can keep up their spirits, and you as well.
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Bill Glasheen
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Post by Bill Glasheen »

This is tough stuff. Please know our thoughts and prayers are with you.

A few thoughts:

1) I hope those in the house are considering wearing masks. The risk of reaction to the mold is considerable. Even a healthy young male can get severe respiratory and dermatologic reactions from it.

When the power comes back on, get some HEPA air filters working in all the rooms. It'll be worth every penny you spend on them. You can find them at a COSTCO or any such store. Dehumidifiers also are helpful, but the A/C will do a lot of this.

I recommend to wait, wait, wait before doing the final repairs. It takes time for all the water to dry out. Even if you get professionals in there paid by insurance to do it all, there will be places you'll have to repaint, etc. Been there, done that (from a catastrophic humidifier failure in the attic).

2) If you can find an open Division of Motor Vehicles and you have some IDs of the owner and the VIN, you can get a new car title from them. The issue will be how long it takes to wait in line there (I'm sure there will be thousands waiting for the same) vs. going through wet files in the house. One way or another, there is a way.

3) We all love you!

Bill
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