Katrina

I am safe. My friends are safe. But I do not know if my students are. My house is probably okay, most of my friends houses are probably okay, but most of my students live in the parts of New Orleans that were hit the worst. My heart aches for New Orleans, the place I now call home, and it aches most of all for the people who had little before and now have nothing to return home to. We thought it wasn't as bad as predicted, but then the dilapidated levee broke and now 80% of the city is underwater. I wish I had listened to my instincts and brought more clothes and important items. Our city is broken. This poor state (which counts on New Orleans tourism as a primary source of revenue) is not equipped to handle such a disaster, and God only knows how we will begin to recover.

I have been staying in Houston since Saturday. I got a frantic call from a friend at 9:30 am saying get the hell out, so i left with my housemates. We thought we were being paranoid, but it turns out to be a good decision, as we beat the mad rush of traffic on the sole highway out of the city. Friends scattered everywhere, and we have been in regular touch with them.

I am headed to San Francisco...they are not letting people back in New Orleans for many days, at least. Schools will not be up and running for at least a couple weeks, it seems. I may be able to return to help with relief efforts eventually, but for now the best thing I can do is be close to family. So that is what I am going to do.

For those of you wondering what you can do to help- the schools may need some MAJOR rebuilding, new supplies, etc. So I would say hold on to your money and wait until we know the status of the schools- I can collect money to help the damaged schools, or work something out.

Thank you to everyone for all of your calls, emails, etc. I really appreciate it and best wishes to you.