2005 - 09-15-05

Bernadette told me she had just auctioned off most of her
possessions before she ever left New Orleans. She asked me,
"They'll have to pay me won't
they? After all, my possessions were auctioned off before
the hurricane." Apparently, when you work with an
auction house, you don't get paid until 30 days after your
items have been
sold. But again, she was asking me, "They'll have to pay me, won't
they? I mean, after all, my stuff was auctioned off before
the hurricane."

I didn't have the heart to point out to her
there was a great possibility the auction company
no longer existed. That it may very well have been destroyed
by Hurricane Katrina.

She told me she didn't mind if
people looted her apartment. She said there was nothing
to take but furniture and paintings. She didn't think the
looters were very much interested in furniture. And she was
hopeful they didn't understand the value of her
paintings.

In any case, here she was, having survived
the horrors of World War II and now (at 77 years of age)
trying to survive the horrors of Hurricane Katrina.
Bernadette was
attempting to return to her home (if it still existed) with
very little money and no possessions except what she took
with her on her trip to Costa Rica.

I don't know what has happened to Bernadette
Lewis but, if anybody can find her and she needs some
help, I would be more than welcome to help her personally
to the best of my ability.

Meanwhile, thousands of miles away, my
youngest son Bond read in the "Los Angeles Times" some of
the evacuees had made it to Los Angeles and were being
sheltered there by the Red Cross. So you know what he did?
He went directly to the shelter, talked to the people,
and found out exactly what they needed. They were most
concerned with immediate needs to get them through the next
48 or 72-hours. So Bond made a list and went to
store after store buying items like deodorant, diapers,
toothbrushes, toothpaste, and lots of other stuff people use
on a day-to-day basis.

One curious thing the evacuees asked for was
decks of playing cards. This puzzled me at first. Then I got
to thinking about it. I guess playing poker or other card
games for matchsticks is a better way to get through the day
during the aftermath of a disaster... than just staring into
space hour after hour and worrying about your future.