And so this anniversary feels like it is no longer mine. I know where the Coast and New Orleans were at three months ago. Which is [...]]]> And five years, almost to the day, I left the Mississippi Coast. This past June found me and AB in a car on our way to Alabama.

And so this anniversary feels like it is no longer mine. I know where the Coast and New Orleans were at three months ago. Which is quite a ways from where they were on August 29, 20005. And it’s shocking to realize the truths that are coming out only now.

This year I have come to realize how much Katrina has been identified with New Orleans, and not the other 100-150 miles of coast line that it affected. Repeated people talked to me about how New Orleans was recovering, or asked implied that the severity of the storm was replicated in some other, smaller, disaster.

This is what The Mississippi Coast looked liked after Katrina:

From Katrina

And this is what New Orleans looked like:

From Katrina

It was a horrible event for many people, and many communities. Let’s not forget the people’s who’s lives were lost, who’s homes were destroyed, who’s world’s were uprooted all along the Gulf Coast.

That’s my technical estimation of what happened anyway.

And of course that all happened while I [...]]]> So obviously I’ve messed up my site. I was so excited to download WordPress 3.0, and I did, and then I updated all the other widgets and themes and yada yada, and then it was all wrong.

That’s my technical estimation of what happened anyway.

And of course that all happened while I was in transit. And we were in transit for about two months. A bit of May, all of June and most of July.

The good news is we are no longer homeless or in transit! We have a home, and an address, and most of our stuff is even in this building! We have a new mattress too. Not a really glamorous purchase, but so, so necessary.

Anyway, now that I have an office again, and I’ve got the basic issues fixed, I’m hoping to be back here more frequently. Thanks for hanging on if you have.

For the year:

You can and you will accomplish more in the next 12 months than you did in the last, but only if you stop trying to gain other people’s approval. You are who you are and you do what you do, so be yourself and be happy – [...]]]> Thank you Sally Brompton!

For the year:

You can and you will accomplish more in the next 12 months than you did in the last, but only if you stop trying to gain other people’s approval. You are who you are and you do what you do, so be yourself and be happy – and successful.

And for today:

You may be eager to prove to the world that you have what it takes but if you do too much too soon there is a danger you will grind to a halt later when your energy and motivation begin to wane. Start slow, and keep going.