Week Five, Day One

Sunday ...
After schlepping my bag (heavy with a sleeping bag and an air mattress) through the airport, I feel a little too warm for this early in the day. After going through security, I sit at a cafe and realize that this may be the *coolest* I'll feel all week. At 10:10amCT, the temp in Biloxi, MS appears to be 89F, then add in humidity and the "feels like" temp is well over 100F.

We'll be a small group this week - me, Ling, and Bill - but we're CLEARLY determined. Early in the week, after Hurricane Flossie visited Hawaii and Hurricane Erin visited Texas, Tropical Storm (and later Hurricane) Dean approached from the Atlantic. I watched Dean carefully throughout the week, guessing on his path, strength, and time frame. I reminded my teammates that if they felt at all uncomfortable, even if it was Sunday morning while they were at the airport, to just tell me they changed their minds. Instead I heard "I'm packing my air mattress now" and "can't wait to get started". The three of us, as a team, have already shown great determination. We're small ... but we're mighty.

I started this trip by flying elsewhere as a gift to myself, and handed my April photos and journal to Jim (my mentor from Week 1), along with the July/August edition of "This Old House" Magazine and the Thursday, August 2nd New York Times Home & Garden Section - both of which covered the progress - and completion - of the Parker Family Home.

Over our lunch, I hear how Jim is enjoying his retirement ... hunting, spending weekends camping, working with local government on a massive volunteer faire expo in his home town next summer - and notice he probably had more free time in Biloxi. He says he'll scale back ... but don't we all say that?
I get a few "assignments" from Jim - homes to look in on for progress checks, people to visit - and I promise him that he, his wife Nancy, and I will have dinner late in 2007, when I'm on my way to my 6th volunteer week.

Thus far, I've been in charge of having our employees spend over 1,200 hours working in East Biloxi, MS. I look forward to showing Ling and Bill ... and reminding myself ... of all that has been accomplished, the families we've met, the parks and neighborhoods we've gotten to know, the friends we've shared with. I look forward to expanding that body of work and in visiting with old friends, and making new ones.

(Oh, while I was driving from LA to MS, I passed by this sign and took a photo to remind me to include it in my notes. I guess this explains why I feel so comfortable in the South ... apparently there's a whole "Irish Bayou" that I never even knew about, but I gotta wonder what THAT accent sounds like! A Cajun lilt??)