Week Five, Day Six

Friday ...

Something kind of incredible happened today that has very little to do with why we're here but it really impressed me. We returned to "The Joy of Coffee" on our way to the Parker home today and we stood in line. "Joy", as our camp mates refer to it, is just outside the security gates to Keesler Air Force Base. The shop is open for breakfast and lunch and I'd imagine the barista must see 200 or so folks in the morning hours alone. When I began to place my order, before I could get a word out, she recited what my drink order was from yesterday. This person has seen me one time - for less than a minute - and she knew my order. I've done her job before, so I respect what she does but ... well heck, that's an impressive skill. So, a note to November folks who will be Biloxi-bound: "Joy of Coffee" all the way at the end of Pass Road is a good place for your morning coffee fix.

We head to the Parker home for the last time this week and get to work.

About 9:20am, I see I have a message on my blackberry and I smile when I read the note from Jim P. He's been following the weather this week and tells us we're troopers. At lunch, I ask Aisha if August was this hot two years ago. "Yeah, August is always rough", she says. So two years ago, in this kind of weather, people were in their attics with no air conditioning, no electricity, no water supply, wondering when Katrina would be over and what their homes would look like afterwards. Maybe my sniffles and the hot weather isn't so bad after all.

While at lunch inside the air-conditioned village camp, I notice someone had a sense of humor in that they built a wooden cut-out of a fireplace and painted in a fire (as though this place NEEDS a fireplace).

On closer inspection, I notice the mantle with hooks, kind of like the ones you'd use for hanging your Christmas stockings. Maybe this wasn't supposed to be funny after all. Maybe Jim and his crew hung their stockings here over the holidays to try and make all this a little more bearable.

We eat lunch pretty quick, which allows for time to catch a catnap or talk with the new friends we've gotten to know this week. I use the time to visit some of my favorite spots ... Mr. Lee's home along with Miss Iona's and Miss Cora's (where I notice the flower patch under the address marker is in full bloom ... AND that she's had her single-wide trailer removed), and I revisit John Henry Beck Park to take a photo of "George's bench".

As I'm parking off the edge of the street to take my photo of the bench, I look on the opposite side of the street to 227 Elmer. It's a cute little brick house that's been gutted and is ready for the next step. I wonder if it will have changed by November when I return for the last 2007 trip.

Before we wrap for the day, we'll have completed all the baseboard painting, painted all of the doors and windows at least once, and left a note for the next crew so they know where to pick up for next week. We'll have handed the keys to Miss Parker's home back to Mike, and I'll have taken a moment for a photo with my friend Richard, who may still be here when I return in a few months.

We drive by the building in Biloxi with the witch weather vane, past the Waffle House, and past the White Pillars building with the misspelled sign, identifying it as a "Historical Sight", which neither Ling nor I can resist.

We roll into camp and take our showers. Others are packing for their departure home tomorrow but that can wait for now. After dinner, we decide to treat ourselves to a trip to Starbucks. However, between my flu, the heat, and the lack of real sleep (plus an interstate with signs that jump from Exit 46 to Exit 50), we wind up going for a drive instead. I'm disappointed in myself - after 5 trips here, I thought I'd have things fairly well mapped out by now. I haven't gotten turned around once this week ... but I guess I was due. (Note to future teams: It's not "Exit 49", it's HIGHWAY 49", the same road that takes you out to I-10 from Pass Road.)

We roll into camp and Bill borrows the van keys and takes a long-termer with him to find some dinner. I trudge upstairs after taking some photos around camp, and I see that Bill has added his shirt to the wall.
(If the photo doesn't do it justice, what he wrote is worth sharing here: "I came here not knowing what to expect. As a volunteer of 7 years, I needed to "go bigger". What better way then to come here and work with a group of people to provide support to those that need it. You should all be extremely proud, as I am grateful. In such a short time, I did what I could. However, it's about the progress made. Moving forward, I can't say that I'll ever be here again, but I will remember it always. I've met some great people, and our chats will stick with me as I move forward. This will be an experience I will share with many, as it's a story that needs to be told.")

There is a board outlining the week of activities all around the 2nd year anniversary of Katrina (at the end of this month).

Two years. It's been two years.

I remind myself that I'll need to update the company banner for our April/August/November '07 volunteers. I fall asleep quickly, wondering what Biloxi will look like in November.

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My thanks to the company for continuing to stand behind this program and my unending gratitude to Denise, Julie, and Tom for allowing me to be a part of this work. A massive round of applause to Ling "Toasted Tofu" and Bill "The Pirate" for enduring what has been THE WARMEST of all the trips to Biloxi thus far.

Hugs to my inner circle for their support, positive emails, and somewhat painful reminders of the glorious weather waiting for me back home.

One more chance for the rest of you awaits in November ... so who's in?

Take fun. Have care. Be good. - Jules