tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9451012.post114317170838182460..comments2023-05-20T07:50:15.676-04:00Comments on Running with a pencil: Animal rescueDianahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07847331467246659997noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9451012.post-1143262026500419512006-03-24T23:47:00.000-05:002006-03-24T23:47:00.000-05:00Thanks.The organization we're working with is pret...Thanks.<BR/><BR/>The organization we're working with is pretty wonderful -- it's just a bunch of young adults for whom the best thing for them to do in their lives at this point is volunteer down here, so they keep it low-key and fun and interesting. Sure, each individual scraping mold doesn't do much, but with just a few days' work, a house can go from moldy and uninhabitable to newly sheetrocked and ready to move into. That's progress, my friend. That's not nothing, and we can see steps in that direction every day.<BR/><BR/>As for the devastation, there is definitely a lot of work to be done, what with the moldy houses and insurance companies not paying and all. But it's been seven months since the hurricane, and there has been a lot of progress, so that now it just looks much more like an economically devastated area than a distaster zone (and it is both). After the hurricane there were cars piled everywhere; now they are all gone. All of the roads are open; the debris is in large piles, rather than scattered everywhere. That is huge progress, and it's great for morale.<BR/><BR/>The thing about the people down here is that they are really taking the situation into their own hands and doing something to improve their lives. Since many of them don't have jobs (many businesses closed after the hurricane), they work on their houses. When I was doing surveying the other day, someone would come to the door all painty and I would think they were a contractor and ask if they lived there, and the answer was always yes, because the people were working on their own houses, making them livable again. When Hands On goes in and works on a house, the owner is often helping alongside, so that it's really more like Hands On helping the owner do what needs to be done. Some people have gotten their houses, if not the yards and fences around them, back to basically completely normal. That's very impressive, and that's what will get the community back together.<BR/><BR/>Of course, there is a futility in the whole thing that no one ever talks about and that many people probably don't want to acknowledge, which is that in the very next hurricane season, another big one could come and set the area back even farther. And of course someday such a hurricane will definitely come; we are just improving their quality of life in the meantime.Dianahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07847331467246659997noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9451012.post-1143256247811056902006-03-24T22:10:00.000-05:002006-03-24T22:10:00.000-05:00I'm glad you're doing something so rewarding! I've...I'm glad you're doing something so rewarding! I've done some volunteer work in other countries and around where I live, but it would be neat to be able to travel to a place in the United States that is so desperately in need of help. I admire the way you're doing the work and not getting overwhelmed and discouraged by the vastness of the situation and your relative ineffectiveness as one individual. I guess you do have quite a bit of personal interaction with the people you're helping, though, which makes it easier to see how much your dedication is directly helping people.<BR/><BR/>Keep posting, because it's wonderful to hear what you're up to and how much you're learning about the tragedy and living conditions down there!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9451012.post-1143253345048182082006-03-24T21:22:00.000-05:002006-03-24T21:22:00.000-05:00You wish you had known about it earlier? There was...You wish you had known about it earlier? There was an all-campus e-mail. We both found out about it at the same time, along with every student at Williams. I think what you mean is that you wish I had told you I was going before it was two weeks too late to sign up.<BR/><BR/>By the way, I am just writing and publishing, so I apologize for any misspellings or grammatical errors.Dianahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07847331467246659997noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9451012.post-1143251522330308852006-03-24T20:52:00.000-05:002006-03-24T20:52:00.000-05:00You write very well. I enjoy reading your blog.You write very well. I enjoy reading your blog.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9451012.post-1143246348606276322006-03-24T19:25:00.000-05:002006-03-24T19:25:00.000-05:00Yeah, I'm sure it is. I wish I'd known about it ea...Yeah, I'm sure it is. I wish I'd known about it earlier, so I could have gone. I admire what you're doing.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9451012.post-1143235100971767062006-03-24T16:18:00.000-05:002006-03-24T16:18:00.000-05:00If "unforgettable" means "I'll still remember it t...If "unforgettable" means "I'll still remember it the day I die," well then, I don't know yet. But I have met some interesting characters, like the woman who gave me the magazine in which her article appeared.<BR/><BR/>At least, more unforgettable than staying in Williamstown for two weeks, I'll bet.Dianahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07847331467246659997noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9451012.post-1143176704866927792006-03-24T00:05:00.000-05:002006-03-24T00:05:00.000-05:00You've met someone unforgettable?You've met someone unforgettable?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com