well after the storm

It's February, six months after Hurricane Katrina came through, devastating the gulf coast and overwhelming the levees of New Orleans. My wife and I were among the lucky ones; our house and pets were unharmed, and life has returned to normal. But storms leave scars and Bogalusa is no exception. We still have two large oak trees down in our yard and the vacant lot next to our house [pictured below] is a maze of fallen, tangled trees.

Around Bogalusa: fallen trees and automobile-sized rootballs can still be seen along the roadsides; traffic is held up occassionally by tree removal workers; Bellsouth vans are still actively fixing phone lines around town. Some folk are still waiting for insurance checks and many have still not recovered emotionally.

Mostly, life goes on. [I have internet again, as of last month, so I'm happy]