Subject: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: PoppaGator Date: 01 Sep 05 - 01:06 PM I've been wanting to let you all know my family and I have survived. I've been trying without success to log onto Mudcat for the last day or so, and finally got through just now. I have posted a couple of messages at tweedsblues.net, if anyone wants to look. Let me paste in a copy of the message I sent my brother last night: We're OK ~ at the home of an old friend way up north here in extreme western Kentucky. Spent the storm in Covington ~ Peggy's friend Donna had keys to the home (the palatial country estate) of her employer, who had flown to New York. We were high and dry, on the western side of the storm (the relatively "safe" side), and spent the daylight hours Monday watching 100mph winds snapping trees in half through two-story high picture windows ~ without power, water, or phone service (not even cellphones). Before we left New Orleans, we were relayed a message that we were welcome to come here to Paducah. At the time, it seemed unnecessary and ridiculously far away, but by Tuesday morning it seemed like a great idea. We couldn't stay where we were, certainly can't go back home for another month or so, and would not be able to find motel rooms anywhere within hundreds of miles, even if we could afford to in a hotel for more than a night or two. Plus which, we have two dogs along for the ride! Peggy's car was temporarily out of order this week, but she's been able to use her friend Debbie's car while Deb is in the hospital. Donna had car trouble, too, so we caravanned out of town in two vehicles, my Toyota and Deb's Olds Bravada SUV. Part of the deal involved taking responsibility for Deb's beloved little doggie, and Donna also has a dog she's pretty attached to, so we've been traveling with the two pooches. So, our group includes two animals in addition to (granddaughter) Avery, (daughter) Maggie and (common-law son-in-law) Andrew, (son) Mike, Donna, and Peggy and me. I left with three changes of socks and underwear, one pair of shorts and one pair of long pants, and a handful of t-shirts. Everyone else is similarly unencumbered; of course, we had no idea we wouldn't be back within a couple of days. Even if the town took a direct hit, we figured we'd be back to reclaim more stuff even if the downstairs had flooded and even if power remained off for a week or two. Of course, it's much worse than that, unimaginably catastrophic, and we're looking at starting over from scratch. We might go to Mom's in New Jersey to live for a while; I don't know, We'll stay here for a couple of days and think about our options. We're thankful to OK, and I am intrigued by the idea of a fresh start. My *only* real regret is that I left my guitar ~ as we were packing the car to go, I had a flash that I would be able to squeeze it into the trunk of the car after all, and momentarily thought about unlocking the house and running back in for it, but said "naahhh" and took off. It's sitting in its case on top of my bed on the main floor, about 12 feet above ground level, which I had thought would have been plenty safe, but now I'm not at all sure about that. Everything else we own(ed) I can live without, but that instrument is truly irreplaceable. Even if I were to collect the two or three grand that it's worth, there's no way I could spent that kind of money on a guitar while we're trying to build new lives. Oh well, maybe in another month or so when we can get back into town to reconnoiter, it'll be safe and sound an inch or two above the high water mark. On the other hand, maybe it has been punctured by the limb of a tree that may have crashed through our roof. Won't know for a while. The poor folks who stayed behind are in terrible shape. We could have been among them ~ Peggy had been adamant about not evacuating ever again after the fiasco we experienced last year fleeing town for the Hurricane Ivan false alarm. It was really a last-minute decision to bug out, and obviously we're glad we did what we did. More later. This was supposed to be a "short" note, and I did omit a lot of stories and adventures, but I've gone on long enough already. |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: Zany Mouse Date: 01 Sep 05 - 01:12 PM Oh, what a terrible experience. I'm so glad you're all OK and let us know what happens next. Positive thoughts on their way across the Pond. Rhiannon |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: Cluin Date: 01 Sep 05 - 01:13 PM Well, there you go. Good to hear you and yours are well, PG. That's the main thing. Hope the guitar makes it through too. |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: Mary in Kentucky Date: 01 Sep 05 - 01:15 PM Yo PoppaGator - I'll be in "extreme western Kentucky" tomorrow! Then on to northern Mississippi Saturday for a family wedding. We have given up our motel room and will carpool from southern Kentucky so we can get there and back on one tank of gas. (rumor has it that there will be shortages in the region - Nashville distribution). See ya 'round. |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: Ebbie Date: 01 Sep 05 - 01:19 PM Poppagator. Tears here. Thanks for letting us know. Please stay in touch. |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: Wesley S Date: 01 Sep 05 - 01:30 PM So glad to hear that you're OK. I'm sorry to hear about your guitar but it sounds like you were able to get away with all of the important stuff - your hide. And your loved ones. You'll have a new guitar before you know it. Stay in touch and give us more of the background stories when time allows. The big picture that the media is giving us is too much to comprehend but your personal story can bring it all home for the rest of us. Can we UPS a box of clothes to you ? I just lost some weight and have a bunch of stuff to get rid of. What sizes does your family wear ? What else do you need ? Give us an address we can send things to. |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: Donuel Date: 01 Sep 05 - 01:35 PM Way to go gattor. You are courageous, adventurous and smart. Ask for what you need whenever you can. |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: GUEST Date: 01 Sep 05 - 01:36 PM Is the quarter under water? Will there be any more O'FLaherty's? |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: jacqui.c Date: 01 Sep 05 - 01:36 PM Poppagator - Wesley got there first, but what size clothes does your family wear? Is there anything else you need? |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: GUEST Date: 01 Sep 05 - 01:39 PM be safe - let me know if I can help. I can come to NO with a hammer and a saw, some wood ... various gear ... food, clothes too, to some extent. Let us know when you go back, and if we can be of assistance .... |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: catspaw49 Date: 01 Sep 05 - 01:43 PM PG we are all just overwhelmingly happy to hear from you. Watching the storm coverage I feared you may have underestimated Katrina a bit. Indeed, we all did....... I am sorry for your loss as I have some experience in that direstion myself, but I am sure things will come around for you. I get by with a little help from my friends. Like Wes, many of us might be able to help with things from clothing to dog food (two Weimaraners), to housing as you wait to go back. Forget everything about "pride" or whatever and let us help one of our own. If you go to Jersey from Paducah, I have you covered for at least one stop along your route as I am in Columbus, Ohio. Keep in touch as best you can and let us know what we can do. Spaw |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: CarolC Date: 01 Sep 05 - 01:47 PM Glad to hear you and yours are safe PoppaGator. So sorry you have lost so much, but here's hoping you get your guitar back in perfect condition. |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: Wesley S Date: 01 Sep 05 - 01:50 PM Just curious - what type of guitar was it ? And what style of music do you like to play ? |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: Jerry Rasmussen Date: 01 Sep 05 - 01:59 PM What a relief! Been keeping you and yours (and everyone else down there) in constant prayer.. If you come up to New Jersey, let me know... Connecticut isn't that far away.. Jerry |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: Bill D Date: 01 Sep 05 - 01:59 PM so VERY glad to hear that you are all ok! Take care, and let life catch up at a reasonable rate....We hope to hear from you as circumstances permit. |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: Stilly River Sage Date: 01 Sep 05 - 02:04 PM If you'll just go ahead and use this thread to take care of some business, we can trace it and help as we each can. Post the sizes of clothes, shoes, etc. and as people fill orders you can let us know so you're not swamped with too much of one size or type. Hopefully you'll be someplace long enough so we can ship these in the next few days? Dallas and Fort Worth are some of the most reasonably priced housing markets in the country right now. There are shelters open in both cities in various multipurpose and recreation centers, so there will be FEMA and Red Cross folks here to help people who had to flee, even if you don't stay at one of the shelters. Be sure that you make contact with the Red Cross so you can take advantage of what help they're able to give you when it comes time to try to go back home. I don't have seven beds here, but I can manage about four, and my ex or neighbors closeby could manage beds or at least comfortable sleeping space, if you find you want to or need to try coming over to North Texas instead of New Jersey. We've been preparing for a garage sale and have stacks of clothes here. They never sell well that way, so are usually donated through one of the regular organizations that comes by. I have quite a few kids clothes, from about 10 years old and bigger. Maybe a few smaller pieces still. And clothes that both my grown daughter and I are in there. Let us know what you need. Maggie (Margaret) Dwyer (I'm in the phone book) |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: Little Hawk Date: 01 Sep 05 - 02:06 PM Hey, my friend, it is very good to hear that you and your family are okay. That's what matters. Thank God you got out of the city when you did. Don't sweat it about the guitar. You may recover it, you may not, but one can always get another guitar...(sometimes sooner than you think!). "I am intrigued by the idea of a fresh start." Yeah, I know what you mean about that. It's a strange feeling, isn't it? It can be sort of liberating in a certain weird way that you don't necessarily expect. It launches whole new possibilities. I've experienced that once or twice in my life when situations I'd been totally depending on were swept away. If all of my present mountain of possessions vanished...well, in one sense, it would lift a big burden off my back...in another sense, I'd miss a few specific things (like the guitar). I may be able to help you and the family out to some extent (I have a lot of extra stuff here, one way or another), so PM me if anything comes to mind, and keep in touch. George |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: GUEST,Sooz Date: 01 Sep 05 - 02:14 PM We've been waiting for this good news all week - thanks for letting us know. Shame about the guitar though. |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: katlaughing Date: 01 Sep 05 - 02:25 PM Thanks so much, poppagator for thinking to let us know how you are. You've been on our minds and in our hearts. I've tears for all that you have lost and been through, but also gratitude that you are all safe. Do you have any news of Spencer Bohren and his family? Please DO let us know what we can do to help, including clothing, etc., but also money. Little bits can add up if we each send what we are able. We've been through one of our own Mudcatters losing everything once before, Night Owl, when her house was struck by lightning. She lost absolutely everything. When you have time and energy, it might be helpful to read some of her postings about it and her recovery in her "A Mudcatter's Thank You" threads. Giving thanks for your safety and for guidance in these unbelievable times and holding you in the Light and our hearts, luvyakat&family |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: Stilly River Sage Date: 01 Sep 05 - 02:28 PM Hey, what about Bobert's double-decker bus? Have him haul it down from Wes' Ginny and set it up at the new place. Now that would be interesting temporary housing! :) |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: Bill D Date: 01 Sep 05 - 02:29 PM (if you do head for New Jersey at some point, there are places to stay along the way....the Wash DC area in particular..) PM if relevant |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: Azizi Date: 01 Sep 05 - 02:42 PM I am relieved to know that you and your family survived. Thank God! Words fail me. Continue to be safe and know that I am sending you positive vibrations, Azizi |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: katlaughing Date: 01 Sep 05 - 02:42 PM poppa, just read the following on Spencer's website: Thanks for all of your concerned emails and phone calls. Spencer and the family left New Orleans for Oklahoma Sunday morning and will return after Hurricane Katrina is gone. |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: number 6 Date: 01 Sep 05 - 02:56 PM It's a big relief to hear you and your family are safe Poppa. Thanks for posting ... and may the best of luck be with you in putting your life back in order. sIx |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: Mary in Kentucky Date: 01 Sep 05 - 03:16 PM PoppaGator, I just had another thought. If there are gas shortages, you may need help getting out of Paducah. (at least in the next week or so) I could get you from Paducah to Louisville (I think) on one tank. Spaw could probably get you from Louisville to Columbus. Keep us in mind. |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: Bee-dubya-ell Date: 01 Sep 05 - 03:21 PM Before opting for starting over somewhere else, PG, consider this: After the extremely large load of shit that has recently hit the fan dissipates somewhat, there will be untold opportunities in the New Orleans area. Many people's former jobs and dwellings won't be around, but the area will be rebuilt and there'll be tons of work to be done. And, though it sounds a bit mercenary to say it at this point, there'll be lots of money to be earned doing it. (My son-in-law, a tilesetter, has already been offered a $30 per hour job working on repairing one of the casinos in Biloxi.) Sure, it'll require some flexibility regarding people's attitudes toward "what-I-do-for-a-living". There probably won't be much need for stockbrokers for a while but there'll be plenty of work for roofing repair estimators. |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: Mary in Kentucky Date: 01 Sep 05 - 03:27 PM Oh yes, another thought. Don't necessarily depend on cell phone coverage. The brand I have won't work (no towers) in Western Kentucky. (except for large cities and high hills) |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: Anglo Date: 01 Sep 05 - 03:37 PM Great news, PG, except for the guitar of course. It's always a relief to find some of your friends safe, even in the middle of a terrrible disaster. All the best. |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: PoppaGator Date: 01 Sep 05 - 03:44 PM Thanks so much to everyone. Our current host is an old friend, very gracious and very affluent, and he wears the same sizes of clothes and shoes as me. We're being taken a a clothes-shopping spree in an hour or two. Kat, thanks for the news about Spencer and Marilyn. They're good friends who we don't see very often, and hadn't been in touch for a while when the storm suddently hit. I have very limited experience in construction work, and am not very good on ladders, so the rebuilding boom may or may not present the best opportunities for me. My current employer (who I had thought was dead in the water) is planning to resume operations in Baton Rouge fairly soon, and promises housing-location assistance. Not something I was counting on, but it might pan out. Expecially after they paid me throughout my cancer convalescence last year, I figure I owe them my best effort if they ned my help to try staying in business. I have a lot of nervous energy, can't sit still to read, and am getting tired of watching wall-to-wall TV disaser coverage. I'm beginning to regret leaving my 1969 Martin D-18 behind not only for long-range reasons (because of its obvous value, how resonant it is, etc.) but because I'd be picking right now if I could! For the record, I'm a fingerpicker, play a lot of Mississippi John Hurt songs, country blues in general, general folk & folk/roc/pop stuff from the 60s, etc. |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: PoppaGator Date: 01 Sep 05 - 03:52 PM Oh, one more thing. If and when I stay at Mom's in NJ, I won't have a computer for a while. I'll drop a note saying good-bye for a while before disappearing into cyber-non-space. |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: Tinker Date: 01 Sep 05 - 03:55 PM Thanks so much for posting.... If you decide to head to New Jersey to regroup and plan let me know. Aside from the tangible help ( and I'm certainly a pack rat of the first degree) perhaps we can drag Mick up here for a little music. I'm in Northern Jersey and actually could put up the whole crew if you need to stop on your way to parts yet to be decided. Tinker |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: Little Robyn Date: 01 Sep 05 - 04:00 PM I'm so pleased to hear you're OK. I've been worried ever since your last message. But Fats Domino might not be so lucky, not to mention hundreds of others. It's too sad. Robyn |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: SINSULL Date: 01 Sep 05 - 04:35 PM Poppa, I am glad that you and yours are safe. There is always a place here in Maine for you to crash. The cats tolerate dogs pretty well. Meantime, whatever you need, ask. This group comes through every time. And when the time comes to vent all that frustration and anger, go for it. I can't imagine what you are going through right now. Mary |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: fat B****rd Date: 01 Sep 05 - 04:37 PM I'm so glad to hear you're OK PG. All the best from "the other Earl Palmer fan" here at the'Cat. Love and good wishes from Charlie S. |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: artbrooks Date: 01 Sep 05 - 04:44 PM Glad to hear that you and yours are ok. My folks (in P-Cola) have gone through the evacuation thing several times now, but Ivan doesn't begin to touch what just happened. Take care. |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: bfdk Date: 01 Sep 05 - 04:53 PM Glad to hear you and yours made it out okay, Poppa! Greetings from Denmark, Bente |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: Ernest Date: 01 Sep 05 - 05:39 PM Hello Poppagator, Louise and I are very glad to hear that you and your family are well. We hope that your home and especially that guitar is undamaged. Maybe it turns out that you were lucky and didn`t lose to much. Sending you our best wishes Louise and Stefan |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: greg stephens Date: 01 Sep 05 - 06:25 PM Poppagator Very good of you to find time to post. I, like a lot of others, have been wondering about you. The city will rise again, and so will you. As for the guitar, if it's not there, another one will be somewhere where you least expect it. All the best to you and yours Greg |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: Little Hawk Date: 01 Sep 05 - 06:40 PM You know, Poppa Gator, you might consider borrowing or getting hold of a moderate-priced Yamaha guitar in the interim...they're not expensive, but they are often very good. That could help fill the gap for awhile, and get you picking again. I have owned some good Martins, for sure, and some other high end guitars, but I still have a $500 Yamaha that never fails to please. It's darned near as good as most of the Martins are, and frankly...it's better than some of them. Amazing but true. |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: The Fooles Troupe Date: 01 Sep 05 - 07:30 PM Best Wishes, Mate. The 'Ivan Situation' was a bit of good luck cause it didn't hit - but Katrina did. Modern Technology is getting sufficiently reliable, to be trusted in these warning situations, mostly. Again, Best Wishes, Mate. Hope you get started playing again soon, even if you need to get a cigar box, a stick and some fencing wire... |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: Shanghaiceltic Date: 01 Sep 05 - 07:33 PM Good to hear you are safe and well PoppaGator. A releif for all your freinds on the Cat. Hope things can get better for you and your Martin will be undamaged. |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: Midchuck Date: 01 Sep 05 - 07:44 PM I have a '70s "lawsuit" Takamine that is an amazingly good copy of a Martin D-18 of the same period - solid spruce top, mahogany plywood back/sides, that a hippy decorated somewhat, at some point in the past. With the batch of guitars I have, it isn't hardly ever getting played. There isn't much point in trying to sell it, it has so little cash value, so I keep it for a beater/loaner. The strange part is, it really sounds very nice. If there is a way to get it to you from Vermont, you can have it until you get organized. It's just taking up space. Peter. |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: dianavan Date: 01 Sep 05 - 08:43 PM Poppagator - So glad to hear that you and your family are safe and sound. Keep in touch whenever you can. |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: Little Hawk Date: 01 Sep 05 - 08:52 PM There ya go. Those old "lawsuit" Takamines were good. A friend of mine had one for many years, but sold it awhile back. |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: The Fooles Troupe Date: 01 Sep 05 - 09:03 PM "lawsuit"? sorry, no undercastumble... |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: GUEST Date: 01 Sep 05 - 09:13 PM ...barter....no doubt illegal... some poor sap couldn't afford his legal bill...lol |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: GUEST,sandra in sydney @ work Date: 01 Sep 05 - 09:28 PM I've been off the air for 2 days (bloody broadband) & was wondering how Mudcatters were. What I saw in the papers & heard on radio news was scary. Good to hear you & your family are well, PoppaGator, and to see the Mudcat community rallying around as usual. And like others I have tears while reading this & have casually turned aside several times to reach for a tissue before my colleague sees my wet eyes! sandra |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: Janie Date: 01 Sep 05 - 10:27 PM PoppaGator--What everyone else has already said.... Blessings and comfort to you, your family, and alkl others effected by disaster. Janie |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: Bee-dubya-ell Date: 01 Sep 05 - 10:58 PM Robin - "Lawsuit" Takamines refers to their early '70s guitars that were Martin copies right down to the script on the headstock. Seems that imitation wasn't the sincerest form of flattery as far as the Martin folks were concerned. |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: GUEST,.gargoyle Date: 01 Sep 05 - 11:02 PM POPPA GATOR
Are you black or white?
Sincerely,
Not being the R-word....just a little media-clarification. |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: Little Hawk Date: 01 Sep 05 - 11:22 PM Are those the only two alternatives? Next question, please... |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: PoppaGator Date: 01 Sep 05 - 11:24 PM Just PM-ed Peter to tentatively accept his offer of that "lawsuit Tak" ! If, that is, we wind up staying in the northeast long enough to fit in a trip to Vermont. Gargoyle: Please refer to Member Photos for evidence of my lily-white Irish complexion. However, I swear to God that I'm every bit as black as anybody else on the inside, if not moreso ~ at least from my diaphragm up to my throat. |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: GUEST Date: 02 Sep 05 - 12:20 AM They don't let GUESTS view member's information. However, you clarified Gargoyle's post and the media storm, only the whites got out. |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: Roger the Skiffler Date: 02 Sep 05 - 03:53 AM Glad you got out in time, Tom, Best wishes RtS |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: Jeri Date: 03 Sep 05 - 11:02 AM If you go to Google Maps, you can type in your address and get a map. Once the map cmes up, you can click on a link for a satellite view, or for areas hit by Katrina, there's a link for the 'Katrina' view. It seems like they were taken on Wed, Aug 31 and show the flood waters. |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: Stilly River Sage Date: 03 Sep 05 - 12:43 PM If you go to Google and enter New Orleans, Louisiana (without a specific address) and click on satellite you'll see the area before the flood. Use the little arrows in the upper left side and you can tour the entire city and region. You'll see basically what is now missing or submerged. So sad. SRS |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: GUEST,Dani Date: 03 Sep 05 - 03:45 PM Poppa, I'd be pissed if you didn't stop here on your way North...... we're spitting distance from the intersection of 85 and 40 (home of NC old-time music), and owners of an old house in a peaceful old town with plenty of peace, quiet, and space for you and yours. Having been through a hurricane or three and lost nothing but my wits and the state of taking clean running water, food, electricity and gas for granted, I would be most grateful for an opportunity to help. PM. Dani |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: Bill D Date: 03 Sep 05 - 04:43 PM Just looked at the map and I see that one area where I lived as a 3rd grader and was flooded out of in 1947 (water blown over the levees) is now just barely in the dry section. (504 Helios Ave.) The duplex we lived in before that, at 5729 Cameron Blvd. is underwater. Strange, how important and relevant that seems to me after almost 60 years. New Orleans is where I started school and where my continuous memories begin. I have always intended to go back there and revisit some of the things I remember as a kid.....no chance now, I guess. The first 'folk song' I remember knowing was in a little book I had, and I remember standing on the unpaved street at 504 Helios, singing "Down in the Valley" from the back of the book. ah, well...no reason for this rambling, except that if Max is to be believed, this thread may be around longer than *I* am, and I'd like to think someone may see it. |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: GUEST Date: 03 Sep 05 - 05:40 PM The google maps are amazing. We used them while trying to track the storm and flooding as we watched WWLT online and tried to figure out where exactly they were talking about. We got parish maps, everything. Google maps rocks. |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: SharonA Date: 04 Sep 05 - 02:00 PM PoppaGator, I too am very glad to hear that you and your loved ones made the decision to evacuate and were able to get out of town, find a safe place to ride out the storm, and get to Kentucky. Too bad about your old friend the Martin D-18 (and I hope it did indeed survive undamaged) -- I can't imagine how many instruments in N.O. were destroyed, on top of everything else. Sorry if it seems petty to give a thought to the instruments lost in the midst of such a tremendous, far-reaching tragedy. But it seems to me that part of the tragedy is the loss of or damage to the tangible evidence of the unique musical heritage of N.O. (buildings, museum artifacts, etc.), as well as the diaspora of the people who made that music. With all the video that the media has been showing to the nation in the past week, I have only seen two brief clips of displaced NO'ans playing instruments, and maybe another two or three of evacuees singing (just hymns and one chorus of "God Bless New Orleans", no blues at a time one would most expect the blues to be sung), so I get the impression that the city's culture of music-making has been deeply wounded. It will be interesting to see how the culture changes, grows, matures as that wound heals. Anyway, as to your plans for the immediate future, if you do go to New Jersey here's a suggestion: Unless your mother lives in the most barren of the Pine Barrens, there should be a public library in her neighborhood (town? city?). Most public libraries have computers with internet access for their patrons to use at no charge. That's where I do most of my Mudcat-lurking; I don't have internet access at home (I'm in the PA suburbs of Philly). So if your mom has or gets a free library card, you should be able to use it to log in occasionally and keep us 'Catters posted on how you're doing. But wherever you go, you'll know our thoughts are with you. |
Subject: RE: Alive and well and OUT of New Orleans From: Stilly River Sage Date: 04 Sep 05 - 02:57 PM Since everything planned for New Orleans and environs in the near future is on hold, the ability of the larger region to absorb the business is being examined. I wonder how many rooms will be available for some of these events considering how many people may still be in long-term hotel situations around here. Much care is required for moving meetings from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram Mitchell Schnurman IN MY OPINION The Fort Worth Convention & Visitors Bureau is in a delicate position. It's trying to land some of the business meetings scheduled for New Orleans in the next few months, but it doesn't want to appear to be opportunistic. "We don't want people to think we're taking advantage of a catastrophe," says Doug Harman, the agency's president and chief executive. His counterpart in Dallas, Phillip Jones, worries about the same issue. To be fair to New Orleans — and to soften public perceptions — the Dallas bureau is offering to swap conventions with the Crescent City. It proposes hosting some of New Orleans' meetings this fall and letting New Orleans have some of Dallas' conventions in the future. "This is a rare opportunity to reintroduce a lot of conventioneers to Dallas, but we want to do it with dignity," Jones says. "We can't look like ambulance-chasers." The human toll from Hurricane Katrina rightly remains the No. 1 issue on the public agenda. Until the immediate suffering ends and rebuilding begins, people will be cautious about discussing commercial opportunities. Behind the scenes, however, there is much at stake. New Orleans is among the leading destinations for conventions and tourists, with 10 million visitors spending $4.9 billion there last year. On Thursday, New Orleans officials formally canceled all convention business through November, acknowledging that the recovery will take a while. Donna Karl of the New Orleans convention bureau says the decision affects 150 to 200 events in that time frame, not including others that bypassed the city agency and booked directly with hotels. Many groups will cancel their events, she says, but most will scramble to reschedule, because their conventions are often a key source of revenue. Fort Worth looked at the details of more than 100 New Orleans meetings planned for this fall, and Harman says it's talking closely with one prospect. Dallas has been working with meeting planners representing about a dozen groups, Jones says, and it hopes that three or four will make decisions this week. Most of the prospects have meetings planned for the next six months in New Orleans, but some events are 12 months out. Of course, other areas are pursuing the same opportunities. News reports have cited Houston, Austin, Baltimore and Southern California among the suitors, and it's safe to assume that every city with a convention center is putting out feelers. Many won't be able to offer much. In this business, most conventions are scheduled years in advance — sometimes a decade before — because groups have to lock up large blocks of hotel rooms and exhibit space. New Orleans can accommodate groups with 15,000 members or more, because it has so many hotels and a large convention center. Fort Worth and Arlington can't bid for the bigger deals, but because of recent additions, Dallas, Austin and Houston have that capacity. The Gaylord Texan in Grapevine is a major convention hotel. And Las Vegas, Orlando, Fla., and Chicago have long been big players in the industry. The key question is whether a city's convention and hotel space is available when the groups need it — or whether accommodations can be rearranged for other clients. In Fort Worth, Harman is torn over how much energy to put into the New Orleans effort. His sales staff has been focusing on attracting conventions for the new Omni Hotel, scheduled to open by 2009. The convention hotel is supposed to make Fort Worth competitive for a larger array of business. Does the agency take its eye off the big picture — and the big deals — to shoot for some of the smaller meetings that might come its way now? "It's a dilemma," Harman says, "and it's harder to evaluate because you don't know when New Orleans will be operational again." The quicker the recovery, the smaller the opportunity, and Fort Worth might be better off to focus further out. Heywood Sanders, a public-administration professor at the University of Texas at San Antonio, is skeptical of the windfall that may come from New Orleans. He says that attendance at its convention center — the site of so much human suffering after last week's hurricane — has been falling sharply. The number of events hasn't declined much, but fewer people are going to them. He says attendance at the convention center was just below 600,000 last year, compared with more than 1 million in 1999. "The convention business is evaporating everywhere in the country, while cities are building more and more facilities," Sanders says. New Orleans' leisure traffic accounts for much of the city's tourism, and he doubts that the Metroplex will win much of that business. "People who wanted to go to a jazz festival in New Orleans or to Mardi Gras aren't going to just substitute Dallas or Fort Worth," he says. Jones insists that the potential gain for Dallas' convention business is significant, and his agency has put a lot into the effort. In addition to the convention-swapping proposal, it has worked with American Airlines so that visitors can change reservations from New Orleans to Dallas/Fort Worth Airport without incurring an extra fee. The bureau also helped coordinate promotions with area hotels. Some hotels cut room rates for people from hurricane-affected areas, and others have agreed to contribute 10 percent of revenue from relocated convention business to hurricane relief. Jones says the Dallas convention bureau has hit its goals for this year, but a handful of big events from New Orleans would move the needle. "We could go from having a good year to having a great one," Jones says. If so, he can count on getting the chance to someday return the favor to his friends in New Orleans. |
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