Hard to imagine sitting here in my kitchen that nearly 4 years ago my family and my city was about to experience devastation that we had been warned about, but that came about for different reasons. We always knew that a hurricane that hit just the right way could push water from Lake Ponchartrain into our city and that pumping it back out over the levees could take awhile, but we never feared that the canal levees and walls would break.
As I look back at the archives in my blog, I really can’t believe all of the things that we were dealing with in the Fall of 2005 and continue to deal with (an incompetent Mayor is at the top of the list).
Our government should have compensated all of the families whose loved ones died due to the Army Corps of Engineers’ and the Levee Boards’ incompetence by now, but they haven’t. President Obama: Make this happen. We also need 500 year protection and a rebuilt coastline. Join www.Levees.org.
Basin Street Records was streamlined and I’d like to thank our operations director, Nick Thomas, for coming on board in 2006 and helping me keep the company moving forward.
I am fortunate. Home is rebuilt. Neighborhood looks great. Oldest son (who started high school the week before Katrina) just started college. Middle son is a senior and daughter just started driving lessons. I got remarried and have a baby on the way. This list is partial, but here are some reasons why we are OK today: Beacon of Hope (Denise Thorton started this organization in our neighborhood), DesireNOLA, Idea Village, Red Cross, Austin Texas community, my family, my parents (who decided to buy a house in Austin and let us live with them for 9 months), FEMA (after nearly 2 years of complete and total aggravation), MusicCares, the resilience of the New Orleans people, and our artists’ perseverance.
Thanks, y’all. And thank you for buying CDs, and even downloads.