"I have three big dogs"

Call it fate, call it volunteer karma, call it a coincidence, but just when things are getting really challenging here on the long-term recovery front, someone comes along to lift your spirits. Tonight that someone was Paul Perez, who made delicious gumbo for the volunteers and staff of the St. Bernard Project to thank us all for working in the parish and rebuilding homes like his. He reminded us all about the first thing everyone hears at Camp Hope: You make a difference by just showing up.
He closed the evening with a story. He said, and I'm paraphrasing: "I realized after Katrina I had three big dogs — the federal government, the insurance companies and the Red Cross. None of them showed up. But you showed up and nurses showed up and a high school in upstate New York showed up. He said just weeks after the storm, a Catholic high school in New York state sent a truckload of backpacks full of school supplies down to Baton Rouge, where the Catholic school kids displaced by Katrina were restarting school (albeit at night in Baton Rouge's standing schools). This simple gesture meant the world to Paul, not just because his two school-age children needed the pencils and the books but because it was the first sign someone cared and he wasn't alone.
So much of the work down here and the spirit of the area is about showing up to show your fellow man that you care. It's really simple, but I know it is making a difference, and that is the greatest feeling in the world.

On our own

We moved into our own place, though I think we'll still be spending plenty of time down at Camp Hope. It's exciting to be a resident and be part of the community we are working in. We are in a small efficiency a few blocks off the Mississippi River, a block from a po' boy deli and about 5 blocks from a large dollar store (the main shopping opportunity in the slowly recovering St. Bernard Parish, where Wal-Mart and most grocery stores haven't reopened) and a community center.
I rode my bike around the parish for a couple of hours this afternoon, and had fun seeing the ferry landing and the Chalmette National Battlefield and Cemetery. Most of the Revolutionary War soldiers who died in the Gulf region are buried in the cemetery, a mile or two from our apartment.
I'm sure that's haunted, along with everything else here in "Da Parish." I've heard many great ghost stories since we arrived.
Well, we have been to New Orleans once so far - to see the craziness on Bourbon Street for Halloween. Tonight we are planning to see the real French Quarter (the part locals visit, not drunk tourists). Should be fun.

Who is Camp Hope?

When we first arrived, I expected to have plenty of time to blog and write about my experiences here. Not knowing anyone in the area and needing to pinch pennies, I figured we had nothing to do and abundant free time.
In the week since then, we have learned so much, met so many great people and heard so many great stories that it doesn't leave much time to share them. I haven't written as much in this blog as I would have liked.
We're still at Camp Hope, and loving meeting and getting to know the local residents and traveling volunteers. Here's a random sample of the great folks creating a wonderful, diverse and strong volunteer community:
John Wilkes Booth (real name) is a local resident who cooks gallons of gumbo and red beans and rice for the volunteers every weekend. He taught us how to make gumbo, told us about the local festivals of note and teased us with barbecued oysters.
Mike Cheng is my site supervisor. He was a junior architect in New York City, and he moved down here about a year ago. He has been living in Camp Hope ever since, and he is a wonderful worker, teacher and inspiration. He plans to keep working here until after Mardi Gras. I hope to learn from him until he leaves, then maybe take over his position as finishing expert.

Secrets of Spiderman

This is ridiculously peripheral to St. Bernard Parish and our work here, but I promised a friend I would put this on the blog. Maybe it will get links and get more people reading, and get more people volunteering to help the Gulf Coast recover. Fat Spiderman, you’re saving New Orleans!!!
Let me explain. I worked this week with an Englishman who lives in LA and does digital special effects for Sony’s shop. He worked on Spiderman 3 (as well as Ghost Rider and the upcoming I Am Legend) and said he was very proud of the cool graphics he helped create for Sandman in Spiderman 3. He was also really proud of his co-workers who trimmed Tobey Maguire’s belly.
Apparently, Tobey got tubby before he made the third movie — after buffing out for the first two. The digital effects folks had to cut off his flab on a lot of the shots. Good times.
Also, any shot of Spidey in a mask is not Tobey Maguire. It's a stunt double.
The special effects guy wouldn’t tell me anything about I Am Legend, including why the world ends and why Will Smith is the last person on earth.
More importantly, I really enjoyed meeting him and his wife. It's really remarkable that, as English citizens, they came to Louisiana to help. Thank you.