Pearlington

Road down Hwy 90 toward Pearlington, Mississippi this morning.

Some of you may have heard of Pearlington through Clayton Cubitt's blogspot, "Operation Eden".

It's a small town, just east of Slidell.

They got slammed. You could tell that before the storm it was beautiful, so many majestic live oaks. Some of the oaks survived.

thanks, Katrina.

u2-greenday

I have not yet tired of watching this video.
It's moving in so many ways.

look closer....

Looked like a sunspot,



but upon closer inspection
It is the space shuttle and space station.

Here's the story.

Saturday's Elections

Saturday is election day.
here is the sample ballot

Besides the 13 constitutional amendments, there are two statewide offices open for elections

Secretary of State
The secretary of state's office is largely administrative but performs the important function of running all elections, including being the central registry of all voters; buying, maintaining and delivering voting machines; hiring polling commissioners; and counting votes. In addition, the office maintains all state and corporate records and runs museums. The office must also attest to the signature of the governor on every single official state document.

Here's the link for the official Secretary of State site

League of Women Voters' profiles on candidates

My choices are in yellow font


SECRETARY OF STATE CANDIDATES

- Mary Chehardy Real Estate agent (no webpages, info on her)
- Rayburn Clipper - Libertarian
- James Crowley: Small businessman - Coins and Collectibles, Licensed Real Estate Broker and Notary Public
- Jay Dardenne: Senator since 1992 (!!)
- Mike Francis: Owner Francis Drilling Fluids, Crowley, LA
"

"
- Francis Heitmeier: Career Politician - in Louisiana politics since 1972 (!!!)

- Allen Leone: Owner - Keller Williams Realty River Parishes

Commissioner of Insurance
The Commissioner of Insurance has complete jurisdiction over the Life, Health and Accident, Property and Liability, Marine and Inland Marine, Fidelity and Surety, and Title insurance industries in Louisiana; is ultimately responsible for the collection of Insurance Premium Taxes and Fees as well as the approval of all policy forms offered to Louisiana citizens, and has a host of licensing and regulatory duties to ensure a fair and safe market for Louisiana's insurance consumers.


One blogger's opinions on this election

COMMISSIONER OF INSURANCE CANDIDATES
- James Cain Professional Politician - 30+ years in the legislature/senate (incumbent)
- Jim Donelon: Professional Politician - 30+ years in Louisiana politics
- S.B.A. Zaitoon: "Since insurance affects a lot of citizens, why not have it as part of the Cabinet of the governor, like the Department of Health? Why should it be an elective office?”


The Conservative Cajun's take on this race


Click here to view the candidates' ethic disclosure reports

The 13 amendments

I'm voting for all amendments except 5,6 & 9.

I'm not going to list my reasons here….suffice it to say
that I've studied them all and mostly agree with the
recommendations of the CABL
and it is what I've based my decisions on

Housing Summit

HOUSING SOLUTIONS SUMMIT
CONVENTION CENTER
FRIDAY 9/29 AND SATURDAY 9/30
9AM - 9PM

FREE TO THE PUBLIC

Opening Ceremony
Friday 9:00am - 10:15am
Dan Packer - President and CEO, Entergy New Orleans
City Council President Oliver Thomas, City of New Orleans
Mayor Ray Nagin, City of New Orleans
Governor Kathleen Blanco
Lieutenant General Russel Honoré

here's the agenda home page

Saturday's agenda includes

Financial Track
9:00am - 10:30am
Louisiana Recovery Authority
Road Home Program

9:00am - 10:30am
Removing Barriers to Affordable Housing for Low Income

1:00pm - 2:40pm
Opening Doors To Home Ownership

2:45pm - 3:15pm
Advancing Affordable Housing


Remodeling/Renovation Track
10:45am - 12:15pm
City of New Orleans Building Requirements

New Construction Track
9:00am - 9:45am
Site Built Homes

10:45am - 11:45am
Alternative Building Systems
Panelized/Modular/Concrete

1:00pm - 2:00pm
Decisions: New Construction vs Renovation

1:00pm - 2:40pm
Emerging Building Systems

2:15pm - 3:15pm
Independent Speakers
Building to Save Energy
Andre Desjarlais
Oak Ridge National Lab

Design for Minimum Flood Damage
Achilles Karagiozis
Oak Ridge National Lab

free house gutting

Thanks to TP.

picture

Took this picture a few months ago on Carr Drive in Slidell.

vote

VOTE VOTE VOTE
This Saturday is a very important election.

You can either vote or you can ignore what's going on. The choice is yours.
If you truly care for Louisiana, spend a little time reading the
amendments and making a decision, be prepared when you go into that voters booth.

I've found three websites that offer details on the 13 constitutional amendments
in plain English, as well as their recommendations on how to vote for each
amendment.

There is no excuse to not vote. If you don't vote, you don't have a right to bitch.
Make a change.

Here are the websites offering clear explanations on the ballot:


The Bureau of Governmental Research is a private,
nonprofit, independent research organization dedicated
to informed public policy making and the effective use
of public resources for the improvement of government
in the New Orleans metropolitan area.
This report is available on BGR’s website


CABL
Council for a Better Louisiana


Public Affairs Research Council of Louisiana

Saints

BLESS YOU

BOYS!!!

Thank you



I couldn't have said this better myself.
Thanks to scottynola

Ernie eloquently expounds on the experience

What it's all about

The hoopla.....
The incessant talk.....
The Saints....

Some people would rather just talk about rebuilding

Others are taking the fun and going with it

some people are just plain grinning ear-to-ear happy.

It's a "coming-back" party

It's more than just a football game.

It's what has this area alive with talk, feeling great - if only for an evening.

It's about time there is something to celebrate here.

Waveland

(click on pictures to view full size)

During our weekend wandering, we took Highway 90 from Slidell, through Pearlington and into Waveland. Poor, sweet Waveland was leveled by the storm.

We hadn't been there since July of 2005 when we took a day trip to check out the beaches and souvenier shops (no gamblers here).

We saw progress in work on the main road, but heading toward the beaches showed us a different story


The first thing that caught my eye was the trees. The were all leaning away from the gulf and dead. All of the pine trees, that is. The oak trees - although they don't look lush - have survived.




Houses that once sat facing the gulf were now just slabs and stairs.



One impressive survivor is some of St. Stanislaus College on Bay St. Louis.



Even though their elevated sidewalk no longer connects one building with another