Back to the Grind

Well today marked the first day back, and I started it out with bang, or a boom I should say. Earlier today I was on a roof damaged by the hurricane. The people had already put some tarps over the roof and it had collected some early morning dew. The equation of a wet plastic plus gravity combined with last night's Chinese buffet yielded a painful result. You see, I keep my camera in my back pocket when I am working, and when my feet flew up and my butt went down...well you get the gist. Although I did not fall completely off the roof,I landed on my camera with a nice boom that resonated through the house(or so I was later told). I think I have bruise the size of my hand on my butt, I only wish I could check and see. I find myself essentially chasing my tail as I turn round and round to see the extent of the damage.

Our company has already closed around 50% of the Katrina claims we have had reported. This is an amazing feat with some companies not having anyone out here looking at homes at all. As a means of thanks, the company is taking all the adjusters on a boat cruise this Friday. Free food and booze, and options for gambling. I don't know about the gambling or booze, but I am all about the free food. The night gets finished off with a catered Cajun meal. That's what they tell us. What I hear is you don't have to work Friday and Saturday. Now that is thanks enough, everything else is, as they say in the Harlem school yard, all gravy. With the rate things are going, and everything is subject to change, we can have Katrina finished in 4 to six weeks. Then I can focus on Rita. Let's hope nothing else come through between now and then.

Weathering Rita

Board/Card Games Played - 8
Changes of clothes by evacuee, (because of being wet)- 6
Urban Kayak Trips - 4
Accidents during Urban Kayaking - 1
Pages of Book Read - 67
Run-Ins with Police -2
Negative Comments said to cops - 4
Times Rearranged Living room - 3
Minutes used discussing changes to living room - 128
Times People yelled at each other - 7
Being at home with friends and family - priceless

Furlough

As defined by Webster:

Main Entry: 1fur·lough
Pronunciation: 'f&r-(")lO
Function: noun
Etymology: Dutch verlof, literally, permission, from Middle Dutch, from ver- for- + lof permission; akin to Middle High German loube permission -- more at FOR-, LEAVE
: a leave of absence from duty granted especially to a soldier; also : a document authorizing such a leave of absence

As defined by David:

(in a singsong voice)...I get to go home, I get to go home, I get to go home.

Ah, yes, finally an opportunity to return home and take care of some business and much needed rest. I left Baton Rouge last night and drove around the storm, arriving in Shreveport around 9:30pm. Now I have three full days of not having to work, and one more day of travel to get back down. That's right, I have to go back and workagainn for another undetermined amount of time. But that I can handle.

I came home last night to meet a large group of my friends at the house. It feels good to be home. So, you may not here much from me in the next couple of days, but don't worry, I am no longer in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and Rita, no, now I am right in the middle of it.

Mass Exodus

Yeah, it is mass exodus here for the adjuster. Before you get your hopes up, I am not one of those adjusters. We have lost a slew of people in the past couple of days as Rita nears Texas. They are going home to batten down the hatches and prepare for the after math of the storm. One of the adjuster's here now, has his home in the worst possible place of Houston. His wife has evacuated and he is sitting around trying to keep himself busy, but still worrying. I haven't heard much on the company's position on all of this, but I know we don't have many more adjusters to work, storms or regular territories. Rumors of gas shortages and FEMA taking over certain stations have been rampant. Gas is starting to become more difficult find. Gotta love it.

Today I became the bad guy. Honestly I am surprised it has taken this long. I have been listening to the news, radio stations around here for updates on Rita and, God forbid, something outside the world of Katrina. I have had little success with the latter, but I have sure heard lots of complaints from the "Salt of the Earth." But, today began the bitching about the adjuster's and insurance companies and how we are here on our own behalf with disregard for the policy holders. How people haven't heard from us or something went wrong that we have no control over. It was all I could do to not call this radio station and give them a good piece of my mind on behalf of the Red Cross, FEMA, and Us. People sitting there, not making any effort to help themselves, giving death threats and spitting on the Red Cross volunteers. Now tell me, with my taxes going to these people who refuse to help themselves, your donations and, not to mention my time, who is the real bad guy? (I am getting all worked up as I type this, banging on the keys of my poor defenseless computer)

However, one thing the radio personalities said today that I liked was "This will bring out the best in good people, and the worst in the bad people." Sure enough, and the media only adds fuel to the fire. As time goes by and tempers flare, not even the good people can be the best for long. But, thanks to everyone for the encouraging emails and notes. I appreciate it. Don't worry about me, I am doing just fine. It sometimes takes a quick outburst to relax yourself. Tomorrow is my day off, well deserved. Quanta La Gusta!

The Meek Shall Inherit the Earth

Not much new going on here. I am spending most of my time debating if ignorance should be a punishable crime. But then I realize even I am ignorant at many things (now I know that is hard to believe). So, I just pull the dwindling reserve of patience I have and take a swig of the bitter reality of my position. Mmm tastes like Caster oil, with the active ingredient of humility, of which I could use more. More than once I have heard the phrase "God's Country" and "Salt of the Earth," usually mentioned in a sarcastic overtone. However, you don't get much more down and out than some of the things I have seen. This, in-turn, makes me think of Plato's
Allegory of the Cave, and I wonder if these people have ever had an opportunity to see what the outside of there own scope of reference. Predisposition to a good life. Doctor's and Lawyers are more likely to make more doctor's and lawyer's. Contractor's make Contractor's, and government assistance is hereditary. Granted all of these are generalizations and there are anomalies to every instance. But, this can and does get battled everyday, with valid points on both sides. So, I will leave this to the politicians, sociologist, and those with more time than myself, to wage these verbal wars of value of living. Pursuit of life, liberty, and the easy money, or so it seems some days.

But, enough of that. I finally have another day off starting tomorrow evening around six. I can't tell you how much sleep I am looking forward to catching up on. This soon to arrive day has been able to push me over a hump and help me to center on my third wind. You may ask how many winds are typical? I couldn't tell you, first let us find a storm deemed "typical."

I'll call him Alectryon, for that is better than Cock

It is pretty safe to say morale is quickly approaching rock bottom with everyone here. Everyone is reaching an average of 15 days away from the norms of everyday life. If you couldn't read it on the wordless faces of the people you pass, just ask them how they are and that is the first topic of conversation. Normally this would just bounce off me like the super ball, but today was an especially difficult day workwise. As I count my days on the diminishing supply of Charmin I brought with me, I feel myself start to wane. So, now I have resigned to be moody and temperamental like my cohorts. My two issues are energy and frustration. Energy because I don't appear to have any and frustration because I have too much. Normally in situations like this I would go work out, but now I mostly just pace in my room or walk laps around the balcony. More interesting info I found out. They haven't decided what to do with us yet. I keep trying to get them to tell me when they are going to start letting some of us go home, but nothing "set in stone" has be conceived. Now they are talking about sending some of us home for a few days and then making us come back for another tour of duty. That's going to bring some muteness behavior worthy enough to impress Jean Laffite. (there's a local hero around these parts for you) But, I am searching for that third wind now. Amazing how a couple of implaced words can bring you crashing down. Never to fear I shall persevere.

Let me leave you with what I had to walk through to get to a claim today. I thought I was going to have to whoop a little booty, but apparently they were scared of me, must be the facial hair, works on babies too.

This was an awesome old bridge I came across the other day. It sits about 25 feet above this white sand creek. I stopped my car in the middle of the road and walked back across it. You could smell the rust from the beams and the tar from the railway ties. This is something I always pictured being in the mountains or on Fried Green Tomatoes. I only wish I had time to take better pictures.

Disclaimer: Possible Nonsense and Venting Ahead...I'm Tired!

Argh, I just been sitting here trying to think of an eloquent way to place the jumbled mass of thought swimming in my brain on this post. But, I say to hell with that. You people are just going to have to deal with a little confusion and maybe a colorful word or two. (nothing worse than hell though, I will keep this PG rated...for now)

So the man running this office is a work friend of mine. He trained me, so I know him pretty well. He and I are a lot alike, despite the age difference. Now I wonder if it better to be in this situation with some one you know or with some one you don't. His 17 years with this company has yielded much advice, help, and constructive critism, but being in his confidences has also been a pain in the (PG rating, not PG-13, so you have to fill in the blank yourself...). I am the one who finds out the bad stuff first, like the mandatory 4 week stay and other not as interesting to you things. However, I am trying to decided if the perks out weigh the cons? For example I am one of the only ones with my own hotel room, a big feat because I am the least experience, but I don't brag to people about that. I get the juicy gossip on the other adjusters, which makes me fell better about the job I am doing, and I get to do special assignments. That is as much a pro as a con. I have to write a report on the new Catastrophe database we are using. Which means I must document my experience with it over the next week and submit it. Granted I will have no problem with this but I don't need anymore work. However this will look good to the big boss man. Good and Bad, Good and Bad, Good and Bad. So be it, I will teeter on the balance of no sleep, too much sun, and fear of being eaten by a dog for more money and personal glory. Just ask Maslow, American dream here I come.

Wowzers, Batman

Imagine you are in your late sixties, (or if you already are, I guess you don't have to imagine) and you have worked hard to make you home and yard look nice. You decided to move your manufactured home to an area with lots of shade, big pine trees, old oak trees, the home just embedded in the splendors of nature. You keep your yard nice and neat, you put a chainlink fence around to protect your property and allow you to see what you have achieved at a glance. You go as so far as to add a new roof and new storage shed where you piddle around with tools and other "man" things. You are on a fixed income and are happy with life. Then one day you hear of this terrible hurricane coming at you. Well, with little time to prepare anything, you hope for the best, go to the local church (which doubles as the shelter), say a few prayers, and bury your head as the eye of the storm passes over you.

You walk home, unable to drive down the street because of all the fallen trees. As you are walking you keep second guessing yourself and your significant others want for a fortress of tress and cursing nature. The lengthy walk home builds up anticipation and apprehension with every weary step. You stop in front of where you home is suppose to be, eyes shifting, searching like wild animal for a way out of a cage. You can't see you home because of the 27 trees blown over in your yard(literally, I counted them all). Finally after fighting and prying the sap laden trees apart you find your home to have three trees resting on it uneasily. Your front door is no longer the beaker of welcome for you children, grandchildren, and friends that it once was. Now it mocks you as the dangerous enemy you never get too close to, waiting to snap and creek with you inside. You realize your home is broken, much like you heart at this moment. With sad desperation you do what you can to move personal affects from the home, throwing away most of it. All you can do now is wait for the insurance money so you can start all over again. You wonder if all those years of premiums will yield a return enough to bring you back to the standard of living you had prior to the Worst Natural Disaster in this countries history. The answer...No, you don't, but a positive attitude and family that cares, is the right start to putting things back together.

This little old couple owned this home. They did not have enough insurance to cover what they had put into the home, they will probably loose thousands and thousands of dollars worth of property, time, and effort because of the storm. When I met with them you couldn't tell if they were in a bad spot or not. They were all smiles, thank-your, and very hospitable. We went next door to a relatives house where they served me the best sweet tea I could handle on a 90+ degree day. They filled out the appropriate paperwork, I gave them their check, and bade them good luck. I will, more than likely, never see them again. But with all the bad that has happened to them, they have still maintained the keys to making it through. Smiles and Positive attitudes. I am not going to go into some PSA about how you need to have a good attitude and smiles are contagious and all that cliche, repetitive crap. But, I find the fortitude of people amazing everyday. God sure knew what He was doing.

Bye Bye Fun

The novelty has worn off. Can't be said anymore simply than that. Peaked at 13 days. This affliction is known as the two week stare. The time when you have eaten out more than you care to and everything begins to run together and you can't tell homes and insured apart. You just silently look into the distance with no real thoughts in you mind. I think the real straw that broke the camel's back was the "no end in sight" undertones I receive from the coordinators when I interject the X amount of days till I go home quips. But, alas, I must make the best of it, bury my head, and force through the work. The work, itself, has increased dramatically and is no longer the easy walk in the park I have was settling in to. No, now it involves 3 hours of windshield time and tens of thousands of more dollars. I have already issued around 75 checks since I have been here. To quote and old business professor of mine, "that's a chunk of change."

Yet, I am definitely the youngest person here. Youngest by age (as I usually am at any corporate gathering) and youngest by experience. This is the small fish in the large pond surrounded by bigger fish, nastier predators, and out numbered by the worms two dozen to one senario that has become cliche. This in itself makes things more challenging. I am dealing with adjusters who have been doing this for 15 years, actually I think the next person who has been working with the company for the least amount of time has six years under his belt. My year and a half is but a mere drop in the bucket for these people. This is good because of the experience they can pass along, but I can't help but think they look down upon me for being a neophyte. I don't know why, they are all very nice, with the cockiness developed by years in this business. Maybe it is my lack of confidence that brings me to this conclusion. This lack of confidence could be a result of the magnitude of time consuming claims and devastation I am seeing and hearing about. I know this is unlike what I have done before any other storm, then again, it could just be lack of sleep. Whose to know, but at least I have this blog to vent my thoughts and direct me in the line of acceptance. Tomorrow I am going to wake up and catch that second wind until it brings me home.

More is yet to come

Thanks for all the birthday wishes. I appreciate all the calls and warm thoughts. They changed my territory today, so it's going to get a bit more interesting. There are power lines down everywhere, whole fields of trees are leaning or cut down about ten feet up. Helicopters are constantly flying over. This is unlike any hurricane damage I have ever seen and I not even talking about the hard hit areas. So, stay tuned in and would put some good stuff up. Thanks again for all the birthday thoughts.

Love Is In the Air

Yes, love is definitely in the air, but not the love you see in movies or even some of the novels with the half naked people on the cover (you know the ones where the man's hair is longer than the women's and if it wasn't for the steroid chiseled abbs you couldn't tell who was whom). The love I have seen comes in the special form of bugs. Millions of love bugs have come to mate in the aftermath of the storm. Who would have guessed 175 mile an hour winds could be considered foreplay. Nevertheless, these bugs are butt-to-butt and everywhere. I am sure they are spawning questions in the minds of 3 and 4 years old. Questions parents dread even when the kids reach the teenage years. But thanks to the discovery channel and National Geographic at least there are teaching aids.

Mostly I'm glad college football has started. Not because of some unnatural allegiance I have for a university I never went to, but because it means there is something else on the TV besides Katrina coverage. I actually stopped watching television last Friday. I couldn't watch it any more. I see enough depressing living situations and filth already, that by the end of the day I can't take anymore. Not that I don't get constant updates from the people I talk with. A buddy of mine, I was his best man, went home yesterday, after not being allowed into Slidell, to see the condition of his house. This is the first house he bought for him and his wife. I haven't been able to get in touch with him for the result. Another friend of mine had a place in Waveland, MS. We had all gone there for a weeks vacation a couple of years ago. He told me yesterday his camp house was gone, nothing there. His camp was fully furnished, nicer than most of the places I see everyday. Totally wiped away.

Houses are being sold over the phone, Baton Rouge has doubled in size, places all over LA are being snatched up for businesses and homes. I am toying with the idea of selling my home for a huge profit and moving back in with Mom and Dad. They said when I moved out I would always have a place at their home, and by being the oldest and smartest (yeah I said it,Laura and Sarah), I would eventually end up dealing with it at some point. So why wait for the inheritance, I will just take it now. I wonder if my parents could handle me? I wouldn't be the only 26 year old living at home, and I am the favorite. Don't worry these are mere petty threats...Maybe.

Two sheds were no match for Two giant old oak trees

It was the Best of Times, It was the Worst of Times

The picture below was one of the fairly minor claims I have inspected over the past couple of days. One of many...many trees on homes I have seen since arriving here. I also saw a 10,000 square foot metal building, well, I saw one wall and a few metal I-beams. That was all that was left. Trees broken in half twenty feet up have become the norm.

Today I learned about convenience. Still fuming about having to use dial-up internet, I left the hotel this morning at 6:15. I then waited in line to buy gas, only ten minutes, nothing compared to prime times. From that point I drove the 40 minutes to where my first claim was located, eating my cold bagel and drinking my Frappacino (coffee flavored, I don't mess around with frilly mocha or vanilla). Finding the location was not difficult at all, thanks to the handy dandy GPS sitting on my dashboard connected to my computer. This program even tells me where to turn, if only it was woman's voice and not a monotoned computerman I would be set. I worked my claim and traveled on to the next one. Well, the computer let me down, this place was like uncharted territory. I was able to call the insured from my cell phone, but could not understand completely what she said. So I did the best I could and I found myself very lost in what I now understand to be the back ass Louisiana. I was taking bets with myself on whether I would see a shirtless man in overalls playing banjo or drive unknowingly into a full on Voodoo ritual. Then I realized, My GPS doesn't work, my cell phone doesn't work, if I run out of gas there is none in this parish, I am pretty much on my own. No outside life lines, no mommy to save me from the monsters, it was just me. I quickly though back to my Boy Scout days listing off the necessities in order..."I have water, food, my car can be shelter...But what about a book, or TV, or something to pass the time." Wow, if the men of the 1800's could see me now, I am sure a wuss I would be. I found the claim, fortunately, but I never did get great cell coverage. I had lost the easily accessible, always when I need it, just because I am bored friend at my side. But as the day went on, finally got cell coverage, ten minutes from my hotel. I showed up here started to download, dial-up, and noticed it would take over two hours to finish. Fighting back the urge to treat my laptop as a Frisbee, I went to talk the time away with the boss, only to find the high speed was back up. I finished my work in less than five minutes. I realized getting the high speed internet was high point of my day. That of course made me question the how spoiled I really am. But, do I give it the name "Spoiled," or do I say Fortunate? I say fortunate, and not because it make me look better, but because I have worked for my comforts. But, then what does that justify and imply. I don't know, but I am pretty sure this will come up again in further post. Maybe some reflection time will be needed to know how fortunate I am, how fortunate most of us are...

I call this the Tale of Two Trailers