(no subject)

[liptonrm_backup]

Wow, it's been a kicker of a week. The more I read and see and hear about everything that's going on down on the Gulf coast, the more numb I feel. I think about the how nothing was prepared, how advice and statistics and predictions were ignored and then I think about my own home and what could happen. We could be hit by an F5 tornado or a devestating blizzard or an arctic blast that freezes the water in the pipes. Last winter there was even flooding in some parts of my city so while the snow was falling people were having to evacuate from the freezing cold river water that was seeping into their homes.

I want to do something. I have exactly -3 dollars to donate to a charity and I have the overwhelming desire to go South and do something. Roll bandages. Hold babies. Boil water. Let my shoulder be cried on. Hold flashlights. Bury the dead. Anything.

But I won't go South because if I do I'll end up coming home with no place to live and no job to speak of. I won't go South because even though I don't trust the leadership to do jack I do trust the American people to step in and do the dirty work of repairing power lines and clearing streets and patching the levees and rebuilding the cities. Americans might bicker and feud and disagree and put jackasses in the White House but at the end of the day I trust them to band together and get things done. Please, don't let me down. But, much more importantly, don't let the people living in their own subtropical Hell down.

ETA: Was just discussing everything with the Da. He's the bishop of a local LDS ward and has been trying to come up with ways that his members can help the people on the Gulf Coast. One of the items that came up were Hygeine Kits. One of the perennial service projects in my church is the compilation of kits to be distributed in times such as these. I'm bringing it up because it is something that all of us can physically do. This page has assembly instructions. These can be sent directly to LDS Humanitarian Services at 1665 South Bennett Road, Salt Lake City, UT 84104 or I'm sure that any humanitarian group would be glad to receive these kits (eg. your local Red Cross chapter). These and any other donations, as hiyacynth so correctly points out in the comments, would be more then welcome.

ETA 2: I've been meaning to do this for a day now, but I wanted to take this opportunity to thank the people on my f-list who have been blogging so relentlessly about Katrina and the aftermath, in particular twistedchick and liz_marcs. You guys have kept me up to date on information that I wouldn't have been able to find on the tv networks. A special shout-out goes to writerj whose eloquent and evocative posts have helped me to mourn for a place that I never visited but always knew in my heart. He's also put together an iMix with all proceeds going to hurricane relief. You can go here to check it out.

Comments

[hiyacynth.livejournal.com]

I was just saying similar things about feelings of "Please, I want to DO something!" and she reminded me that local branches of various charities and relief organizations may need local volunteers. People to pack boxes onto trucks, help organize refugee housing (I've seen tons of churches all over the country offering lodging and food to refugees who are leaving the Southeast), to help fill in on their regular operations while their permanent staff is down south.

Me, I'm going to start by putting bags and boxes of clothes and stuff together to send out when the relief efforts move from pure rescue to trying to help the survivors start over from scratch.

*loves you*

[liptonrm.livejournal.com]

You're absolutely right. It's so easy to get caught up in the magnitude of everything that's happening that you forget the smaller things that can be just as helpful.

Clothes, that's a really good place to start. I should drop in and donate some blood tomorrow, too.

*loves you too*

[hiyacynth.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the kit instructions. I don't know how I left off the attribution to the reminder--it was abyssinia4077's common sense talking there about volunteering time locally.

And blood. Blood is always good. I just this year got into a regular cycle after years of attending random blood drives. I'm very proud of my track marks. Seriously, I pump blood out so easily and fast it's frightening, but I scar! I have like 10 tiny scars on the inside of my left elbow.

[liptonrm.livejournal.com]

Yeah, even in my isolated state I've heard that the Red Cross is already screaming for blood donations. It looks like it was a good thing that my iron was low last time I went in, at least I won't have to wait a couple weeks before they'll let me bleed.

If you hadn't noticed, it took my three or four tries to get everything said in my post that I wanted said. We're all verklempped these days, but we're getting it done. =D

[writerj.livejournal.com]

I can't do much but rant all these miles away but I have that big ol' credit card and memories of that whole region that grow more beautiful with each ugly moment I see on television, and I put that all together into an informal "charity album".

[liptonrm.livejournal.com]

You're providing a valuable service if only because you're giving us a place where we can express our hurt and anger and fear in a semi-constructive manner. Your posts may make us cry but they're the purging sort of tears.

You're putting your money where your mouth is, something a lot of people aren't willing to do.

[abyssinia4077.livejournal.com]

Yeah. I definitely hear you. I'm going nuts sitting here in lab feeling like my time could be better spent helping out down there.
But I'll do what I can from here for now and you're right - it's bad now, but it *will* get better. We will band together and rebuild and pull ourselves up by our bootstraps. Done it before and we'll do it again.

[liptonrm.livejournal.com]

We will rebuild because that's what needs to be done. That's what we do. Thank goodness for that. We'll all pitch in and the people will be rescued and the levees will be fixed and the devestation will be cleared and then rebuilding will commence.

Hope has to carry the day.

[abyssinia4077.livejournal.com]

Yep. Other cities are opening their doors - Detroit opened up every empty hotel room. School systems are working to keep the kids in school (half of me is thinking I should run down to refuge camps and set up a classroom).
Things are bad right now. People died. People are sick and scared and trapped and some of them (and really, it is a minority) are being stupid and nasty.
But we're mobilizing and it'll get better. It'll take time and work and money but it'l happen.

[writerj.livejournal.com]

To be honest, the mix proceeds themselves don't go to hurricane relief; if someone lets me know on my journal if they've bought a song or the whole mix, I'll make a donation for the same amount to the Red Cross. Just so nobody thinks I actually have a charity set up via iTunes!

[liptonrm.livejournal.com]

Yes, but my explanation is easier. The truth would take much more time to elaborate. ;-)