New Orleans #2

Saturday I leave for New Orleans. Last week I attended the second and final planning meeting. At that time it looked like there would be only 8 or 9 of us going but since then more have signed up to make it 12.

We will travel together in a van, staying overnight in a motel on the trip down and on the return. We will share a room with another to minimize expenses. The van will be towing a trailer laden with our tools and gear.

At the meeting it was expected that we would be engaged in demolition work and talk centered about some of the conditions we would encounter. The work will probably be so hot and dirty that we would be forced to wash our clothes daily - the smell making it impossible to store them for even a day.

Another warning was to never, never open refrigerators. Last year the routine was to tie the door shuts but in one house this couldn't be done due to its position against the wall. As they wrestled the refrigerator from the wall the door popped opened dumping black smelly sludge on the floor. Forcing everyone out of the house to escape the stink.

Last year the crew would gut 1 to 2 houses each day. Tearing out drywall, trashed appliances, carpets, and so on. The trash would be hauled to the curb - sorted into piles (hazardous, appliances, construction waste, etc) which usually resulted in a shoulder high pile of debris stretching across the front of the property. A service then came by and removed the debris - one of the recovery procedures that is working well.

I got an email a few days ago with the good news that we would be doing some remediation work. Installing drywall, flooring, painting, etc. There may be some demo work but if so not a entire week.

I'm now busy planning on the tools I'll take and thinking about packing. I hate packing for a trip because you have to make decisions. So, like any good decision maker, I procrastinate until the day prior. Not all of retirement is fun and games.

Wonder if I should take my AARP magazines? Maybe John can advise.