Day two On Work Site

A few blurry eyed faces this morning as the vehicles pulled out of the parking lot at 7:30 am!!

But the excitement was present because three of the four groups believed they would 'finish' a house and group two--those who had seen their work shut down on Monday--were looking forward to the day in which they could make the same boast.

Group one went back to the Lower 9th and continued on their two story house and by four pm the house was complete. Sam Elvin spoke of being moved when she came across a bible that had been 'dried open' after so many months and the passage she was able to read was "The Lord is my sheperd there is nothing I shall want." Matt D'sousa, an ND grad from 2005, working with the same group went out to the spot where the life jacket hung and as he stood there it began to rain. Shortly thereafter the rain stopped and the sun came out. Matt spoke to us saying he interpreted that this was a sign that someone was looking down and saying thank you for the work that was brightening up that house's existence!!

Group four, now dubbing themselves the "Homewreckers", after explaining that they had initially believed they would finish today, told us that they were introduced to an 'attic' in the house and that would have to be gutted as well. They told the tale of how they emptied the waterbed with no water available in the house to assist. They found a hose--how long had that been siiting out there---and Coach Gorringe decided he would assist by suctioning to get the flow going. He wasn't sure what had been less pleasant-the water or the gas in the old days!!!
They couldn't siphon so they cut the bladder and began to empty using pots and pans..

Group three--Team Extreme--completed the work on their first house and were then delivered to the Lower Ninth. Gutting began on a house and in only five hours the house was empty of its contents and much of the walls and ceilings have been removed. Ms. Marrin is doing her best to help Damon become less fearful of 'roaches'...he's not quite there yet.

Group two also began work in the Lower Ninth--right next door to a levee. Wall to wall furnishings and possessions had to come out. But again with the zeal that has become the trademark of all the groups, #2 came within an hour of having the house fully gutted and ready for the rebuilding work--after only xix hours!! The flooring at the back of this house is very weak, in contrast to the rest of the house which by the way is more than 200 years old. At the back is the laundry room and the washroom, which used to be the outhouse and simply affixed over time to the main structure. When we remove the bathtub tomorrow we will probably be looking at the ground below.

With so many of us now working in the Lower Ninth we are getting a real look at the breadth od destruction. Almost evry house on some blocks are destroyed. Though a few have been restored and in some cases the residence back, there are many, many more to go! But we've done the math; if we continue at our curent pace we may get 9 to 12 house fully gutted by the time we stop work on Thursday.

All your yung'uns are great. We have had a word with a couple of them but nothing for you to be alerted to and nothing that might even lend to them becoming better and more mature young men and women. Several students are being interviewed for the documentary that is being filmed. Their dining is somewhat varied...some opt for the simple Subways or McDonalds while others explore the options given to them by the adults. Subway looks after us each morning with breakfast and the price is quite good.

Our reflection time has been sensitive and entertaining. These young people continue to get to know a little bit more about each other and I would think they will continue to converse when back at school next week.

That's it for tonight. Another set of adventures tomorrow. God bless.
I'm going to try to include some pictures here.