Day 17, 10.04.08

RePorting from La Porte:

Today, Barry from AT&T so generously surprised us with a breakfast of kolaches, a regional dish. Fillings can range from sweet to savory, but in this particular instance, soft dinner rolls are stuffed with sausages and cheese. I would say they are like as if pasties and corn dogs had babies. Cobi is absolutely in love with them and wishes that they would catch on in Portland. As she was eating, I am sure she was imagining the excuses she would have to give to TSA agents when they open her kolache-lined carry-on bags.

We set up shop today next to Shore Acres City Hall. We were joined by the Red Cross and a United Service Organizations (USO) truck. Both nonprofits were distributing hot meals and supplies. The morale-boosting USO RV ("mobile canteen") was decked out with large screen TVs and video game stations. The trickiest part of the situation is getting the word out; there are so many well-meaning organizations scattered about but it is hard to broadcast this resource location information to the residents.

We began our morning by helping a mother and daughter, who came to check on their FEMA forms and to submit an United States Small Business Association (SBA) loan form. The mother was 80 years old, but in better health than her daughter. The daughter had suffered a stroke, which resulted in her becoming nearly blind and losing the ability to read. The daughter had been living independently in her own home wherein everything had been custom built and designed to accommodate her needs. After Hurricane Ike, the insurance company short-shrifted her. Although she had been paying extremely high premiums, they refused to pay more than an assessed value well below what the home and possessions are really worth. To add insult to injury, the insurance company called a demolishing company (without notifying her) before she could rescue her possessions. As she was telling the story, she was crying the whole time. However, she wanted to impart upon us the positive changes in her life that were precipitated by Hurricane Ike. At present, this is the first time in 40 years she is living with her mom. Her mom is determined to encourage her to take better care of her health. Mother and daughter are learning to reconnect.

We offered them some kolaches. At first the mother politely declined, until the daughter gently nudged her to take one. They bit into them and smiled, at each other and at us.



Miscellaneous:

1) We have been using AirCards to connect the laptops to the Internet. The Internet connection is spotty out here, between one and three bars, more often the former.
2) The only KOA campsite (where we can service and recharge our vehicle) is 48 miles away near Houston. It is approximately one hour each way. We have to go to the KOA every 2-3 days. The owner of the KOA seemed proud that his was the only location where RVs could possibly go to get these services in this part of Texas.
3) En route to the KOA, we saw a dog running on the freeway. We stopped and the car in front of us took him in. The dog had a collar, so they are hoping to return him to his owners.
4) We'll miss you Zeninjor, have a safe trip home.
5) Stay tuned, more videos to come.