The Summer of Our Discontent

I really set out to write a post about the chaos at the Emerald City. Waddler B's lead teacher recently gave us twelve hours of notice that she was leaving. She's been gone for a while, much to the chagrin of the part-time people trying to fill in the gaps and the stressed-out director who obviously does not embrace the recruiting part of her job, bless her heart.

But then I came home and glanced at the news to see that New Orleans is currently underwater and people are living on bridges.

PEOPLE ARE LIVING ON BRIDGES.

I'll pause to let that settle out.  No, wait, it's not settling.

Oh, the tangled web we weave when we build cities dependent on levees.  I, for one, did not realize New Orleans was actually below sea level. I wonder how many of the residents of New Orleans knew this before Katrina showed them a thing or two about physics. 

It is so bizarre to me that my life is going on about its normal business, my primary concern today is staffing Waddler B and redesigning a software interface and oh, people are living on bridges.  And being bussed, kind of against their will, to Houston.  To another fucking football stadium.

Now, it's nobody's fault. Clearly, this is a natural disaster of extreme scale.  But wow - software interface design vs. finding sunscreen for your child while he fries standing on an air mattress in the hot sun for two days.  Daycare dilemmas vs. squalid bathroom facilities.

I heard FEMA is considering renting some cruise ships to give these people somewhere to go.

Julie:  "Hi, I'm Julie, your entertainment director.  Would you like to play shuffleboard?"

Stranded Masses:  "No, I'd like to know if Grandma is alive."

Is anyone else completely blown away by this?  How can MSN cover ANYTHING ELSE?