Downtown Gulfport

Gulfport, Mississippi

I spent Friday and most of Saturday with my daughter Peggy who lives in Gulfport. As promised, I took pictures around the area. My mind, as we drove around a city that was my home for a number of years, was filled with flashbacks of happy times spent there. Many of the downtown buildings are there ... some restored, some still damaged. The beach is very barren, very few homes have returned. Some are under construction amidst a jumble of weeds and remnants of debris. The trees that once lined the beach gave relief from the hot summer sun to the homes nestled under their branches. So many trees are gone, leaving a barren look. One bright spot, palm trees have been planted in the median along Hwy. 90. There are no words that I can use to describe what I saw today. Some of the pictures are uplifting, many are not. Still we go forward .. inch by inch!

VA Hospital

Gulfport, Mississippi (Continued)

Eleven�dead in Texas floods; more rain expected - CNN.com

Eleven�dead in Texas floods; more rain expected - CNN.com: "'This is the worst I've ever seen it in my lifetime,' said Mayor Raymond Whitman, 47, who has lived in Marble Falls his entire life."

SunHerald.com : Slow recovery a surprise to insurance giant Lloyd's

SunHerald.com : Slow recovery a surprise to insurance giant Lloyd's: "PASS CHRISTIAN --
The recovery's slow pace surprised Lloyd's of London insurance broker Frank Murphy and other insurance executives who toured the Coast Wednesday with two members of the state's wind pool board."

WLOX-TV - The News for South Mississippi: Local Fishermen Start Cleaning Biloxi Bay

WLOX-TV - The News for South Mississippi: Local Fishermen Start Cleaning Biloxi Bay: "Local fishermen have started the process of ridding Biloxi Bay of tens of thousands of cubic yards of debris left behind by Hurricane Katrina. Monday was the first day of a 120 day marine cleanup that also includes St. Martin and Davis Bayous."

Feds: No answers yet on FEMA funding crisis

Feds: No answers yet on FEMA funding crisis: "Last week FEMA announced it has revised its policy on funding government buildings in a memo received June 18.
The memo sent shock-waves through local government entities and even irritated Governor Haley Barbour so much he blasted the agency in published reports."

Why are they surprised, I'm not.

WLOX-TV - The News for South Mississippi: Chertoff Says, "We Have To Prepare For The Worst"

WLOX-TV - The News for South Mississippi: Chertoff Says, "We Have To Prepare For The Worst": "On a trip to Biloxi Wednesday, the Secretary of Homeland Security said his agency was better equipped to handle Mississippi's next natural disaster. But Michael Chertoff also said FEMA could only do its job if you do yours."

Maybe I am in a bad mood tonight but this article really angers me. We were prepared for the hurricane as we are for all hurricanes. We were not prepared for Katrina. We had all the water and food we needed that would have gone way beyond 72 hours as did all the other people. Common sense would tell you that the surge contaminated all we had and sadly, for so many others, the food and water went with their homes. Also why all the certainty that Mississippi will have another disaster? All hurricanes are not disasters.

WLOX-TV - The News for South Mississippi: Pascagoula Schools Superintendent Vows To Fight Funding Bill

WLOX-TV - The News for South Mississippi: Pascagoula Schools Superintendent Vows To Fight Funding Bill: "'It's an unconstitutional act. We're being disproportionately impacted by a law that's been set specifically targeting this school district.'"

WLOX-TV - The News for South Mississippi: Murder-Suicide Investigation Involving Vancleave Couple

WLOX-TV - The News for South Mississippi: Murder-Suicide Investigation Involving Vancleave Couple: "Besides an occasional dog barking and children playing, it's a quiet day on Southern Pine Street in Vancleave. But sometime after 9:00 Monday night, inside a small trailer, something horrible happened."

Sorry folks that I haven't been here much lately. I am bored not having anything new to talk about. A lot of time has passed and there have been no "big" changes in Pascagoula. There are small businesses that have not reopened. The homes that are being rebuilt are mostly on Beach Blvd. and Washington Avenue. The homes on east beach were not completely destroyed and they came back rather quickly. West beach was wiped out and it is taking longer. A great swath of Washington Avenue was destroyed and there is much to do but they are showing progress. Out of this great tragedy that befell us, I have been witness to the goodness of people. For instance, today I kept an appointment with a dentist that I had called because I had lost a filling in one of my teeth. Since I personally didn't know any I looked in the directory. The first I called said he was booked. The next never answered the message I left. When I arrived for my appointment, I was shocked when I entered the small building ... it was storm damaged. He told me as he worked on my tooth that he had been practicing for 30 yrs. It was a painless procedure. He certainly knew his profession. Afterwards, we chatted for awhile and I told him that my late husband had worked for doctors and dentists. I took my checkbook from my purse and said, "How much do I owe you"? He said, "Thirty five dollars." I said, "Doctor that isn't enough ... I am going to pay you more". As I was writing the check he very softly said, "So many people are having a tough time and I am trying to help. " Now that is kindness, isn't it? Fema has been reneging on promises made. I want to tell as many people that I can in case you are ever faced with anything like happened to us. They say all kinds of grand things that never materialize. We have been getting a lot of rain. Usually, I complain about the heat and lack of rain killing the plants but now too much rain will kill them.

Clarksdale Press Register

Clarksdale Press Register: "The enormous impact from Hurricane Katrina should leave Mississippians wondering if they should live 'in harm's way,' State Insurance Commissioner George Dale told Clarksdale Noon Lions Friday.
Dale said Katrina, 'the worst natural disaster in U.S. history,' not only devastated the Gulf Coast and a vast number of other Mississippi communities, but put an undue burden on insurance companies."

FEMA may not fund new school

FEMA may not fund new school: "A FEMA memo which 'revised' the definition of funding guidelines for government projects is causing major concerns this week for several local entities--most of all the Hancock County School Board.
The memo--which was received by MEMA on June 18-- states that FEMA will not help fund any new construction in areas which are considered 'Coastal High Hazard Areas.'"

SunHerald.com : FEMA tries bombing Coast rebuilding work

SunHerald.com : FEMA tries bombing Coast rebuilding work: "It seems at a meeting with Barbour last week, FEMA in effect said, 'oh, by the way, we're not going to pay to rebuild any public buildings inside the 'velocity' flood zone.'"


I have mentioned my opinions while living in the aftermath of Katrina that all the delays in rebuilding the Coast has been intentional to move us out regardless of our circumstances or preferences.

I think that I will write down everything that crosses my mind today. Ought to be interesting huh? Many months ago, I mentioned the lack of humidity in our area, is it like the lake in Chili that disappeared in two months time? I thought about the day that Katrina made landfall and the strange rumbling we heard. I remembered that we had jackets on as we stood on the front porch because it was cold. Most prevalent is the fact that as the raging water came barreling down the street, we were not blown off the porch. I have wondered why the "sonic booms" have stopped, do jets not break the sound barrier anymore? We never get concrete answers .. it's always blamed on global warming.

What do you eat, what toothpaste do you use? Do you eat peanut butter anymore? I don't! It's frightening when "Peter Pan" is not on the grocer's shelves. I read it should be back in July but to me once tainted always tainted. We are to avoid the non brand toothpaste which would be easy but there seems to be no assurance when a brand name like Peter Pan was not safe. My daughter has no idea what to feed her two well cared for dogs anymore. So much of the pet food was tampered with. Funny ... I read an article the other day that said don't feed your dog grapes as it may kill them. So many things seem like nonsense. Manufactured pet foods were responsible for killing numerous pets .. not grapes. By the way, we had german shepherds for many years and not one of them would have eaten a grape if offered.

Crime seems to be on the upswing again .. a convenience store owner was killed yesterday in Biloxi and this morning a Moss Point man was shot and killed in D'Iberville by his estranged wife. People are exhibiting strange behavior. For the past two nights firecrackers are being shot at late hours in the area I live in.

The cities are rebuilding as slowly as the citizens. The casinos are the exception as are condos. Somehow, to me, it all seems wrong when people are still not housed properly. Wouldn't you think that with all the "big money" they put out, to get even more money, some of it could have trickled down to apartment complexes for the ordinary people? Why not be altruistic?

The picture below is of my niece's house on Washington Avenue.

WLOX-TV - The News for South Mississippi: Emeril's Gulf Coast Fish House Makes Its Debut On The Coast

WLOX-TV - The News for South Mississippi: Emeril's Gulf Coast Fish House Makes Its Debut On The Coast: "Emeril Lagasse says he never really thought work would bring him to the coast.

'I never dreamed of doing a restaurant on the Gulf Coast, because I come here to relax. I don't come here to work,' says Lagasse."

WLOX-TV - The News for South Mississippi: South Mississippi Ready To Send Relief To Charleston

WLOX-TV - The News for South Mississippi: South Mississippi Ready To Send Relief To Charleston: "'We can't say enough about all the help that we got,' Gulfport fire chief Pat Sullivan said. 'And it's time to pay back.'"

WLOX-TV - The News for South Mississippi: Volunteer Carpenters From North Carolina Return To Build A Church In One Week

WLOX-TV - The News for South Mississippi: Volunteer Carpenters From North Carolina Return To Build A Church In One Week: "Giveans was just a boy when fire claimed the original Pearlington United Methodist Church in 1930, and he was there when Katrina claimed the second one in 2005. So not rebuilding was never an option for him."

Why does it seem that when catastrophe strikes that terrible tragedies seem to continue. There are numerous people who had rebuilt their homes only to have them destroyed again by fire. It has been a short time since the entire Coast was rejoicing when two lanes of the Bay St. Louis bridge opened to traffic. Yesterday nine construction workers fell from scaffolding when a pillar collapsed and plunged them into the Bay. Eight of them were rescued and taken to the hospital where one of them died from injuries. Today the body of the ninth victim was recovered. The memory that two people lost their lives building the bridge will remain with all who live here.

The next two pictures are not very pretty .. just a pile of rubble now.. the old Pascagoula post office. Whatever is built, will certainly be nicer than the Fema trailer.


There are many things taking place all along the Coast. None of it is fast but still we are inching our way to recovery. We will overcome. Katrina was said to be unprecedented, shouldn't have happened. Well folks, we have a lot of "shouldn't have happened" in our world today. The Attorney General of Mississippi has filed a lawsuit against the Governor of Mississippi and the NAACP is threatening to sue the city of Biloxi for not having a proportionate number of blacks in a particular school. I see both of these issues as a "ploy".

I didn't take many pictures today but I did get one of new construction.

WLOX-TV - The News for South Mississippi: Divers Find Body Of Missing Construction Worker

WLOX-TV - The News for South Mississippi: Divers Find Body Of Missing Construction Worker: "About 26 hours after construction accident at the Bay St. Louis Bridge, crews recovered the body of a missing worker. The man, who has not been identified, was one of nine workers thrown into the bay when scaffolding collapsed. Thursday, one of those rescued also died."

WLOX-TV - The News for South Mississippi: OSHA Fined Archer Western For Similar Accident In 2002

WLOX-TV - The News for South Mississippi: OSHA Fined Archer Western For Similar Accident In 2002: "The contractor building the bridge is a partnership between two large construction companies. Granite and Archer Western are two separate firms that joined forces to build the multi million dollar bridge."

The Search Continues For Missing Construction Worker
Less than a month after the Coast celebrated the opening of the Bay Bridge, that scene of celebration is now the site of tragedy. One construction worker died, and another remains missing after a concrete column holding some scaffolding gave way on the unfinished side of the bridge Thursday. Krystal Allan talked to some young witnesses who saw the accident as it happened.

One Dead, One Missing In Bay Bridge Accident
One worker has died, and the search is still on for another worker after an accident at the Bay St. Louis Bridge Thursday afternoon. Divers are searching the underwater debris for the last victim. Just before 1pm, nine workers fell into the water after a column form collapsed during a concrete pour. Eight of the men were pulled from the water. One man died at the hospital, but the other seven are in stable condition.

Mississippi Squirrel Revival - Ray Stevens

I haven't been blogging much lately, not because I don't have anything to say, because I don't dare to say the things I want to. Will I be banned from blogging if I speak about the State or Federal government? Can I say that all the aide that has been given to us has become a hindrance to the ordinary citizen? Interest is focused on taking the opportunity to build what we didn't have instead of rebuilding (to code of course) what was there. The governor is asking the feds for an additional 150 million, with 75 million allotted, to upgrade the smaller cities away from the Coast solely on anticipation of further growth in their areas. I lived in those areas, we had our main residence there for 26 yrs. until I sold it in 2004. Would I go back? NO! The Coast is only 1 to 1 1/2 hrs. away from these very small towns and although Hattiesburg is near, it is a college town. The water and sewage system on the immediate coast has not been repaired, it seems to have shifted north of Internet 10. The Mississippi Cottage is not the Katrina Cottage that I have pictures of on my blog. I have seen one and they will be small "shotgun" houses on wheels. I can't see many people purchasing them after the 2 yr. deadline is reached. Well, I could go on and on with what I think but I will stop for today.

Personally, the small dead oak I had in the front yard was taken down this morning by the power company. The lawn service people I had hired earlier were suppose to take it down for $150.00 but here's the catch. I was told that I would have to pay the dump fee when they hauled it away. I asked how much that would be and the main guy said only $25.00 but they might have to make as many as a half dozen trips. So I said, "Okay, so it will cost me $300.00"? He said, "I can't say for sure because it might be more than that." I literally said, "Go away"!

Tear-Filled Memorial Honors Young Moss Point Soldier

Sergeant Terrance Smith never got a chance to meet his daughter Marshelle, now 18-months-old.

Sergeant Terrance Smith, a 25-year-old fallen soldier from Moss Point is remembered as a hard working, loveable and admirable young man. The National Guardsman was killed two years ago when a roadside bomb exploded near his vehicle outside of Baghdad. Monday, his family paused to remember the life of this young soldier. Keli Rabon has the story.

Pascagoula, Mississippi

Pascagoula, Mississippi