Home again...

It's been just over a week since I came home...Three and a half weeks, three motels (the last the Doubletree at the Berkeley Marina where the air smelled of edgy ocean and rosemary), countless meals out, disjointed days, disorientation, discombobulated...Yes, a month to the day since the problem started.

Coincidentally, in many cases, FEMA funding for Katrina victims to stay in hotels/motels ran out this week. People could apply for extensions, but not all were reached in time. I heard a story about a conversation between a Katrina hotel-dweller and a non-Katrina person. The non-Katrina comment was: "It must be nice to stay in a hotel!" The Katrina response was: "I just want to go home!"

After the last month, I can believe it...

Neighbors and people at work have been understanding and compassionate. This situation has triggered many conversations about capriciousness, loss, change, and how thin the line is between our "normal" days and chaos.

My New Year starts with the Chinese New Year on January 29, the Year of the Dog. I've lost a month, so that's a good time to begin.

So now I've got an 11-month year, when there are days and weeks where I want 28 hours or 8 days! And this is worth some reflection, maybe to a Marsalis brothers' tunes. How about some Diana Krall?

Patched floor, dried and clean carpet. French drains? We'll see what the plan is for my building and the two buildings in the complex that are south of it. We don't want more cracks or displacement.

Home again...