Friday 9/5 4 PM
I can’t seem to focus today long enough to complete a task. We have used obscene amounts of generator time and gas trying to get the tractor started to no avail. Since we were on generator power I did a bunch of web surfing looking for info on various things, getting insurance claim filed (the roof is a bit worse than we thought) so we can get an adjustor out here next week. I started picking up branches and stuff with my yellow cart but filled it in 5 minutes and have no idea where to take it until we get the way to the back cleared with the tractor. Then the kitties climbed in the cart & acted all cute so I just parked it by the house for them. Next I started raking debris from the small hill the house sits on, reasoning that since the porch was clean I’d just work my way outward in concentric circles. In the first circles I discovered several large new fire ant hills—they must have relocated after the storm. So I went to look for fire ant killer but found none, and got distracted doing that when the neighbor came by for something, and just never got back to it, because the phone rang—and so on.
Entergy came by a couple of hours ago and deemed us “able to accept”—yay! They are working down the road. They said no promises, but they think they will have us back up tonight. I’m happier than I can say, esp that they were here in person because since we are at the end of the line I often think various utilities & services forget we are here. Trash and recycling has been a problem ever since we’ve moved here; we have had epic battles with the phone company, and cable won’t run service out here unless we pay for ½ mile of cable, poles, and labor. JP Getty we are not.
TRACTOR JUST STARTED. I am going out to witness firsthand the first huge branches getting cleared.
Of course we have hardly any gas & have squandered a lot today, and I think we are both so invested in Entergy making good on its word and sick unto death of gas hunting and lines that we don’t care especially.
6 PM No power yet. I realize more & more by the minute how much I am counting on getting it tonight. If we go to bed without it I will be pretty darn disappointed.
Gary is still tractoring. I went out to help tie branches off & cart smaller stuff away but had to stop due to yet another plague visiting us: some kind of horse or deer fly that just grabs on and bites hard. It does not seem deterred by Off nor the hippie dog flea patchouli stuff. There is also a bright red wasp I have not seen before. Don’t know if it stings or not but not willing at present to find out. I beat a retreat to shower the layers of sweat, off, hippie flea stuff, leaf bits, etc off me & then assessed all my bite damage. Upwards of 40 combined, mostly mosquito from sitting on the porch the other night plus I think last night since I kicked the sheet off in my sleep. Am trying not to scratch. Benadryl, calamine lotion, antibiotic cream. The horse flies or whatever they are hurt when they latch onto you but don’t seem to leave anything behind that itches, thank goodness. No more outside work for me today, and no matter how hot from now on long sleeves & pants while outside. I hate that.
I have a great many things to add to The Hill List (name of neighbor’s grandchild who lies awake at night wondering what certain things exist for): deer or horse flies, mosquitoes, fire ants, fleas, hurricanes.
I am going to organize a movie tomorrow or Sunday in our Studio on campus with the big screen & surround sound. I have heard the power is back on and there are a lot of our students & faculty around who could use 2 hours’ diversion in a cool room. Some of our faculty are going to be living in their offices since no power at home, and LSU is standing tough: classes begin again Monday. On the whole I think most of us feel that is premature (the traffic lights aren’t even working as of now, for goodness sake, and many of our students are needed at home or still evacuated elsewhere, and how will the ones who commute get there with no gas? The shelters at LSU are still full of evac patients. I mean, just because the power is back on in the classrooms doesn’t mean this will work out!). I will shut up and try to be a good citizen and employee. But at least I can try to organize one thing to make people (self included) feel better.
7 PM almost--back on generator--not my call, but we run out of gas pretty soon.
Gary insisting on cooking the iffy sausage from the freezer. We argue. He says well it is frozen almost solid. I say, yeah, but it wasn't yesterday, that's only because we've been on a generator splurge. I show him info in the medical guide that says food frozen, thawed, refrozen, is not safe. He won't listen. no matter what I say. Well fine, I suppose I will have to take him to an ER later. Me, I am sticking with Campbell's soup. Besides we had a call from the insurance company and among other things they asked what the value of the food in our frig that was lost was. So I've already claimed it.
The bright red wasp turns out to be something horrendous called a "cow killer." Mutillidae, sometimes known as velvet ant, since female has no wings.
Add to Hill list: cow killers; stubborn husbands.
