Change is in the Air

Thursday, October 27, 2005

I write this post from my hotel room in Tampa, Florida. I just performed "Ghost Stories by the Fireside" at the University of South Florida (thank you, Diane Ladley!). It was a fabulous event and I had a terrific time with the students. Antonio drove in to be with the girls while I am away.

The weather in Houston has cooled and with the Autumn winds come change. The girls and I have settled into permanent housing. We live in a three bedroom duplex in Stafford, located in south west Houston. Our 1200 square foot duplex is just perfect for us. It’s nice to have a space of our own and I have tried hard to make the girls feel like they are at “home.” My brother and his four kids live around the corner in the same complex and we help each other out. I am so glad that we are done building furniture! Woohoo!

We still have some cleaning up to do at Auntie Erlie's house. For the most part, I have retrieved all of our belongings from her house. My mom, my brother and I plan on doing a top to bottom clean-up so that when she returns home from the Philippines, her house will be dazzling.

I decided to transfer Eliana the school around the corner from our new house. It was a tough decision because it is her third school in two months. But logistically, it will be easier for my brother and I. My brother has also enrolled his two oldest children in the same school. Her teacher and classmates from her old school gave her a wonderful going away party, which made Eliana feel so special. I will truly miss her old school. They were so good to us. Eliana has only been at her new school for a few days but has adjusted quite nicely. She’s already singing new songs and bringing home beautiful artwork.

Soleil received her first quarter grades. She did very well considering everything she has been through. She has mostly As, one B, and one C in Algebra 2. Algebra 2 was a difficult transition because her new school was in a different place than her old school. She's not accustomed to having anything other than As and she was quite upset. I explained to her that her grades are not a reflection of her ability but rather evidence of the hardship she has been through. I know that once she fully adjusts to the new curriculum, her teachers, and her new school, she will have an easier time.

My husband, Antonio, has returned to New Orleans to rebuild with his job at Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center and repair our home. He had his tetanus shot so he can work downtown. All of his employees have been furloughed so he is a one-man department. LSUHSC plans to open the nursing school at the first of the year. Antonio has so much work to do to in order to be ready for that. As director of parking, he has to have a new office operational by that time, new gates installed, and new parking tags ready to disperse to returning students, doctors, and personnel. It's a tall order but he's working frantically to get it done.

Mom drives back and forth between Dallas, Houston and New Orleans every weekend. Last week, she returned home to retrieve important documents from work and take care of business related to the house. FEMA declared her house unliveable due to the mold and told her and Clay that it was a health hazard to live there. Repairs to the house will be very costly.

I performed “Scared Silly” programs in Lafayette on October 22 so I decided to drive the two and half hours and return home for the first time this past weekend. It was an emotional return. As soon as I began driving into the city, I began crying. There is so much devastation and this is after several weeks of clean-up. There are “Help Wanted” signs and “We Are Open” signs littering areas that are coming back to life: Metairie, Uptown New Orleans, and the West Bank. Businesses want to reopen but cannot because they have no employees. The Burger King in my neighborhood is offering a $6000 signing bonus!

Duck-taped refrigerators line the curbs in neighborhoods that are revitalizing and the stench of garbage is permeable. Water lines on the outside of the buildings mark the flood levels. As soon as I entered our house, I was struck by the smell of the mold and began having an asthma attack. There is no way I could live there. FEMA blue-roofed our house and our insurance adjustor is coming next month to do a walk-through.

In spite of everything that has happened, we are doing okay. We are picking up the pieces and moving on. Thanks to the generosity of family, friends, and professional colleagues, my business is picking up. I am finding gigs in the Houston area and scheduling tours. My new contact information is:

Dianne de Las Casas
747 Stafford Springs Avenue
Stafford, TX 77477
281-499-3101
dianne@storyconnection.net
http://www.storyconnection.net

Eliana insisted on decorating for Halloween so we have a huge Halloween banner on the front door. A glowing Jack-O-Lantern greets us inside the house. Eliana wants to be Wonder Woman for Halloween and I look forward to going trick-or-treating with Eliana and my brother’s four children. I'm usually working on Halloween telling spooky stories so it will be nice to be able to be with the kids this year.

Life is beginning to look "normal" for us. Having a space of our own really helps. The holidays are around the corner and I am glad that we will have a home to celebrate in. We are truly blessed.

Until next time...