zoom in edit remove FE & PS Hi all... Certainly not wanting or trying to beat a dead horse, but as many of you undoubtedly know, this day marks the 2nd anniversary of Hurricane Katrina's wrath on my city, my home, the people of my birthplace...(hence the placement in the *historical* category, yes?) I am rebuilding life...and doing okay...yet so many days, I simply wish I could hit some magical rewind button...and waltz back into my old life, in my old house, in the place that I know like no other place on earth. Ahhh, but not possible. So, here's to picking oneself up by the bootstraps...and doing what has to be done, sans sniveling. Still, I miss it in some deep and aching sense. And today was harder than I imagined it would be...with so much time now having passed between then and now. But, healing takes awhile sometimes. And anger, when justifiable, is sometimes a healthy and damned righteous thing. Mine lies in the fact that my country can come to the *aid* of others literally across the globe in a day...but became paralyzed in complete and total inaction with this event...while third world conditions visited my city....people with no potable water to drink...babies and the elderly dying from exposure in sweltering 95 degree heat while trapped on bridge overpasses. I could live another hundred years...and NEVER will I come to a place of forgiveness for that...nor do I wish to. I've got one word for it...(actually I've got a whole lot of them...but most involve four letters)...INEXCUSABLE. Okay, okay, I won't bore you to tears on a political or personal rant, honest..That's certainly not my intent. So, enough... New Orleans has long since been referred to by a great many names, La Nouvelle-Orleans, the "Crescent City", and even since long, long before its ravage, "The City That Care Forgot"...the latter of which couldn't be more accurate now. So, it is with a heavy heart and more than a little angst, but greater than all else, sweet and cherished memories...and yes, pride.....that I give to you this particular image. The water is self-explanatory. The colors, however, are representative and meaningful. The official colors of the city's great Mardi Gras celebration being purple, green, and gold. And these are symbolic for us native folk. Purple represents loyalty, green represents faith, and gold represents power. Wishes to each of you for a smooth remainder of the week. Work is still in demand mode for me, so my apologies for yet again lagging behind in my comments. In the meantime, my heartfelt thanks are yours...for your beautiful comments on things that have come before. What great company I keep amongst so many incredibly talented people that I am proud, and blessed, to now call *friends* via here. Thoughts and hugs, Nancy~*