Dulac truly is a whole other world. I really cannot get over how widespread the devastation is here. It’s not just the houses. Debris is piled everywhere. Huge trees have been uprooted. Boats are demolished or beached and overgrown. The first day here I saw someone’s trampoline up in a tree.

The sights are just overwhelming and seems completely unreal. I’ve never seen anything like this before. the pictures and articles and video of hurricane damage does not even compare to how overwhelming and frustrating actually witnessing this is. I really don’t know how to describe it and get my point across. It’s just completely unreal.

 On a more positive note, last night we went to the Jolly Inn for dinner. I would like to start off by saying that we were there for three hours. It was just so much fun. The first hour was spent eating and getting to know some of the locals. The second hour was spent socializing and eating some of Allie “Gator”‘s birthday cake (he also made all of us honorary Cajuns which was pretty awesome). The last hour we learned several Cajun dances like the Cajun stomp and the Darrel and danced to the live music. It was great to be immersed in part of the culture and really get to know some of the people who live here and continuously thank us for our efforts.

Working in Dulac I feel has been more rewarding to me than in New Orleaans. It’s kind of funny that I’m pretty much doing the same type of thing here as in NO but the environment and the people I’ve encountered have made all the difference. At Mr. Ashley’s house in NO I worked on installing the baseboard and trim in all the rooms in his house. Here in Ms. Barbara’s house, I’m doing the same. There are several differences I’ve noted. First off, I feel more like I know what I’m doing. I don’t always feel as if I have to check in with Paul to make sure I’m making the right cut. And I sound like I know what I’m talking about.
Secondly, actually knowing what we’re doing has moved things along quickly. Not having to stand around waiting for instruction or having to move stuff around or trying desperately get organized in a disorganized situation has allowed us to get a good amount of work done. So I really feel like we’re making a difference.
Thirdly, having Ms. Barbara around all the time really makes a difference. Although we got to meet Mr. Ashley, he was never really around for long. Ms. Barbara stays all day and talks to us, slips us snacks, and lets us watch The Price is Right with her when we take a break. She has told us so much about her children and grandchildren and today we got to meet a few of them. The impact her presence provides is irreplacable. Today we finished her living room. We 100% finished it and I heard Ms. Barbara say “it’s really starting to look like a house again” and it became very clear how much she appreciates our hard work (and trust me, we work hard). I really hope that we can finish her kitchen and make a dent in finishing other parts of the house before we leave.