Gnats: The Newest Craze!

Or, I should say, the newest thing to DRIVE ME CRAZY!!! Yes, gnats do bite, and they swarm, and they make big, red itchy welts that are only dried by by ammonia, and the only thing that even begins to ward them off is not deet, is not bug spray or Skin So Soft ... it's vanilla scented body spray. The pharmacist this morning confirmed this, which had been previously a rumor. Now we all smell like warm vanilla fantasy. Well, I suppose it could be worse. For the women.

I smell like Nicole Witkov!! :)

Anyway, the jobs continue to be both challenging and rewarding. Today, we hung sheetrock and insulation in a house that Disaster Corps had previously gutted, cleaned, and re-wired for electricity. All agreed on how niced it was to be there fopr a house that turned the corner from mucky to something that is approaching a live-able status.

We have been doing lots of jobs recently in the nearby town of Pearlington, MS (for those who know the area, it's just over the Pearl River from Slidell, LA). It's a very small town of only about 700 people, and there is both a need and lack of help there.

Both there and in BSL and neighboring Waveland, MS, we've been transitioning out of the gutting business and in to two other areas: salvaging wood and supplies for Disaster Corps: acquiring sheetrock and insulation. So, another longer-term volunteer and I have been asked to spend a few days a week soliciting material donations from both larger corporations and smaller, somewhat local businesses (not too local, obviously, but in unaffected-yet-close places like Baton Rouge and Mobile). So!! If any of you know any business willingot donate this, or know anyone who woulod be willignto buy some of this for the organization ... CALL ME!! Or email me, or contact ANYONE listed on the DC website (listed in the right-hand column of this blog) and we'll chatr details. Remember, Disaster Corps is a 501 (c) (3) organization and your donation is tax-deductible :).

Here is what we need:

Sheetrock (Any kind will do)
Insulation (Again, any kind and any color is A-OK)
Respiraitor masks (both for insulation and for mold)
Any kind of food - we are expanding apparently. We do have a fridge, so any kind of bulk-type food is perfect.
Lots of freaking Warm Vanilla Fantasy Spray

So, that's the work for now. It's in transition in the moment - both nerve racking and quite exciting.

OK, a quick word about the make-up of camp before my dinner gets cold:

Right now there are 11 volunteers.

4 are here for a week from South Jersey nand actually know what they're doing.
2 are here for 2 (maybe 3, if we're lucky) weeks, and are a retired couple from SF. He's a liscensed electrician.
1 is here long-term, and is retired from Oregon
Another is here long-term, is a trained chef, and that's all the info I'm at liberty to disclose
1 is here for at least 3 months, is from Kentucky, and lives about 20 minutes from the Viacord lab
There's the Disaster Corps coordinator on the groud, who's here for the long haul
And then there's me: a chesty southern Jew from Boston who is finding usage of sledge hammers more and more appealing.

2 just left thiws week:
A kid from Oregon who ahd been here for months after biking from Washington State to Guatemela after quitting his job of being IT at a law firm
And Dan the Man, aka Gobo, aka Pants, aka Class Act ... who became known around here only as "Slim."

We all live on cots in tents, which is comfortable enough considering it keeps the bugs out. We have working toiltes, sinks and showers (Emily: things have WAY improved since the days of Kibbutz!!!! There are actual shower heads!). We have a wokring kitchen, including a shared fridge and a newly acquired (read: donated) oven and range. We have wireless internet (for a 10 foot radius), And we have at least obe outlet in eazch tent. We have a burn barrell that we all sit around at night. We have a bar up the road that hass catfish poboys, Abita Amber, darts and pool. All in all, we have all the makikngs of a wonderful (temporary) home.

Well, we have everything save a friggin' bug spray that works.

OK kids, I think my dinner is officially cold, so I am going to wrap this thing up. Give me a call sometime! I have lots of cell phone minutes to spare this month :)

Goodnight!


Cori :)