I dropped Jack at the Mobile bus station early yesterday morning so he could catch a bus back to Baton Rouge, and Kent and I started driving east. Our plan had been to stay in Atlanta for a couple of days and then head on to Virginia, but we had a glitch in our Atlanta plans, and I was making such good time from having left so early, that I decided to go for broke and drive all the way to Blacksburg in a day. It was only slightly crazy. I felt the strong desire to be in one place for a few days where I could get my bearings and not feel like I was imposing on anyone, and Kent's grandparents *have* to take him, so here we are. We got in around 9:30 last night, and those last couple of hours of driving were pretty rough, between my fatigue, the darkness, and the windy mountain roads. I practically fell into Ron when I got out of the car, and after getting Kent to bed, I went right to sleep, myself. He had slept the last few hours in the car, so at least he didn't lose much sleep on our crazy road trip. He actually did a lot better than I would have thought, so it wasn't as hard as I had imagined that morning when I thought, "Can I really drive 12 hours in one day? With Kent??"

Ron likes to do Iron Butt rides on his motorcycle, 1000 miles in 24 hours, and they even give out pins and certificates and stuff if you have gas receipts and get people to sign that they witnessed you in each place. I decided yesterday that they should have a Toddler Component to the Iron Butt ride. That'd really be a test of will. I didn't quite make 1000 miles yesterday; according to Google Maps, it was 752. It felt like 1000.

Jack, on the other hand, made it back to Baton Rouge safely, and after being sent home from work because they didn't have anything for him to do, he went home and cleaned up the yard. The rest of the day he spent studying, playing with the cats, and sweating, and then just as he was about to go to bed last night, the power came back on. I remember very well the feeling of sheer elation that washes over a person when that happens. I always thought I was hallucinating when the fans started turning again, the few times that we've lost power for extended periods in the summer. He was going to invite friends to stay at our house, so I think he's calling around town and seeing if anyone needs a cool house, or at least a cool refrigerator.

So we're apart for now. Even though our house is livable, the city really isn't because of long gas lines and few grocery stores being open. I'm planning to stay here in VA for a few days, then head to Winston-Salem for a couple of days early next week to visit my grandmother and other friends in town. I'd guess that Kent and I will be back at home within a week, but since Jack is in Baton Rouge and will be able to assess the situation, I'll let him decide when it's a good idea for us to come back. I miss him and our home already, but I'd rather not be in a chaotic city where people are scrambling for resources.

It's still just so unreal. I can't believe the storm hit only 4 days ago. It feels like eons. I feel like I've lost all sense of centeredness, like I'm just sort of floating, homeless. It's good to be with family in a comfortable house while I try to get that centeredness back.

Labels: hurricanes, Louisiana, travel

• posted by erica 9/05/2008 10:14:00 AM
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