louisiana, mississippi: you're in our thoughts & prayers

thinking about:

- the tens of thousands who will have no homes for weeks and months.
- how they will have to tear down about half of the buildings in new orleans; just clear cut and start over.
- the fact that our water main is broken at work and what a small inconvenience that now seems.
- people trapped in attics that never made it through the roof as the water kept rising.
- wanting to help out, but feeling so cynical that you're not sure which relief agency will do something good with your money.
- the variety of ways people I know & weblogs I read are affected, thousands of miles from the epicenter: a diehard cynic feeling compassion, one who used to live there and has friends there, a friend whose colleagues are cut off from their research, and another who works for a company that insures refineries.
- the hope, compassion, and love that rises up in people during times of trouble.