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Daze
It's been three days since Katrina hit. The Haze is beginning to set in.
The Haze is that overwhelmed, helpless, stunned feeling you get when the reality of a disaster begins to sink in. You may sit there and watch the endless newscasts with their endless videos of destruction and suffering, not really hearing what sound-bites the media are constructing (but listening still, perhaps far more than you know). You may be listening to the radio and hearing the reports, and your brain might be looking for something, anything to occupy itself than face the fact that something, somewhere, has gone seriously wrong. You may immerse yourself in your job or your family, your politics or your car. You may lash out at people around you because there's nowhere to place your burden; people are too busy avoiding the issue themselves to be a good shoulder. You may feel angry or helpless or confused and not know why. You may look at people trying to live thier lives like it never happened, and it might feel surreal and wrong. You may wish to just be honest about the fear and frustration and helplessness, but there's no one around to appreciate it.
This is where I am. I see people arguing about everything surrounding this disaster just to avoid focusing *on* the disaster. People are bitching about gas prices, gouging, Bush, FEMA, people who stayed to 'ride out the storm,' looters, the National Guard, the New Orleans city planners, politics, global warming, religion, proper response to grief, sympathy (or lack thereof)...whatever they can to take their minds off the fact that 100,000 people are stuck in a place that's turned into a sewage- and disease-filled wasteland. And the fact that there's very little the average citizen (meaning us) can do about it besides donate money and/or blood (just money if you're gay).
So, Cargo has a few words to say about it. I wish I could add something to the conversation, but the enormity of what's happening just sits heavy. I can't think straight. I have no idea what to say that would be meaningful or helpful. I don't even know what an appropriate response is. SHOULD we be angry? Anger isn't helping anyone survive down there. It's an awful feeling. I don't know.
The Haze is that overwhelmed, helpless, stunned feeling you get when the reality of a disaster begins to sink in. You may sit there and watch the endless newscasts with their endless videos of destruction and suffering, not really hearing what sound-bites the media are constructing (but listening still, perhaps far more than you know). You may be listening to the radio and hearing the reports, and your brain might be looking for something, anything to occupy itself than face the fact that something, somewhere, has gone seriously wrong. You may immerse yourself in your job or your family, your politics or your car. You may lash out at people around you because there's nowhere to place your burden; people are too busy avoiding the issue themselves to be a good shoulder. You may feel angry or helpless or confused and not know why. You may look at people trying to live thier lives like it never happened, and it might feel surreal and wrong. You may wish to just be honest about the fear and frustration and helplessness, but there's no one around to appreciate it.
This is where I am. I see people arguing about everything surrounding this disaster just to avoid focusing *on* the disaster. People are bitching about gas prices, gouging, Bush, FEMA, people who stayed to 'ride out the storm,' looters, the National Guard, the New Orleans city planners, politics, global warming, religion, proper response to grief, sympathy (or lack thereof)...whatever they can to take their minds off the fact that 100,000 people are stuck in a place that's turned into a sewage- and disease-filled wasteland. And the fact that there's very little the average citizen (meaning us) can do about it besides donate money and/or blood (just money if you're gay).
So, Cargo has a few words to say about it. I wish I could add something to the conversation, but the enormity of what's happening just sits heavy. I can't think straight. I have no idea what to say that would be meaningful or helpful. I don't even know what an appropriate response is. SHOULD we be angry? Anger isn't helping anyone survive down there. It's an awful feeling. I don't know.