Yellowstone

Taking some time from disaster response and spending time with a granddaughter. We visited Yellowstone. It is as awesome as I remember from my childhood.
I also took some time to visit my younger granddaughter and my new grandson in Wyoming. Hope you are all having a wonderful summer. Sandy

Well, the time has come to have our last meal together, tear down, and pack up. It will be sad to leave all the people I have spent so much time with. We had a great group of folks working here who are concerned about the applicants and dedicated to getting the job done right. After we leave here, we will spend a week in Kansas City for training, and then who knows when we will see each other again. We had our last meal at Grumpys. (That's Mr. and Mrs. Grumpy in the back). All of you take care. I will let you know how KC goes. Sandy

Katy Trail

Part of the Katy Trail is nearby and sometimes for lunch we go there to eat and sit under the trees and watch the bikers. The area of Rocheport was first exlpored by Lewis and Clark. Then the railroads stretched through the country and right through Rocheport. The Katy Trail is 225 miles long and has taken the place of the now abondoned railroads. It is a beautiful setting and the town of Rocheport is well-kept and a lovely little community. These are the bluffs above the town. I understand that people come from all over to ride their bicycles along this path and stop for food and to stay in some of the bed and breakfast inns.

FEMA workers

We are winding down now. We got our big project finished and have done most of the case work we have to do. We will work half day on Saturday. The JFO will be closing next week and I will be headed to Kansas City to do some training. We have been exploring some of the local diners around the area. I want to show you where we had lunch today. There are also the most interesting moths here. I took a picture to show you. And one last photo at the Testicle Festival. Take care, see you all before too long. Sandy

Testicle Festival

We got off of work at 1 PM on Saturday, and so some of us drove an hour to go to the Testicle Festival. The town of Olean is a small village that required a drive down a dirt road. It was a beautiful day in the hills of Missouri. There were a lot of bikers there, families, and the curious. We bought a container of "nuts" that had batter and were deep fat fried. They taste sort of like chicken gizzards. A little goes a long way, and we didnt manage to finish all of them. The hats on these women say "testicle inspector". Notice the one with the "blue balls". It was a nice break from work and we had fun at the festival. Take care, Sandy

Grumpy's

There is a small trailer on an off-the-beaten-path road which serves great food. The outside is kind of scary, but the food is good. The owner is always there when we come, and he acts at being a grouch, but is a friendly guy. There is a $10 surcharge for being a grouchy customer. Here is a picture in Grumpys. This is about the entire restaurant. We got our big project finished and we will probably get half of Saturday off. We are looking forward to the Testicle Festival. Take care, Sandy

Ozarks

I am working near Columbia now. But to get here I drove through the Ozarks. It was really different than the bootheel of Missouri. The Ozarks are covered with trees and winding roads over the hills.

Here is a picture of the DRC in Caruthersville where we worked every day seeing clients. The night before I left Caruthersville, we all got together and had dinner.

Take care everyone, I will write more about Grumpy's and the Testicle Festival later. Sandy

TORNADO IN CARUTHERSVILLE

Here are a few more pictures of the tornado damage. The trees that are down are huge.
Take a look at the roots of this tree next to this house.

Here are some pictures of the damage that was done by the tornado in the "bootheel" area of Missouri. We are still down in Missouri working on the cleanup. Forget that I told you I had time off--we have been working 12 days 7 days a week again. We have a big project we are trying to get finished, and I think we are about finished! The people here are great to work with and I really enjoy the job. Keep in touch, Sandy

I want to show you where I have been working since April 7. I have been in the "bootheel" of Missouri. It is down next to the border of Tennessee and Arkansas.
Caruthersville is next to the Mississippi and for lunch sometimes I go to the river and watch it while I eat lunch. The current is really fast here. The land looks a lot like Nebraska, flat irrigated farm land. We have been working 12 hours a day, 7 days a week. Then we got Sunday off, and now we are getting half Saturday. For 2 weeks I worked in Missouri and lived in Arkansas. It was a nice drive each day. Next post I will put in some pictures of the tornado. Take care, Sandy

Missouri

I am in Missouri working the tornadoes that hit Caruthersville a week ago. It is wonderful to be able to help people put their lives back together. I am back by the awesome Mississippi River, and so excited to be back here. Yesterday after work I was supposed to take 55 home and didn't notice that I was on 155. I ended up in Tennessee! I had to drive back to Missouri to orient myself to drive to my hotel in Arkansas. I didn't make that mistake again! We are seeing alot of people every day in the Disaster Relief Center. Hope you are all well, take care, Sandy