I'm moving back to my home today (NOLA)!

[funkybutt]

We'll be the first ones on our block and the first in the immediate area living IN their home (as opposed to a FEMA trailer on the property). It seems so surreal, that it really hasn't sunk in yet.

This afternoon after work, we'll borrow a truck and move the found loveseat, donated desk, folding table, and mattress. There'll be no paint on the walls, just the powdery surface of finished sheetrock. There's no baseboards or window trim. We decided to do that ourselves b/c carpentry prices are outrageous. No appliances yet. They'll be delivered next week. No interior doors. They were thown out by the gutting company. Our new ones will be here in about a month.

There will be a lot of things missing but right now, it doesn't really matter. We'll have A/C and each other.

WE'RE GOING HOME!

:hi:

[Oceansaway]

1. good luck Funky !!...n/t

[RandiFan1290]

2. Congrats!!!!!!

Welcome home :) :hug:

[ThomCat]

3. Mozel tov!

I hope the renovations go smoothly. Please let us know how things go.

[AnOhioan]

4. My best wishes to you and yours....great news

[TheDebbieDee]

5. I'm so happy for you........

And I'm sorry it took so long to get you back into your home.......

[dogday]

6. A Bitter/Sweet moment I am sure

You are right you have your family and that is something that can't be replaced.. Rejoice in the love you feel for them, and the fact that you have AC makes it so much better....

My very best thoughts go out to you....

[IndyOp]

7. Woo-hoo!!! Congratulations! Congratulations! Congratulations!

I am excited for you! Post pics after you have a chance to settle!

:bounce: :bounce: :bounce: :bounce: :bounce:

[in_cog_ni_to]

8. Oh, that's just wonderful, funky! I wish you all the best!

It's always a nice feeling to 'be going home.'

[Marnieworld]

9. That's so great

I can't even imagine what it was like for you all of this time. Congrats! :hi:

[Strathos]

10. GOOD FOR YOU!

Good luck and be happy!!

[myrna minx]

11. Welcome Home , funkybutt.

:hug:

[tanyev]

12. Laissez les bons temps rouler!

Best wishes.

[Blue Diadem]

13. Great News FB!

:bounce: :bounce:

:toast: Best of luck to you and your family! I can't begin to tell you how happy I am to hear you're able to go back home!

[spuddonna]

14. YAY!

That's so exciting! I hope everything goes as smoothly as possible. There is nothing like settling in. We've moved our family quite a bit due to job changes and there is nothing like those first few days when you are back in your own place again!

Cheers! :beer: Here's an old Celtic blessing for your home!

A blessing upon your new home,
A blessing upon your new hearth,
A blessing upon your new dwelling,
Upon your newly-kindled fire.

:hi:

[sinkingfeeling]

15. Wonderful news!!

[madfloridian]

16. So happy for you.

I was thinking about you the other day, and wondering if things were improving for you.

They were showing recent pictures on CNN the other night, and I felt my throat tighten just like it did when the people were on rooftops. It looks like so many areas are not even being cleared.

Good luck to you.

[funkybutt]

33. For all your kind thoughts

thanks!

:hi:

[intheflow]

17. What lovely news, funkybutt!

I'm so very happy for you. Congratulations! :toast:

[serryjw]

18. Walk in with your RIGHT foot

a sign of good luck. I'm so happy you are going home.......ENJOY!

[funkybutt]

59. I went in with the RIGHT knee

I hope that still works! The workers had locked one of the front doors from the inside. I had to go around to the back door which lacking a stairway and is about 4' off the ground.

the knee was the best that I could do

:woohoo:

[uppityperson]

19. Congratulations and hope it goes smoothly

Who needs paint, trim, doors or appliances? A/C is good though, stay cool there. Hang in there and congratulations. It will be great to sleep at home again.

Edited because I hate to see my obvious typos.

[cal04]

20. that's great news. I'm so happy for you

:hug: :hi:

[wryter2000]

21. That's wonderful

:bounce: :woohoo: :bounce: :woohoo:

[malaise]

22. Happy for you n/t

[bullimiami]

23. im glad for you. what a tough long ordeal.

under any decent administration it would have been over long ago.

[KamaAina]

24. Oh yeah, chere!!

Now I won't have to ask "where y'at?" :-)

First ones on your block, eh? If that's the case in the rest of the 'hood, that makes all the work you guys have done even more remarkable, doing it all while still displaced.

Tip: Stuff like interior doors may possibly be available at The Green Project, down in Bywater back of St. Claude -- and it's recycled! In case you're wondering, I discovered them through my work with the new neighborhood group across the viaduct from you.

http://www.thegreenproject.org

What We Have:
Recent notables include glass tiles and shelf glass, a antique mantles and Spanish tiles. As usual, we have a variety of doors, windows, shingles, roofing, boards, bricks, lamps, fixtures, fasteners, molding, etc. – in quantities sufficient for repairs, small jobs, and, in a few cases, large projects. Most of our art supplies and much paint were compromised by the storm and have either been removed or are not suitable for use. We have received donations of cleaners, mops, brushes, and the like. Finally, there are large dimension floor joists, wide boards, wooden flooring, and other materials from an 1840s collapsed house deconstructed in late November.

Hoo boy. When I do finally get back in, I now have four DUers, and a few others, to catch up with -- all in different parts of town, ranging from Carrollton to Gentilly! Did I mention I was one of those 100,000 carless New Orleanians back in the day? I'm gonna be one helluva busy not-quite-tourist, gar-rawn-tee!

:bounce: :yourock:

[funkybutt]

34. recycling

We ordered our doors over a month ago and I'm really excited about them. The woman who lived in our house before us was in a wheelchair so there were not many interior doors when we moved in (so we're used to it!) Pre-katrina we had a hodge-podge of door designs throughout. It's going to be nice to have one style door that is architecturally correct.

We did, however, happen upon a recycling opportunity when we were having our floors redone. We expanded our closet space so there were missing floor boards in some places. We were told about a house that had been torn down and how all the floor boards were nice and available. We used those to close the holes.


Yeah, you right! You're going to have some long bike rides and/or walks ahead when you get back here. The bus service is increasingly inadequate.

[mom cat]

25. Great! Best of luck in your new home. It is wonderful to hear some good

news coming out of NOLA. :grouphug:

[merh]

26. I am so happy for you!!!!!!!

I'm crying I'm so happy - that has to be such a tremendous feeling :hug:

:woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo:

Congratulations and thank God! :grouphug:

:toast: To your first night "HOME" :loveya:

[funkybutt]

35. I wish you all the best

in your recovery as well. We'll all be "recovering" for quite some time, I'm afraid.

thanks for all your support and well wishes!:hug:

[merh]

38. One day we will meet to share our tales over a cup of coffee

or a bottle of something.

Till then, enjoy the accomplishments, enjoy HOME! :hug:

I thank you :loveya:

[shireen]

27. i'm so glad to hear that!

Please post updates in the hurricane survivors group, and let us know how you're doing, what you're doing to reestablish your home, etc.. We'd like to share, in some small way, that experience with you.

[partylessinOhio]

28. Praise the Lord! A NOLA success story, there aren't enough of them.

I can't imagine losing my home and being forced to leave it.

All of us that haven't experienced the wrath of Katrina are so, so lucky.

Enjoy your first night with a real good night's sleep.

:hi: :grouphug: :yourock: :applause:

[JuniperLea]

29. I'm so happy for you, funkybutt!

That is good news! May the blessings and good times roll!

(you have one of my all-time favorite screen names)


:hi:

[BOSSHOG]

30. You Go Girl!

[funkybutt]

36. thanks BOSS! n/t

[nickyt]

31. Hala freakin' luya!! There's no place like "home", but there's especially

no place like "home in New Orleans"!! Sending best wishes, keep us posted please!!

[CrispyQ]

32. Wonderful news!

The very best to you & yours.

:hi:

[laylah]

37. Wonderful!

:woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo:

Blessings to all of you!

Jenn

[lastliberalintexas]

39. I'm so very happy for you

I know how incredible it felt for us to move back into a house together, even if it wasn't in the same house we had before the storm. It's a feeling of relief that is completely indescribable, but it stays with you for a long time.

An old Irish blessing that my grandmother has hanging in her home-

May you have walls for the wind
A roof for the rain
Drinks bedside the fire
Laughter to cheer you
And those you love near you,
And all that your heart may desire

Congratulations! :)

[Bushfire]

40. Laissez les bon temps roullez encore!

Congrats Funkybutt!!

[Jo March]

41. Congratulations and check your PM!

:hi:

I've PM'd you, funkybutt.

CONGRATULATIONS to you and yours!

Arnie

[CottonBear]

42. Congratulations! This is wonderful news!

There's no place like home, especially if it's in NOLA! :)

[Swamp Rat]

43. Yaay!!!!! Congrats!!!

:woohoo:

I had to fire a couple of contractors, but finally two weeks ago I got a new roof and hot water!!! :bounce:

The interior still needs a LOT of work though.

[funkybutt]

46. I've given up on contractors

98% of the time they don't make appointments or scheduled work
55% of those times, they dont' even bother to call you
75% of those cases, they dont' call you back for a day or two


I've rearranged my life to schedule it around construction that almost never takes place when it's supposed to. And when it does, it'll probably not be done to my specifications. It's really unbelievable.

I could never treat people this way.

Good luck with your interior work and take care!

[thinkingwoman]

44. Congratulations!!

I'm very happy for you. Welcome home. :toast:

[tenshi816]

45. Best of luck to you.

I'm so glad you're going back to help build one of America's finest cities back up. There's no place like home, is there?

[sueh]

47. Woo-Hoo, funkybutt!!! Cant' tell you how happy I am for you!! n/t

[Vidar]

48. Best of luck with a difficult situation.

[Hekate]

49. Welcome home

I'm so glad for you I got teary. :hug:

Hekate

[SoCalDem]

50. Fan-TAS-tic... There's nothing wrong with drywall

Beats the hell out ouf Wet-wall :) (rimshot).

Glad you are getting your life back on track.. No stopping you now :hug:

[pitohui]

51. welcome home

stay safe, they had a brutal power outage in part of the city the other day, so keep lots of water on hand just in case, the heat is unreal

[NMDemDist2]

52. ohhh funky! that's just awesome!

I'm so terribly happy for you both!

:woohoo: :bounce: :party: :woohoo: :bounce: :party: :woohoo: :bounce: :party: :woohoo: :bounce: :party: :woohoo: :bounce: :party: :woohoo: :bounce: :party:

[UrbScotty]

53. You have each other... That's what's important.

:-)

[stevedeshazer]

54. Very, very glad for you and your family

Best wishes to you all from some DU guy in Oregon!

[Generic Other]

55. What a blessing to have a roof over your head

I'm sure you have been anticipating this for a long time.

[bklyncowgirl]

56. Best of luck in your newly (partially) restored home. nt.

[me b zola]

57. My best wishes and thoughts are with you

...but I am still so seething angry over what was done to you and other people from the Gulf region, particuarly NO. I guess it's like everything else now-a-days, be grateful for the victories as they come--and you going home is a wonderful victory!

May you have peace, comfort, and joy.

[bdamomma]

58. I wish you all the best

[Festivito]

60. Needed some good news. Thanks. Be well and happy. /nt

[AnnInLa]

61. Maggie! Wonderful news!

I know you'll be glad to be out of that apt! Is your email address still the same?

Ann

[garthranzz]

62. We've been back since December - welcome home!