Hurricane Lili and the spun off miniature tornadoes did $50,000 damage to our house when it took down a 60 foot/60 year old Hickory. The hickory punctured the roofing deck and went into the bathrooms, the hallway ceiling, the computer room and beyond. Since the pipes are in the attic above the bathrooms, that meant a flood in our house. My camera equipment was okay, but the emulsions on my prints and film was not. The images poured off the negatives and prints. There was no saving images that were not framed on walls or safely placed in drawers in other rooms.

Bathroom, hall and computer room walls and ceilings were replaced mostly to prevent mold. (I now use waterproof bins for images and lenses, which will work as long as the water does not rise more than a foot and as long as they can be moved immediately for protection against mold.) We lost 10 trees with Lili. And, our micro eco-system has changed.

Winds from Hurricane Rita switched direction and toppled an old and very tall water oak through the front foyer. We had tree branches in the computer room, foyer, living and dining rooms, kitchen, into my rear car window, which was parked safely in the garage and it moved the walls of the screened-in porch. Even the walls in the family room shifted.

Cost of damage to the house $75,000 and one tree which provided shade from the hot south Louisiana afternoons. Also, the downed tree had been a home for birds and other wildlife.

Thanks to insurance, we have basically a new home. “Wherever God closed a door, somewhere he opened a window.” Gone is the toxic wall-to-wall carpeting from the bedrooms, hallways, foyer, living and dining rooms. And, in its place, porcelain tile flooring and wool, Persian/Indian area rugs, which I have long sought. I had been trying to get rid of the toxic carpeting for decades but my husband stood in the way. Nature helped.

Sadness is all the habitat loss from loss of trees, which were downed as a result of global warming --storms made more fierce. And, neighbors trees were cut by tree cutters promoting fear. We have replanted with swamp maple, and various oaks, just not water oaks. My husband is looking forward to planting a live oak in the front where 8 other trees were lost with Lili. But, we'll not be alive when the tree can provide shade and homes for birds, if any birds survive human activities. Maybe the next generation will be smarter and more aware of global warming than my generation.

I've had enough hurricanes for a good many years. We still have insurance, but are running out of shade trees to make living in South Louisiana bearable and habitable.
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