Answers to some questions
Are there lots of planners down there? Are people kind and helpful? Is there an esprit de corps? What does the place really look (smell, sound) like, anyway?
There is not much of a esprit de corps because I we never really see each other. Only the rule-bound engineers sit in the reading room and they are not particularly passionate about their mission. How excited can one be about laying out new cement?I really don't see the others enough to have bonded much.
There have been reports about hostility to FEMA workers, but I have not felt any. I was at a museum the other day and the attendant asked my what I was doing down here. After I explained she asked me who I was with and I said, FEMA pays my salary; the state set the guidelines for for my work; on a day to day basis I will interact with citizens and local government officials the most; and I was hired by a private company. Then she said, "Put your money away." (I had placed a $20 on the table. For a moment I was not sure if she was kicking me out of the museum or letting me in for free. She smiled warmly so I decided it was the latter.)
On the surface people are very friendly. I think under the warmth, there will be an underlying mistrust of foreigners, as is natural working in small isolated areas. In most of the counties, there is not a culture that values participation. We will see how that plays out with government officials and other stakeholders.
The city looks and smells like a small city. It is bursting at the seams from the extra population, but it was not hit hard by the hurricane. Out in the rural areas near the city, the only evidence of upheaval is some large downed tree limbs.
There is not much of a esprit de corps because I we never really see each other. Only the rule-bound engineers sit in the reading room and they are not particularly passionate about their mission. How excited can one be about laying out new cement?I really don't see the others enough to have bonded much.
There have been reports about hostility to FEMA workers, but I have not felt any. I was at a museum the other day and the attendant asked my what I was doing down here. After I explained she asked me who I was with and I said, FEMA pays my salary; the state set the guidelines for for my work; on a day to day basis I will interact with citizens and local government officials the most; and I was hired by a private company. Then she said, "Put your money away." (I had placed a $20 on the table. For a moment I was not sure if she was kicking me out of the museum or letting me in for free. She smiled warmly so I decided it was the latter.)
On the surface people are very friendly. I think under the warmth, there will be an underlying mistrust of foreigners, as is natural working in small isolated areas. In most of the counties, there is not a culture that values participation. We will see how that plays out with government officials and other stakeholders.
The city looks and smells like a small city. It is bursting at the seams from the extra population, but it was not hit hard by the hurricane. Out in the rural areas near the city, the only evidence of upheaval is some large downed tree limbs.
posted by JNA | 11:58 PM
1 Comments:
I wonder how you can tell that a city is "bursting at the seams"? Are the streets crowded? Long lines at restaurants? No hotel rooms or apartments available?
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