Getting ready for New Orleans

Well, here I am in the last 48 hours before I head out. I am excited, nervous, and anxious all at the same time. I can't wait to get down there and take a look for myself as to what the damage really is and what work has been done in the last 6 months or so. We fly out at 1:30 Friday afternoon. I will try to post often and let you know what we are doing and what I am feeling and what I am learning. I didn't realize how far in I was going to be until recently, just to share a little; we will be working 5 of the days we are there (Monday through Friday) while we work we will be wearing pants, tank tops or tshirts covered by full body tyvek suits, decent work boots, a respirator to keep the black mold out of our bodies, and ear plugs so the spores don't wind up in our ears. After the day of work we will shower and leave our clothes tied up in a plastic bag until the following day where we will put it all back on again and repeat. I am very anxious to see everything I can and I will have many many pictures and will be using every photographic skill I have in my body to see how well I can truly capture the devestation. We will be able to hopfully see many of the areas in and around New Orleans and see how each area was affected or not affected. I hope to look into race as one of the segregating factors, and since the focus of my particular trip is environment, I also hope to look at the environmental impacts that this natural disaster has instilled. I am extreemly excited and will keep you updated as much as I can! Meanwhile, I am finishing up several school related things before spring break.