85 days and 184 million galloons

The cap is on, the wait begins. Praying that the gush of oil indeed has stopped as the clean-up continues.

DC and Oil

I had the chance to go to Washington DC, as many of you know, to participate in the National Jefferson Awards. It was an interesting experience, awesome to share about our work in Pearlington and remind people of the continued need in the area. It was fascinating to hear what people are doing and I noticed a common theme of fundraising and hands on work. I'm still thinking about a lot of what went on but wanted to share just one little glimpse...I posted previously on my personal blog, but thought I would repost it here!

All the honorees had to give a one-minute speech. We were separated into two different groups to save on time. There were student in action groups, workplace volunteers and then the media nominated people it would have taken hours if they hadn't separated us! Anyway, after the speeches I went out to the lobby to get a question answered when this young lady came up to me. She immediately said "I wanted to Thank You for what you've done in Pearlington. I grew up there." It floored me. Turns out she and her family evacuated when Hurricane Katrina hit and relocated to Memphis where she is now in High School. It was a stunning moment and I believe the reason I was there. Her parents are planning on returning to Pearlington after she graduates and rebuilding. How cool would it be to help them rebuild??!! (For those familiar with Pearlington, their lot is on Hancock Ave., across from the Post Office.) Being back home, my focus has been on the oil that continues to pour into the Gulf. This article is just a reminder that the spread of the oil is far reaching and will have long lasting consequences for a region that has already suffered tremendously in the last few years. I'm becoming more and more aware of how much I use oil and how I can possibly cut that usage down!

Oil Day 63

The other day I was in Annapolis, MD having lunch. It was a beautiful day and I was enjoying steamed shrimp, crab balls and fried oysters. As I was peeling my shrimp, the topic of discussion went up around the table about the work it takes to peel and clean shrimp. Of course the conversation turned to the fabulous Shrimp Scampi dinner we had in Mississippi at Christmas and all the work that it took to get those shrimp cleaned. It hit me that we probably won't be having fresh caught shrimp from the Gulf again this year.

I found this article on the web by the NY Times. There's a play button on the left hand corner of the page. You can watch the shifting oil spill and the ever expanding fishing ban. It's sad. Really, really sad.

I've had a chance to get reacquainted with the Metro in DC and have to say, if something like that was available in CA, I would take it a lot. We need a massive overhaul to our transportation system and to really rethink what we use oil for!

Some Oil numbers

6/5/2010--Huffington Post Federal authorities say 792 dead birds, sea turtles, dolphins and other wildlife have been collected from the Gulf of Mexico and its coastline.

6/7/2010--U.S. Fish and Game Report

Birds Collected Alive--413
Birds Collected Dead--594
Birds Released--39

Sea Turtles Collected Alive--50
Sea Turtles Collected Dead--250
Sea Turtles Released--3

Mammals (including Dolphins) Collected Alive--2
Mammals (including Dolphins) Collected Dead--33 (2 with Visible Oil)
Mammals (including Dolphins) Released--0


Photo from Huffington Post there are more pictures...look for yourself.

June 1st

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration expects this Hurricane season to be "active to extremely active", with 14-23 named storms, 8-14 Hurricanes of which they anticipate 3-7 will be major Hurricanes.

Between the BP disaster and Hurricane season, I'll be holding my breath until November 30th. Praying for the Gulf Coast!