Rain!! As the front moved in the temperature dropped almost twenty degrees in as many minutes. It was 98 on my front porch earlier this evening. It will be good sleeping tonight.

I left work early this afternoon--hardly anyone was around and I was at a good stopping point. I finished all the boxes that had been brought out, and nobody was around to get more. That will happen Monday.

New Orleans is currently hosting a national librarians convention, with about 18,000 attendees. Needless to say, they are helping out with some of the drowned libraries in the region. Most every group that comes here does something to help. The wives of the golfers in a major tournament last month took a day to help gut houses. And we are still getting young people, especially those with church and service groups, who can swing a hammer, wield a crowbar, etc. Habitat for Humanity is building a lot of houses here, and getting a lot of help from "outsiders." It is all very much appreciated. You cannot imagine the extent of the devastation until you have seen it. It's almost a year since Katrina and there are still large areas where repairs have not yet started, or have just begun.

Right now I am enjoying the smell of the rain-washed air--and its temperature. It will definitely be excellent sleeping tonight.