Hope ur trip around the sun was a Great day. Have a healthy new year!

Posted on: May 29, 2025 at 5:56 PM

Hey folk, Itz been 8 mos now since Helene. Asheville is back to pretty much "normal", but outlying areas and bordering counties still have "alotta hurt"! Alot of debris has been cleared and roads and bridges are getting replaced, but for Many people and many places, it will be Much longer for healing and recovery. This "leftover" hurricane did major catastrophic damage to cities and the environment when it slammed into our beautiful mountains. There are still Many in temp housing, and roads that followed any stream or river, or were close to, [of which there are many because of terrain] have temporary routes while the "original" major highway is re-built. There's not alotta press about it anymore, but there are still missing people, some of which will probly Never be found due to inaccessible areas where rivers created Huge log, silt and mud "jams". A man in such "a pile" was found just a couple weeks ago by a fisherman who noticed "the smell" and happened to see a hand. Not to be too graphic but so that people know how terrible this was, and that many things, and families will Never be the same. My wife, Patty, and I were SO fortunate compared to so many, I'm not at all remiss to say "God's hand" was over our house and property wth our many trees, and didnt lose one! Flooded bsmt was ALL. I have been in touch wth a few classmates since the storm, and saw where a few of you wrote and expressed your concerns and best wishes for us after Helene, and it meant Alot! Thank you so much. PLEASE, if so disposed, keep the Western NC area in your prayers going forward as so Many still are recovering--and for those who lost a loved one, or more. Their lives are 4ever changed and I can't imagine how tough that must be!
Thanks for listening, R&P

Posted on: May 28, 2025 at 11:45 AM

Posted on: Dec 01, 2024 at 4:05 PM

Hey y'all. well itz been a little over 2 months since Helene hit the area, and since I last posted 10/26, this is an update. Patty and I are doin good, and as stated, were Very Lucky we had only a "sneeze" wth a flooded bsmt compared to those who lost Everything,[42 Lives], homes, vehicles]! They are now forced to endure the very cold, windy weather we are having and spose to continue At Least, another week. No lake effect to deal wth down here like any of you Clevelanders, thank goodness, but terrible weather to be in a tent! THAT is the Surreal, Mental aspect of it all! We are surrounded by "all-to-real" conditions. People are having to endure physically, mentally and environmentally. Hardly anything looks the same; where once there were trees, serene rivers and a bustling River Arts District, esp this time of year, now itz All changed...Alot Forever! Thats a HEAVY word, but IT is So True. Businesses will rebuild, roads will be fixed, bridges re-built, but those Lives are Gone; and trees, and bushes, and bogs etc, will take decades to recover! The "views" in ,and of, the mountains are so altered itz hard to comprehend. To see wth your own eyes the "stuff" you see on the news, no more than 20-25 minutes away, has a hard time sinking in, but is ALL TO REAL, actually as I said, SURREAL! We got drinkable faucet water Back Nov 19th, 53 Days post-Helene. [That was a drag], but again, we're in a warm home and flushin' the toilet. It was amazing how "everyday", now-adays, things like water, cell svc, internet, Power are Not thought about TIL ITZ GONE, for Days and weeks atta time. You get thru it, somehow, and I'm so Very Thankful we were so "spared". Can't Even imajin If We had lost our home, let alone a pet or vehicle, and so on. PLEASE, You who may read this, Continue to Remember the People of WNC, gone and remaining, that have so very far to go in their recovery; and spread the word that the NEED down here is Still Great! Not ashamed to say re-calling all this brings tears to my eyes, guessing that that thing called "PTS" is still hidden 'in there' a little bit as I mourn those Still Dealing with the Devastation and Trauma Helene brought to these beautiful Carolina Mtns.

Posted on: Oct 26, 2024 at 12:46 PM

Hey y'all. Finally got Net back couple days ago so can now access site. Had a ton of things to catch up on...What a Month since Helene blew [Literally very hard] thru town! Throw in HISTORIC Flooding and the city, but especially the County, and those Outlying areas and beautiful Western NC, doesn't, and wont, look the same again! A horrific thing to have gone threw. Probably most of u know by now from pics and the news what happened here, but as is usually the case, unless you lived it and know the area and "little" towns less known, that are so devastated, itz V Hard to grasp the scope of what really went on and "What's Left". Itz very SAD and my Heart Aches for So Many that LOST SO MUCH! My wife Patty and I came thru OK vs so many others! IF so Inclined, Continue to Pray for ALL OF WNC And if you can, Donate to WORLD CENTRAL KITCHEN! Helping such organizations wth $$ to HELP PROVIDE for the Needs of our area IS Probly the best thing, NOW, u can do! We ARE Over-Donated wth supplies, bottled water, etc. DOWN THE LINE a month or so from now WHEN current Supplies will have been depleted, and the weather gets colder, is When Many will need MORE! I have a FB page for u to see more if interested. Thx for ur care and concern over this last month that I wasnt able to see, except for a little Help from Joe, Jay and Rupe. Experiencing PTS is a strange and uncomfortable feeling, and when being "that place" u see on tv , and saying "those poor folks" happens to yourself, it is Surreal. Maybe more later. Thx for listening, russ

Posted on: Oct 20, 2024 at 4:33 AM

Posted on: Sep 07, 2024 at 6:33 PM

Happy B'day, Chris 2024, 5and half hrs early! Have a great yr

Happy B'day Phil! Have a great yr!