924.

That is how far New Orleans is from Cleveland. I vividly remember the news coverage of the approach of Katrina, and I was horrified. Ten years later I am still heartbroken by the stories and pictures I've seen. There are almost no words.

At any rate, in 2005 I was 29 years old and living in Cleveland. Deeply troubled by personal issues, I went for a hike at Chapin Forest in Kirtland, Ohio when the remnant of Katrina passed over.

There was just so much water. To call that reality "Katrina" is insulting: there was such as volume of water, in the sky and on the ground. And I was a thousand miles away.

I've been out in many rainstorms. Hundreds. The remnants of Katrina is the only one where the rain came through my umbrella.

Like I said, Katrina is still too fresh and painful to think about, much like 9/11.

Experiencing the remnant of Katrina and the edge of Sandy did convince me to prepare for a disaster. Both bug in and bug out.

That Katrina happened in a major, modern US city...words fail me. It is too painful to think about.