'Twas the Cajun Night Before Katrina

'Twas de night before Katrina, when all tru da state

No' a gas pump was pumpin', No' a store open late

All da plywood was hung, on de windows wit care,

Knowing dat a hurricane, Soon would be dere.

Da chilren were ready wit deir flashlight in hand

While rain from da hurricane covered over our land

And Mom wit her Mag-lite, and me wit my cap

Has jus filled da battub for flushing our crap.

When out on de lawn, dere arose such a clatter

I sprang from da closet to see what was de matter

Dem trees on da terrace, and de neighbor's roof torn,

We feared we'd be dyin' in dis terrible storm.

Wit a little wind gust, so lively and quick,

I remember quite clearly our walls was not brick

More rapid than eagles, her courses they changed!
And she shifted and whistled and surged all the same.


Off shingles! Off sidings! Off rooftops! Off power!
Down trees! Down fences! Down trailers! Down towers!
On da street of Nawlins, she continued to maul,

Screaming, "Blow away! Blow away! Blow away all!"

As da wind rip and toss da debris tru de sky,

I peeked out de shutters at the cars floatin' by.
So go to de attic my family did do,
With a potable radio and some battries too.

And den in a twinklin', I heard on da set,

The end was not coming for a few hours yet!
As I calm down da kids and was turnin' around,

Tru de window it came wit a huge crashing sound.

A bundle o' twigs now lay in a stack
And me livin' room looked like it was under attack.

Da tree branches floated in scum-covered muck,

And in tru de window done floated a duck!

As da water it rised to de top of de slats,

We thought dis de end like dem drowned river rats.

De wind how it howled, de storm very scary,

Myself and my family were all too unwary.

Den da winds dey died down and de water receded,

I noticed my house a roof it now needed.

So I grabbed my last tarp, and nailed it on down,

Den I got in me boat and drove into town.




Da traffic was awful and stores had no ice,

My 5-gallon cooler would have to suffice.

Generators was scarce, not one left in de town,

Dere was trees on de roads and power lines down.

FEMA was ready wit people to work,
Electrical peoples came in from New York.
I sprang to da bus, and gave my family a whistle,

Den away we all went like a Tomahawk missile!

You could hear us exclaim as we drove out of sight,

"The heck wit dis place, Texas seem just right!"