The San Francisco Chronicle's John Flinn volunteers for Rebuilding Together.
"Nobody ever died from a badly painted fence," I reassure myself as I grab a brush and prepare to do my part - my infinitesimally small part - to rebuild New Orleans.
I don't want to compound the city's tragedy, and for that reason I'm keeping a wary distance from power tools, hammers and other weapons of mass construction. Anything mission-critical - framing, wiring, roofing, plumbing - is, by mutual consent, left to those who know what they're doing.
Read the full story on the SF Chronicle's website by clicking here.