 "Photo: César G. Rodriguez")
NEW ORLEANS - Transferring during high school may be hard, but when the reason for the move is a hurricane, the difficulties are magnified.
"I've never seen the neighborhood so empty," Yuri "Superman" Robinson said during a holiday trip home to a subdivision on New Orleans' far eastern edge.
The 17-year-old Robinson's nickname could well apply to his strength in coming back to clean his house and salvage bits of possessions, but the nickname came from his football teammates at Sarah T. Reed High School.
Everybody on the team had a nickname, and the teammates were eager to tag him, he said.
They saw Robinson's admiration for the Man of Steel and his great ability as a defensive lineman.
Superman was a natural nickname, Robinson said.
Despite moving out of New Orleans and leaving behind the high school football team, Robinson continues to play in Langham Creek High School in Houston.
The change of school and team may sound difficult, but Robinson said he got along fine with his new friends.
After living about four months in Houston, Robinson had identified some major differences between his hometown and his new home.
He said in Texas, people need a car to travel to their destinations, while in New Orleans, a person can take the bus to get anywhere.
At home, a person could be living broke and be partying, but in Texas, "No money; you can't have fun."
Despite the family's almost total loss, Robinson said electronics can be replaced, but there are belongings that cannot be replaced.
Pictures have a great significance for Robinson. "Pictures have sentimental value; electronics can be replaced," he said.
Amid the debris, he could not find his autographed photograph of boxing legend Muhammad Ali.
Robinson did recover three pictures of great value to him, however.
In the living room of his mold-covered house, Robinson saw two pictures that were able to hold on to their designated spots despite the flooding.
A photo of Robinson's grandfather, Herbert Robinson Sr., was still on the wall along with the ribbons his grandfather earned in the Army. "I'll keep that forever," Robinson said, noting he never met his grandfather.
Other pictures of great value for Robinson were a '70s photograph of his father Herbert Robinson Jr. - the only one left of his father - and one of Robinson's niece.
Robinson said he will hang the pictures on the wall in his new house in Houston.
The comic book character Superman had one weakness, Kryptonite, but "Superman" Robinson does not seem to have any obvious weaknesses.
On the contrary, Robinson emerged as many of the unspoken heroes of his deluged city fighting for a recovery.
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