on re-starting i lost access to a database

hi,

setting up for the first time i was able to get going and even created a
table in miketestdb.  i then left for a while, now i started up again,
and the miketestdb files are still there, but (and maybe this was the
wrong thing to do) after following the same procedure the second time, i
ended up with no access to miketestdb (the files are still there!).  the
error is FATAL 1: .... pg_database, which does only have template1 and
some other db in it.  how do i revive miketestdb?

installation is redhat 6.2, the psql i think is 6.5.3, there is a
postgresql file in /etc/rc.d/init.d but i have not been using that, i've
been logging in as postgres and doing things (i.e. initdb)
interactively.  i am using a PGDATA2 variable to
/home/postgresqldbs/data and that is where miketestdb was created last
time.  i have done the initlocation on $PGDATA2 and wonder if by doing
so, the pg_database was re-initialized and "forgot" that miketestdb is
there.

i also used createuser to ad me as allowed to create databases and being
a superuser.  for some reason, it forgot that too.  i MAY have erased
some files after i quit playing with this last time.

i can not search the archives of any of the lists since the search is
busted on the site

http://postgresql.readysetnet.com/mhonarc/pgsql-novice/

thanks for any help.

--
Michael E. Case
UC Davis
case@ucdhep.ucdavis.edu
(530) 754-7226