Sunday, August 28, 2011

Just a few...

...yummy things in New Orleans:








We also went here for burgers and potatoes very late in the evening, and next morning I was introduced to home-cooked eggs in bacon grease.  It really doesn't get any better than this for eats, folks.


~A


P.S.  Correction - it's better when you don't miss your best friend's world class jambalaya, slow cooked all day.  This is one of my Top Ten Road-Trip Woes, which you will be entertained with at a later date.

Tuesday, August 16, 2011

The City that Care Forgot



Driving into The Crescent City was a picnic, if a picnic is driving over Lake Pontchartrain on the five-mile I-10 Twin Span bridge under construction with sudden unmarked lane changes, in the darkness and rain, lightening illuminating the orange cones and road divots.  I had to call mommy on the Bluetooth.






It was all very exciting, though!  Also, this is an opportune moment to talk about The Big Easy's roads and weather.  The streets are very suspect.  As my friend Beth explained (in a warning fashion), "You can lose a tire on these roads, so be careful."  There are potholes the size of lakes, one-way streets that are closed off at random, and in an apparent effort to gain some money to pay for the construction, speed zones with cameras (for no logical reason, like a school or "alligator x-ing").  If these streets were restored to near-perfect conditions, I couldn't navigate them anyway.  I got lost going to the local supermarket in broad daylight using not one, but two GPS devices.  The store was only 8 blocks from Beth's house.  




In certain districts, there are still traffic lights that have not been repaired since the storm (by "the storm", they mean Katrina).  Which brings us to the weather.  Humid subtropic seems to be the official classification on Wikipedia, and this is accurate according to my personal calculations.  I have developed a simple equation, for the common man.  Feel free to utilize as needed.


                                      ________________ = Chance of Hurricane (%)

                                         Bug Size in FT


Funny thing is, we had some "storm-warnings" (lightening, thunder, stuff blowing around in a circular fashion) for two mornings in a row, but Beth said it probably would come to nothing, and sure enough - she was right.


 I guess you don't live in N'awlins for a decade and not become pretty savvy about the weather (and in her case, the history, and the economics, and the politics, and the food.....this woman is pretty much a walking NOLA encyclopedia).

But the most interesting thing is how the people that live in the Birthplace of Jazz shake it all off, because as legend goes, the living is good here, and troubles are forgotten.  It might be hotter than a Dutch oven in the summertime, so come out at night and have a drink.  You might have some money worries, so talk to your neighbors, everyone's in the same boat and that's cool.  The people of this city have created some of the best music, food, and atmosphere in the world, despite a few centuries of conflicts and disasters.  The air here is heavy with living.



And now, I've run out of New Orleans nicknames.  Have a great day!

~A

Sunday, August 7, 2011

Mo-BIL-ay....

...it must be Italian!

After the storm had passed, I traveled into Mobile, AL.  Without stopping to practice my pronunciation skills (honestly, sometimes it does feel like a foreign country in parts of this great nation of ours), I randomly drove through downtown Mobile, which was surprisingly beautiful.




Mobile is on the Gulf of Mexico.  It has a subtropical climate, and was very green and lush when I passed through after the storm.  It still retains that "Southern charm", and is very old - founded in 1702 as the first capital of French Louisiana (if I'd known the name was French, that would have cleared up the pronunciation problem weeks ago).  

There's a big-time-Metropolitan section closer to the water, but I didn't see it.  Instead, I found "Spanish Plaza", parked, and took a breather.  This peaceful little park has arches around a fountain, presented to Mobile by the city of Malaga, Spain, as the "Arches of Friendship".



The park benches have a lovely Spanish theme as well.  Spain occupied the city for about 30 years, during the turn of the 18th Century.  Otherwise, this city is a nice little intro to New Orleans...where I was slated to arrive in two hours...sharing much of its historical roots.

This little park was so peaceful, and traffic in this part of town seemed to be slow and quiet for now.  I took off my shoes and walked around, looking at the flowers, lounging on the benches.  I felt like I could be just another local, in the empty park, taking a minute to call a friend.  I wanted to linger here in the calm, despite my excitement of seeing New Orleans soon (the first stop on the road trip I'd never actually *been* to previously), and seeing my oldest friend on this Earth again.


New Orleans is intimidating.  According to the stories I'd heard, it is the Mecca of party-goers, filled with ghosts, vampires, and voodoo, the city that has struggled through disaster, a dangerous and very old place.  I looked at the quiet park and thought about how I am this place, and my friend's city is somewhere I will, most likely, feel out of place.  Then I took a deep breath, and drove off.

~A

Monday, August 1, 2011

~*VOLDEMORT SPOILERS*~

After watching the final installation of HP for the second time, I have a few items to share.

First: I am referring to my cat as "Nagini" from now on, because he is to me what the snake is to Voldemort.  As in, follows me around loyally, and hisses/bares fangs to everyone else.  Not to mention the whole split-my-soul-and-there's-a-piece-in-my-pet thing (hey, I said there were spoilers).

Timgini is always watching..

Second: Apparently John and I were not the only ones that noticed a) The goofy laugh Voldemort makes when he thinks Harry is dead, or b) The awkward hug between He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named and Draco, two minutes later.  This s@#$ is all over the internet!!  Google it...there's even dedicated Facebook pages.  I have been talking about this hug to anyone who pretends to listen, and re-enacting it whenever possible.

So, without further ado:

The Voldemort Laugh

The Awkward Hug

Which do you think is better??  I can't decide.

~A