Looks like the Fest
May 1, 2006
February 28, 2006
Hail Rex!!
Mardi Gras 2006.
February 25, 2006
Hermes Rolls
The Knights of Hermes, one of the old line krewes took to the streets last night and put on a superb parade.
Chip Kahn, Elizabeth’s brother, riding on float #2.
February 19, 2006
It's beginning to look like Mardi Gras.
We took a walk this afternoon and ran into the Lyon’s Club marching group out for a practice march. The club is a group of guys who get together and parade during Mardi Gras. They have been doing it the same way for 60 years.The Lyon’s are one of only a few marching clubs that are allowed to march on St. Charlies Ave. on Mardi Gras day. They begin Fat Tuesday morning at their club house on Lyons St. and meander throgh uptown stopping at every bar they come across. At some point they end up on St. Charles Ave and travel downtown between the parades of Zulu and Rex. They generally dress in tails and give paper flowers to women who give a kiss in return. It’s a true spectacle that’s unique to the city.
The Lyon’s club and similar clubs are what Mardi Gras is all about. They represent people who have come together to celebrate as they see fit. They create the traditions and customs that are at the very core of this city. We were very happy to run into them.
Mardi Gras Day is Tuesday, Feb. 28., it also happens to be the 6 month annerversary of Hurricane Katrina. Go out, wear a costum, paint your face and celebrate life.
January 22, 2006
The next stage.
Our life has entered a new stage and free time has become scarce. I’m finding it harder to put aside a block of time to work on the blog. We are no longer in recovery mode or rebuilding mode; as we have moved on to regular life mode and our concerns have taken on a different hue. We are now more interested in how we are going to find the time to get to the bank before it closes or how long is the line at the Post Office. These are the same concerns that we had before the storm. In a strange way it’s sort of comforting.
Elizabeth is working very long hours at one of the three schools opened by the Orleans Parish school district. The district is trying to pack a full year of school into seven months which is making for an extended school day. I have gotten a post-Katrina job in an attempt to establish a more secure financial situation. Unfortunately, it keeps me working away from the house all day. Our lives have changed, but we consider ourselves among the lucky ones. We have a house, and we are making money. In the “new” New Orleans, that’s as good as it gets.
Changed forever
New Orleans has been changed forever. This is a fact. Most of the city has been destroyed and rebuilding it to the exact way it was pre-Katrina looks to be impossible. Many of its residents are scattered across the country longing to return to the life that they once had. But that life is over, and it doesn’t seem as if it will ever come back.
This city was unique. It was an amalgam created by time, economics, heat, neglect and the cultural past of its residents. A single individual did not create it; no one had this as a dream. There was no master plan. It created itself. That is why putting it back together will be very difficult.
There are many strategies in the works for the new New Orleans. Experts from around the world have come up with models for the way the city should be recreated. These experts are city planners and land use specialists, and they have no idea how to make a city like New Orleans live again. These planners can create green space and low density housing all connected by a new light rail system. Two Florida cities, Celebration and Seaside, are the kinds of towns that these experts have built. The schools might work better and the trash will be picked up but the soul of the city will be gone. The New Orleans of the future might even be a better place to live. There might be less crime and more opportunity for all of it’s residents. But Katrina ripped the heart out of the city. At least for now its lifeblood is gone.
December 30, 2005
The next wave.
The next wave of hurricane related deaths is beginning to appear. These deaths are due not to the actual hurricane but rather to its aftermath. How do you cope with a life destroyed in a flash? Where do you find peace in the chaos? To many people here thoughts of suicide are not uncommon. Our lives are emotional roller coasters, constantly swinging between highs and lows. Unfortunately some people aren’t experiencing the highs; they are caught in an emotional free fall.
Suicide is a very private thing and rumors of these deaths have been making the rounds. We have had no way to substantiate them. A few weeks ago this changed with the public announcement that Stevenson Palfi a local documentary filmmaker took his own life.
I didn’t know him well, as he was a customer of mine rather than a friend. I haven’t seen him in a few years, but I can remember him for his smile and the handshake that he gave me every time he came into the shop. He was well known as the maker of the film “Piano Players Rarely Ever Play Together,” and other documentaries. His home and office located in Mid-city were completely destroyed by Katrina. His life’s work was gone. I guess he saw no way to stop the free fall. I was very sad when I heard the news.
December 25, 2005
Merry, Merry...
December 24, 2005
The spirit lives.
Not even Katrina could stop the teddy bear Christmas display that the guys down the street put on every year for the enjoyment of the neighbors.
December 20, 2005
The sound of chainsaws in the morning.
Today is day 115.
They finally got the tree off of my neighbor’s roof. How long will it be before they haul it away?
