I had the day off today and spent part of it tooling around town on the bike before settling in to get some work done. It’s mid-October here, so that means it’s time for Halloween. I have lived lots of places, but never one where so many put so much into decking out their houses for this particular holiday. Continue reading
neighborhoods
Staircase at Baronne and Amelia
Today is a beautiful fall day in New Orleans. In other words, it’s in the eighties and sunny, with clouds dotting the sky just enough to offer shade when you need it. I rode my bike home from work today down Freret St. rather than St. Charles, and I’m glad I did. Continue reading
Birds on Wires in the Marigny
I woke up this morning to a flat rear tire on my bike. That’s not a good way to begin the day, but I got a new tube this afternoon and took a long bike ride around town, from Uptown, through Central City to Broadmoor, over to the CBD, through the Quarter and then to the Marigny. Continue reading
Broken Stoplight on St. Charles
I’m back from my trip to Oregon for Auntie L.’s memorial. It was a really good trip, but it is good to be home and back on my bike. Riding up St. Charles to work today I saw this stoplight, broken down and lying uselessly on the neutral ground. Continue reading
Mural on Freret
I rode down Freret Street on my way home today. This ride always reminds me of how uneven recovery and development is in this city. Tulane’s campus is beautiful, of course, and Freret to Carrollton takes one by some really fancy homes. Continue reading
One-Way Sign in Broadmoor
The weather is strangely cool in New Orleans today, which I like, and I enjoyed a non-task related ride around the Broadmoor neighborhood. This neighborhood took on a lot of water when the levees broke after Katrina, and much of it remains in disarray. Continue reading
St. Charles Mansion
As I was riding around today running various errands and smelling the hints of autumn on Ike’s final winds, I was thinking about how many recent representations of New Orleans have featured areas prone to flooding, neighborhoods still struggling to return after Katrina and from general poverty, and, of course, the French Quarter. Continue reading
Vacuum Cleaner on Decatur
It is a windy night as the outer bands of Ike run through New Orleans. My thoughts are with folks in Galveston and Houston and all along the Texas Gulf coast. I didn’t watch CNN during Gustav, but find myself riveted now that the the storm is not putting me in direct danger; it’s as if I can finally bear to look now that I’ve got a little distance. B Continue reading
The Industrial Canal and St. Bernard Parish
Today was a beautiful day in New Orleans. The humidity was low, the temp was in the mid-80s, and the sun was shining. In spots. Fine, it was pretty overcast, but I’ll take what I can get. Continue reading
The National Guard at Jackson Square
Today was my first full day back in New Orleans, and I spent much of it on N.’s bike, riding around to see what folks are up to. The rush of being back to the city and seeing it relatively unscathed is wearing off, and today I found myself feeling profoundly sad. Continue reading
What I Saw Riding My Bike Around Today 