St. Bernard

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Row of Blighted Houses at Caton & St. Bernard Avenue

I tried to sit in my office and do work today, I swear. I wrote about three sentences, met with a student, wrote a recommendation letter, and had lunch with R. and chocolate with R. But then I gave in to my senioritis and the 80 degree weather and took the bike out for a ride. It was seriously windy and I couldn’t seem to find a tailwind, so my ride was a heavy pedal in low gear all afternoon. I wasn’t in any kind of hurry, so that worked for me–hill training! Continue reading →

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Murphy Oil Refinery in Chalmette on E. St. Bernard Hwy

I know I’m a broken record, but I just love riding my bike. I love it. There is nothing like the steady rhythm, rolling along outside, today under this brilliant blue sky, temps in the 70s. I can’t believe how lucky I am to have found the bike. Enough gushing. I didn’t ride anywhere yesterday–I took the day off of everything, went to bed early, and woke up after nine full hours of sleep. I felt like a different person, but the same person insofar as I really felt like taking a bike ride. Continue reading →

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Vines on a Blighted House at Mandolin and Cartier

Finally, a new rear tire procured and mounted. I swear, being without the Surly for two days turned me into a total crank; I was desperate to take the bike out for a ride today. The weather was that perfect late summer sunny, and there were two parades downtown and the promise of a long afternoon without destination or rain forecasts–my favorite. I rode down to catch one parade, and then the other, and then the first one again. I headed toward the 7th Ward, up St. Bernard. Continue reading →

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Memorial to Those Who Gave Their Bodies to Science at Charity Hospital Cemetery

It rained all day yesterday and was supposed to rain all day today too, but I checked the radar, and it looked like rain wouldn’t come in until the evening–plenty of time to get on the Surly and travel around town to see how folks are remembering the hurricane and the failure of the levees five years ago today. I headed to Mid-City and then out Canal to make a stop at the Katrina memorial at Charity Hospital Cemetery. Continue reading →