Hey, hey, it’s election day! My electronical universe was full of people telling me they voted, telling me to remember to vote, telling me that voting is irrational, or pointless, or that it’s all just part of a pageant that makes it seem like we live in a democracy when actually the system is hopelessly broken. Here’s the thing. I believe in democracy. I believe ours is corrupted in lots of ways, for sure. That’s why I’m one civically engaged mofo. Voting is not the beginning and end of democratic ideals or community-building, or figuring out how to live together with people who aren’t like us. That’s a project. This is just voting. Continue reading
Uptown
Clear Instructions on a Conference Table at Tulane
Some days you just ride your bike to work, teach all day, really hard stuff, hear really hard stories, and try to balance all the feelings that come out on a day like this one. And then you bike across campus to a faculty seminar and stare at the cup in front of you, wishing teaching days like this one came with better instructions, like this tea bag. “Pull tag to release string.” Thank you for just telling me how to do it. These no-answer days are rough. And that’s when you’re grateful that you get to ride your bike home as hard as you can listening to this song and that, because they have beats that feel how it feels when you’re angry and frustrated that things don’t really seem to change all that much. Pedal, pedal, pedal, thank you, bicycle, for being at the beginning and end of every day.
Crowds at the Take Back the Night Rally at Loyola
Another work day, another morning ride to campus. And it’s the end of October, so of course I arrived three miles later in my tank top and light skirt, drenched in sweat. Fall in New Orleans… I taught a ridiculous number of classes today, so by the end of it all I was happily relieved and decided to work it out with a couple of laps around the park. The lake was positively alive with bird activity–this time, ducks. I think. Why are there all these teenage ducks in the park right now? Aren’t ducklings born in spring? R.? Do you know? I watched them snack and squawk for awhile and then headed to Loyola’s campus to meet up with folks gathered for this year’s Take Back the Night march and rally. Continue reading
Fall Colors at Amelia & Camp Streets
Is this a birch tree? I most assuredly do not know my trees, but today as I was riding downtown after a long work day, I was scoping out the trees. We don’t get fall colors here in New Orleans, because we don’t really have fall like that, and we certainly don’t have a lot of deciduous trees. I saw one tree that looked golden from afar, but when I got closer it turned out the golden was from the sun hitting it just right. Continue reading
Dr. King Charter School Marching Band on N. Villere & St. Anthony
It was a positively beautiful Saturday in New Orleans and I spent much of it on my bicycle, riding around–surprise, surprise. I headed to campus to get a little work done in my office, and as I was leaving to enjoy the ride, I discovered a flat tire. When will I learn to carry an extra tube? The puncture was incredibly small, and I couldn’t find it, and the sinks in the public restroom didn’t have stoppers, which meant I was doomed to lose my dignity and stick my hands and the tube in the toilet. Sigh. Continue reading
Halloween Decorations at State Street & St. Charles
Some day soon I will not be able to start a post talking about how perfect the weather is, but today? Today, the weather was perfect. I headed out in the morning for an appointment and then rode up to campus for lunch with a student and an afternoon of grading and reading and grading some more. The day ended with wine and cheese and L.’s paper and a good discussion. Such a nice day. I pedaled home in the dark along St. Charles and the wind had an extra chill. I stopped to take a picture of this house at State Street. These people are very, very excited about Halloween. Continue reading
Sore Legs Pedaling Down St. Charles
And then sometimes your body is just tired, and your legs feel sore from joint to joint, and you pedal home slowly, looking forward to taking a load off.
Pink House at Eleanor & St. Charles
I woke up early this morning and got right to work before heading up to campus on my bike. Pedal, pedal, pedal–it was good to get the kinks of yesterday’s long ride out of the legs. I had such a long day, but it was one of those long days that just feels worth it. It had a little bit of everything: challenging classrooms, a hint of completion, genuine intellectual stimulation, and a really good salad. Continue reading
Flowering Tree Near Newcomb Hall at Tulane
It was yet another beautiful early fall day in New Orleans. I hopped on the bike to head to school early, and the air was just a teensy bit cool–perfect. I taught and taught and lunched and taught and by the end of the day I had a really impressive headache lodged behind my left eye. Ugh. I did not feel like doing anything but lying around in the dark, but I got on my bike and headed down to the gym. Then I discovered I’d left work I needed at the office. Sigh. Monday on Wednesday. Continue reading
Vines on a Blighted House on Delachaise & Danneel
I spent the day working at home until I had to head to campus for what turned out to be a positively delightful reception with colleagues organized by M., the chair of my department. I took the bike, of course, and stopped at the post office to mail a thing or two. It is so much faster to run errands by bike than by car, folks, and in weather like we’re having, so, so much more pleasant. I was less than a block Uptown from the post office when I noticed this house covered in vines. Continue reading
What I Saw Riding My Bike Around Today 