decay and dancing

After working on the previous post, I was still thinking about loss and it seemed that the obvious place to visit next was Lafayette Cemetery No. 1.  I remember being a little girl and passing by the cemeteries here in New Orleans and being fascinated (and kinda scared) by the above ground tombs.  Here are a few images I made.

Tiniest tombstone ever. 

Then, as if by some miracle, my lovely friend Heather invited me to a concert on Tulane's campus.  It was the College Consciousness Tour with the band fun. and staring Janelle Monáe! A great show....me and Heather couldn't stop dancing! Thanks again Heather!!

 New musician Timothy Bloom (pretty good)

fun. (yep, they were fun alright)

Janelle Monáe!! She was amazing!

At the end of the show, she climbed on top of the crowd!

VICTORY!!

great losses in a great city

I know, I know...it has been awhile since my last post.  But don't think I'm giving up on this that easily.  I've been a little busy the past few weeks; got a job! Yay!  Finally after applying at about a dozen places, I landed a job I really like thus far.  I'm hosting at one of the Brennan family restaurants and I can already tell that it's going to be a good company to work for.  

But on to the real reason for this post.  I found myself wanting (no, needing) to go on a photo hunt.  I had no plan, of course.  I got in my car and starting driving around on the lakeside of St. Charles Avenue.  This area seems to be a contradiction; on one block you'll find adorable shotgun homes with perfectly manicured front porches right out of southern nostalgia.  On the next block you swear you've driven back in time to the Ninth Ward a few weeks after Katrina.  

It was here at the corner of First and Dryades that I spotted something that took me by such surprise that I immediately pulled over.  On closer inspection, I found that it was some sort of memorial.  A large white cross spotted with brightly colored, child-sized handprints stood not too far from a pile of stuffed animals that had been wrecked by months of rain and sun.  Above that, the street signs had been draped in countless beads that eerily mirrored the oaks on St. Charles with their year round reminders of the Mardi Gras festivities.  This was by no means, however, a happy place.    

I started to make some pictures when a voice startled me a bit.  "I remember when that happened...I was standing right there," was what it said.  When I turned around, I was facing an man who introduced himself as Alfred Nash.  "He was shot during a Second Line."  While he talked a little more I studied the cross closer and was horrified by what I discovered: the boy's name was Jeremy Galmon...and he was two years old.  

Mr. Alfred and I talked some more while I continued to make pictures.  He spoke about his disgust with some of the youths of the area and the violence they incited.  We both talked about our love for New Orleans and how these great losses of life were a scar on the city.  But when I think about it now, I feel that it is important to remind people that it does exist.  New Orleans is not just the French Quarter and the beautiful homes on St. Charles; it is a living breathing city with real people and real problems that need real solutions.  For that reason, I've decided to bring you these photos as a testimony to a city that might have a long way to go but I believe has the determination to be a place where our youth can grow up safely and flourish. 

 Mr. Alfred 

 To top off the sense of loss, this whole event happened right next to a church. 

Words to live by. 

St. Louis and a shoe shine

So the other day, I took the streetcar and made my way over to the French Quarter just to wander a bit. I made a few images...enjoy : )

 I liked this one because the guy is praying but the next one is a bit sharper.

These next few images were taken in front of the Hotel Monteleone.  I loved to progression of the interaction and I really like presenting images as a series.  You can tell that even though they are from completely different walks of life, they are enjoying each other's company.  In the last image, the man receiving the shoe shine on the right sees his wife across the street and smiles at her. And, yes...he is using shaving creme to shine his shoes.  An interesting slice of life I thought....

And on the home front.....

My new favorite lil dining nook...

 ...but I still can't decide where to hang my first piece of original Nola art. I got this a year ago from an artist in Jackson Square named Lance "Varg" Vargas.  You can find him on facebook at http://www.facebook.com/leveeland 

I finally found some coasters!! I got the water meter ones from a shop on Royal called Forever New Orleans.  You HAVE to check it out...so much cute stuff!  I wanted it all!  And how funny are the "Gulf Coaster" ones?? Got those from another shop on Royal that sold tons of adorable kitchen stuff, mostly Nola themed.  And part of the purchase went to the Gulf Oil Spill Fund.  Cute coasters for a good cause...can't beat that. 

And a Madison update...took her to the vet today because of a nasty cough she has.  She has feline asthma! Poor baby had to get a shot and have her temperature taken....you know, up the.....welllll we won't go there.  But she did so good and hopefully this shot will help her out! 

finally....helloooooooo, New Orleans!

Ok, so as cliche as this sounds, I'm sitting at a Starbucks right now, drinking a deliciously cold iced latte and updating all you lovely folks on my most recent news: I'm finally moved in!  I mean, it only took three separate days starting with the small stuff (including my gazillon pounds of clothes) and finally the war of moving my furniture into my upstairs apartment.  But I had help from my amazing mom and the always helpful (albeit, prankster) Fred, my stepdad.  For the last three days, I have been unpacking, hanging up clothes, moving furniture, shopping at Wal-Mart (I think today's visit was the third so far) and hanging pictures.

However, Saturday was a nice break from all that.  My very best friends Lisa and Amanda along with their friend Alex made an impromptu visit.  At first, Lisa had every intention of helping my unpack; but nevertheless, we decided to go the the Quarter and spend the day shopping, site seeing and (of course) drinking.  I couldn't believe they had never been to Pat O'Brian's! It's definitely in my top 5 of New Orleans hangouts.  The Piano Bar alone is worth seeing.  I treated them all to the famous (or rather infamous) Hurricane and delighted in watching their faces as they tasted the potent cocktail.  It was all around a perfect break from my mess of an apartment.  Alas, I completly forgot to bring my camera and I'm still kicking myself for it.

I did, though, manage to capture some images of my new home in progress.  I am so in love with the area.  Of course I'm not going to give the exact location (creeper) but I will say that I was lucky enough  to swoop up a decently priced place in the Garden District.  Later today I am planning on exploring the area a little more, camera at the ready this time.   

 My room...before (chaos) and after (ahhhhh...) And you know you love that mannequin : )

Madison hid the first day for about 10 hours.  Now she thinks she's a model. 

My lovely lil blue bathroom

I bought that barrel at the flea market for ten bucks. Now it's an awesome table. Thanks Fred for the help!

Living room coming together

My kinda adorable vintage stove

I went for a little walk at the end of the day.  This church is a few blocks from me. I can hear the bells in the morning. This was built in either 1905 or 1903 can't remember right now but it was beautiful. 

What's next....a plague of locusts?!

Rain. Flash floods. Wind. Fire. Oh, yes....I said fire.  I'm pretty sure Mother Nature or God or whoever you believe in is conspiring against me. Either that or I'm just really good at picking the worst weekends to move your whole life to a new city.  This'll be funny in a year or so...hopefully.

 Tropical Depression 13, huh? Ironic much? 

Drove through that smoke yesterday.  Imagine Burnt hair, peanuts and rubber mixed together. SO bad.