30 hours....

I have been back in New Orleans for 30 hours now.

Rolling into the city last night was a strange experience. Both sides of the twinspan bridge had collapsed during the storm but I knew one side was restored and I could come in from the east. Once you get past the cones and barricades and the seven miles of bridge you find yourself in Slidell and the rest of New Orleans east. It was nighttime so it may have taken a few extra minutes for me to realize that it was very dark. No power has been restored to these areas at all and save the occasional street light or small (travel, not FEMA) trailer, there was only darkness. It was a feeling that overtook me as I made my way past the now defunct Six Flaggs and all the way to the Vieux Carre exit. The exit becomes a T at the bottom of the ramp, facing a welfare project. Now abandoned, it added to my feelings of disbelief. I made my way to my apartment through stop signs rather than stop lights.

Dogs are excitable. When you haven't seen them for two months they are extra excitable. I was worried for a hot minute that they wouldn't remember me, but they did and nearly knocked me down with their playfullness. Jeff was probably as glad to see me as I was to see him. We just sat for a few minutes soaking in the moment and then we unloaded the car and he went off to find a parking space. After he came back we talked for a bit and then he headed to bed and I headed out to see what was going on in the quarter.

The quarter is somehat messy. There is limited trash pick-up but my bar is open and running and probably the only gay bar to be able to keep a crowd. Tonight I saw a ton of old friends which made me very happy.

Last night everyone was asking me, "are you glad to be back?" and I didn't know the answer. I still don't reall know if I am happy overall, but if you break it down then yes I am happy to be here. I walked my dogs, I had drinks with some friends and dinner with another. Jeff had been telling me that he had painted our house so I was worried about the outcome. I must say, it all looks great. Even the orange bathroom is good. The banana trees are growing back. There are very few lights ( traffic or otherwise) on St. Charles avenue. Some of my favorite places are still closed. There is a general apathy in the people. I drove uptown to a pet store to get food for the dogs and it was a nightmare of traffic and HORRID drivers. When I left for the bar there were three National Guardsmen with M16s standing in the doorway to Cossimos watching the game on an overhead TV. The bar was fun, again, I saw old friends and felt very welcomed by the people I came across. I walked home with three other friends who offered (and I declined) to smoke a joint with me. They still smoked and I walked along with them until it was my street to turn to go home. Lawbreakers, guilt by association but part of the bohemian (Read: not stinking dirty rotten hippes) atmosphere that was the New Orleans I remember.

Am I glad to be home...yes in many ways I am, but I was and am still sad to have left Indianapolis and all I knew there.

30 hours and counting...

Law