back on track

In my first week back I wrapped up 4 days of glory at the French Quarter festival. Made new friends in strange and sudden ways, I’m sure that the alcohol had something to do with it.  But not entirely. Spent three action powered days with Larry my chef friend from LA., who swears that he will be coming back, the place has gotten under his skin just as it has mine. The saying here is that the mud is thick-it sticks to you.

When walking down St. Louis we spied an interesting scene that we couldn’t identify so we paused and turned to ask the guy on the stoop what we were looking at. He said that it was his home and when we jokes that “Well honey I’m home” he invited us in to his private party, treated us to some really decent red wines . The house formerly belonged to Al Hurt and as is typical of houses in the Quarter, it took up a small amount of curb but once inside, went on forever. out into an open courtyard.Out back by the old slave quarters there were giant boats of crawfish and bowls of sweet southern praline’s. We stayed for hours and swapped restaurant stories.

Life is grand. Sitting C.C.’s on the internet and having my french roast. I must return to Robiere’s and pack. Today I move to Napoleon to D’s and start my work with her. I think today we will start with steam cleaning one of her apartments so that she can get some rental income.

D. is my Blanche, right out of A Streetcar Named Desire.  She smart and spun, cultured and careening, a once moneyed old New Orleanean, who would be comfortably retired if it were not for Katrina. .I suspect that she suffers from PKSD- Post Katrina Stress Disorder. Her house in the Garden district once belonged to Earl Long, Huey;s brother and governor of Louisiana. The roof was breached in the hurricane and she has not been able to get her insurance company to pay out.  Common story We met in a soup kitchen that she was running and I was volunteering in. Her food sense is refined and she is demanding and the result was probably the best food that any soup kitchen has ever produced. For my birthday last year she took me Galatoire's. Before we went she called to make sure that her favorite waiter would be waiting on us, they assured her he would. In old world New Orleans you are nothing without your own waiter at Galatoire's and your family tomb in a reputable cemetery. 

I have been busy rebuilding again.
(I've already installed a toilet, raised a roof, worked a machete until my arm refused to move, installed dry wall and ancient cypress mop boards and got back my favorite tool, the chop saw) connecting with old friends and going out to clubs day and night reveling in all this rich culture, ever flowing generous music, and eating, always eating.

I am way behind in my emails and in writing for myself. Have to figure a way to correct this soon. 

.  If you have HBO please watch 'Treme' I know quite a few of the 'real' characters in it and it gives you a some idea of why I'm so in love with this place.

Bon temp