Dip...Bump...Dip

Of course, one weekend is not nearly enough time to be in New Orleans. But the time we spent there was amazing! Today we tried to cram in as much as we could before we finally had to head back to Tallahassee. We had to get our beignets fix at Cafe Du Monde before we could do anything else. I was also glad to get a cafe' au lait in my system. We then took in a little more of Jackson Square before grabbing some lunch at a place Mer was pretty excited about. We had some seafood at Ralph and Kacoo's (except Kins who had to have house salad because they were out of fried pickles). We had a semi-entertaining waiter with very unique scenery. We sat next to a window that housed a scene that included an alligator. When the waiter asked if we wanted our picture taken with the gator in the background, we emphatically said no. While I am sure this is not a response he gets often from tourists, we tried to help him understand that coming from FSU, that picture would be a sin.

After lunch, we hopped in the car to drive back down to the Garden District to see the above ground cemeteries. We stopped at Lafayette #1, which unfortunately not open on Sundays. So we looked from outside the gates and got a brief history lesson from Billy. We also learned that the grass was not going to be cut until late may due to filming....whatever the point of that was. Then we made a short trip to Lafayette #2 to experience a little bit of the difference between tourist New Orleans, and real New Orleans. Although not far from the first and on the same road, the attention given to this neighborhood was markedly less. Yet my interest in the unique mausoleums was just as high, and it was interesting to see the difference.

Billy was then gracious enough to venture to the Lower Ninth Ward to give us a small look at how far they have come and still have to go since Katrina. The scene was certainly somber and humbling to see first hand. I can not even begin to imagine what it would be like to have to spray paint "Do not demolish. Will return." on the front of your home or not even have enough of a home left to claim. The marks of inspectors and if people were found inside the homes after the storm are still abundant, and the vacant lots reminded us of how many people still cannot go home. While they have come a long way, the work there is far, far from over.

Then our trip back home began. While we were exhausted, we still reminisced about our whirlwind weekend. Here are some final random quotes and thoughts from the day:

Random guy's opinion on the smell of Bourbon St.: "A giant elephant should come take a shit so it can smell better." (to his defense, anything in the world smells better than Bourbon St...that is why there are so many bars...the more you drink, the less you may notice...maybe)

Billy's comment about a new born in the restaurant at lunch: "I give it 3 weeks."

On the bumpy LA roads: Mer: "I think my spleen and lungs have switched places." Billy: "How do you think my shrimp feels?" (I should let your imaginations run wild with this, but I will fill in here that Billy ate a ridiculously large lunch with many versions of shrimp dishes.)

A giant no smoking sign on the side of a warehouse full of fireworks for sale...probably a good idea, and should be common sense. Right?

As much as we love you Sonic, a "Fresh Banana" for $1...ripoff.

Sonic is delicious.

And The Verve Pipe's "The Freshmen" is still one of the greatest songs.

So I will end for the night by saying what an awesome weekend, and I cannot wait to go back! Be on the lookout for some pictures tomorrow because right now I am too tired to deal with the camera. I will possibly even add some things I have inevitably forgotten to write. (Or I will hope for the rest of my partners in crime for the weekend will comment with more randomness that they remember!)

Final words: Dip! Bump!

Better than a Hostess Twinkie

The goal was to update this again last night. However, the day had different plans, and my body revolted by the time we got back to the hotel room. So as we are packing up to spend our last day in New Orleans, here is a quick post about yesterday's adventures.

After no more than five hours of sleep, we all habitually woke up early. No worries though, then we could maximize our time in the city. We found a random place for lunch, Montrel's Bistro, where I had my first crawfish. Pretty tasty, but messy and a lot of work. Plus I will admit it took me about a minute and a half to get past the look of them. Then I enjoyed some classic red beans and rice, so did Kins, while Billy had some shrimp creole, and Mer enjoyed a shrimp po' boy. Meredith and Kinsley also found that the restrooms in this establishment were gracious enough to be upstairs and include a person-sized window in the stall. Who doesn't want a view of New Orleans while you pee?

Then we walked the river and strolled around Jackson Square where I bought some folk art to add to my collection. We took in the street performers and had a laid back afternoon. The only disappointing part was finding what we thought was a brewery, Jackson Brewery, that turned out to be a brewery converted into a mall. Then we thought they had a museum of the brewery inside the mall, but that was a bust as well. So we decided to go on an adventure to the Garden District. This involved a series of street cars, of which the operators were less than pleasant. (Nothing like the trolleys in San Francisco.) It also took us having to get off to run into a CVS to get our exact change for the ride back. The cashier was equally as pleasant. The view was nice, though, and we made our way back to the Quarter after a relaxing ride.

We then redeemed the afternoon by Billy going on a search for a gift for a friend while Meredith, Kinsley, and I went to a neat little bar and cafe, the Napoleon House. There we enjoyed some wine and cheese in a calming courtyard. Once Billy rejoined us, it was time to find a place to watch the Kentucky Derby. I have to admit this is the first time I have ever watched this race. We ducked into a kitchy little bar in the historic Monteleone Hotel. This place did not have mint juleps unfortunately, but it did have a bar that looked like a carousel where the seats around the bar rotated. Pretty cool.

After the race, Mer and I left Billy and Kins to enjoy the Quarter while we went to enjoy the Death Cab for Cutie show at the Contemporary Arts Center. Ra Ra Riot and Matt Costa were really good, and Death Cab of course was amazing. The venue was a warehouse, which made for a cool atmosphere. The crowd, however, was on average half our age, which made for an interesting atmosphere. The place was packed, and near the end of the show, we actually had to make our way to the back to avoid overheating ourselves, and there we found the people our age. (Are we officially getting old? Crap!) But again, the show was awesome!

We made our way back to the Quarter, stopping to get a hot dog from a street vendor, and then passed out back in the hotel. Kinsley and Billy came back to tell us of their adventures at Harrah's Casino, Pat O'Briens, Jackson Square, and Cafe Du Monde. During the evening, Billy was blessed with another random person talking to him. The guy felt compelled to let him know that he was left handed, and it was sterile. What that meant...who knows?

Now to let you know where the title of this post originated. On our walk to the Napoleon House, Meridith, Kinsley, and I saw a man playing a trombone. We almost stopped for Kins to take a picture, but before we could he shouted: "Y'all are better than a Hostess Twinkie. You're three treats in one!" Needless to say, the picture didn't happen. We just continued to walk.

Now we are off to enjoy our last day here. More to come, I am sure!

Things You Can Learn During a Car Ride - And Then Some

The trip to New Orleans begins. During the 6-hourish car ride, here are the things we learned:

1) Arby's is the ultimate travel food. (In addition to Dairy Queen of course.)
2) You can always find entertainment in a gas station. (read: cowboy hats and gummy snakes...maybe some pictures to come?)
3) The Verve Pipe's "The Freshman" is a great song.
4) No one can follow Mer and me...."Oooo! Chuck E Cheese!" "Sweet!"
5) Roadside attractions make a roadtrip (read: Buc-ee's)
6) Debate why a casino billboard has the number to a gambling problem hotline at the bottom.
7) McDonald's apparently needs a spotlight on the roof at 12 am.
8) Louisiana has fun bumpy roads.
9) Alanis Morissette's "Ironic" should have said "Isn't it a coinkydink, don't you think?"
10) There is apparently such a thing as a "fancy" version of "Rocky Top." And by fancy, we mean it is sung by a woman, has techno beats, and is a more modern version of the ridiculous song.

Best quote for the night: Random guy "I'm a smoker. My lungs are black." Billy "You're fine."
Funniest find: Bangkok Spa
Drink tip for the day: You can't make you're own Hand Grenades. But they are delicious here!
Tip for the night: Don't pee on peoples cars. At least use a wall.

And, I am the only person that walking down the street can get something stabbed in their foot. Yea. I am that lucky.

Here is looking forward to tomorrow and more great finds!

New Faces, New Places (...and New Orleans!)

I have spent some time recently contemplating the realization that I have officially completed my first academic year working at Florida State University. Weird. I cannot say I have really come to terms with the number of thoughts going through my head right now yet. However, I can say this past year (officially a full year in July) has been...well...an experience.

I lived my whole life (well, most if it...that is another blog for another day maybe) in South Carolina. A true Carolina girl at heart, I grew up in Rock Hill and then spent six years in Columbia doing my undergraduate work at Columbia College (Go Koalas!) and then graduate work at the University of South Carolina (GO COCKS!). After graduation, I decided, for a number of reasons, it was time to get out of the state and try something new. Long job search story short, here I am.

I have found that Tallahassee (aka South Georgia) is not very different from the culture in SC, although there are some distinctions. Nonetheless, it has been a very new experience for me. I drove the seven hours in a U-Haul with my Jeep in tow alone, to an empty apartment alone, and unpacked alone. (With the exception of Julia helping me return the U-Haul...I probably still owe you for that!) Luckily it was 4th of July weekend and I have some pretty amazing friends in Orlando that let me crash their celebrations with them before starting work. Then, July 7th came, and the "new life" officially began.

Fastfoward...I have met and now hang out with some pretty cool people. My job has been a rollercoaster, but I feel like I am ready to take on the next year in stride. My coworkers are much more like friends, and so are some colleagues across campus. Movie days, coffee nights, poolside afternoons, pool halls, dinners, ice cream and donut runs, and I am working on some karaoke in the near future, I have to say I think I have found something of a niche. Of course, I miss the "Smiling Faces, Beautiful Places" of SC, especially when I am in desperate need of a Saucer Night, the porch at Jake's, or just good times with the people that were there and those that still are.

To break the sappy stuff, though, I still have lots to think about. What is coming next? Who knows...but I am enjoying the journey to get there for now. And tonight is my first trip to New Orleans with a few of these Tally people. Look forward to some interesting posts this weekend I am sure!

Sidenote: Congrats to all FSU grads today. You all will do great things!

Blog a Day in May

As I mentioned, this blog is starting because of a bet. Currently, we have 7 participants, including myself. The goal, of course, is to blog everyday. But here is a break down of our guidelines: (thanks to Meghan)

Official May Blog-a-thon Rules:

- Must blog every weekday in May (weekends off- Memorial Day is a weekend).
- Mid-week vacations are NOT exempt from blogging (if you need to sub a Saturday or Sunday fine- but let us all know first! None of that "whoops I forgot to post on Thursday- I will make up for it on Saturday" garbage!
- You may post about the challenge in your first blog- or as your first blog.
- For it to count as a post, you must use words... this is not a scrapbooking contest. There is no specified minimum number of words or language preference. Blog in Hebrew for all we care.
- In the event of a tie, quality and quantity of posts will be judged.

Followers and comments I think are going to grab us extra kudos in the long run. (hint hint)

I am not sure where this blog is going to go, or where it is going to take me. Maybe it will just be cathartic, as my mother says. Maybe it will be an interesting read for someone somewhere. Maybe I will find a theme. Maybe it will be totally random (which of course is more likely since life is pretty random by default). Of course the competitive side is coming out, which may make this even more interesting. Whatever happens, here we go down the rabbit hole!