Sunday, December 30, 2007

2007 NOLA Trip Part 5: Picture Gumbo

Hiya. Here are just a few pictures I took over the course of the week.

Here's my digs at Camp Hope. The sleeping bag I got as a loaner from friends Courtney & Kris -- I actually borrowed it for the March 2006 NOLA trip and have yet to return it. I'll return it soon, honest! In the top right corner of the bed, you may be able to barely make out the flannel lamby sheets I brought with me to put on the bed. I tried to make sure whenever I got up for the morning that the lamby sheets were covered by the sleeping bag. I felt like a dork for having them in a room full of 20 or so guys, and I unfortunately had the bed you see whenever you first walk in the room. But hey, flannel lamby sheets are so darned comfy. What ever did I have to be embarrassed about?


On one of the mornings in Camp Hope it was quite foggy. Seeing the sun through the fog and the trees made me think of the bayou, which, for all practical purposes, we were surrounded by.



When Andy and I went in search of the levees, it was foggy as well. Here's a picture of a bridge I should probably know the name of, but don't. I do know the bridge was over one of the canals, however.



Saw this bird on the canal. DGuzman, or anyone who wants to wager a guess, please lemme know what kinda bird it is. I actually saw a whole flock of them by the ruined warehouse documented in Part 4, but couldn't get close enough to get a decent picture.



Just down the road from The Joint (a restaurant described in Part 3), there was a sign in the window of a house. I liked the verbiage -- "Appropriateness". Hey, I'm a sucker for verbiage.



A quick snap while crossing Canal Street. A little dark, but festive.



I like me some neon! This is in the French Quarter.



This hotel lobby in the French Quarter just looked too damned snazzy for me not to take a picture. No, I don't remember what hotel it was, please do not ask me.



Just a door I thought looked nifty.



The aftereffects of Katrina ripple in the most unexpected of places. Stenciling hours, for example.



A trolley line right near the Mississippi River. Not pictured, the Mississippi River.



Some people are drawn to "TOPLESS", others are drawn to "BOTTOMLESS". For me, it's "MODERATE PRICES".

17 comments:

Fran said...

Thank you thank you thank you. This has been brilliant and moving and humbling.

And honestly, the flannel lamby sheets say volumes about you and Splotch, trust me- it is all good things.

I am glad that this is the first blog I looked at today, on this last day of the year. Thanks again.

Matthew Hubbard said...

I am a birder from my childhood, but the species haven't changed that much in the past forty years.

That's an egret.

Egrets? I've had a few. But then again, too few to mention.

Barbara Bruederlin said...

It takes a real man to sleep on lamby sheets. I'll bet the others would have been impressed actually.

Freida Bee said...

I am both in fear of and enthralled by such a thing as a "certificate of appropriateness," assuming, I could never earn one myself. I agree that moderate prices is something Dig Daddy should taut for those of us on a tight, uh, budget, what with the families and kids and all.

Moxie said...

I loved all the photos! Thanks for taking me with ya on the trip. Next time I head to Chi-town I will look you up.

Joe said...

I am so thrilled that you found a strip club advertising "moderate prices". Where was that exactly?

Unknown said...

That door is nifty.

Diamond Dave Diggler said...

Matty Boy is correct. It is probably a great egret (Ardea alba). I hope you washed your pants after getting a lap dance at the discount strip joint. Ewwwww...

Happy New Year!

Tenacious S said...

OK, I am a total dork. I scrolled through all of the pictures eager to see a picture of gumbo. I'll settle for bottomless dancers, I guess. Hope it was fun.

Randal Graves said...

I can think of many humans who'll never earn a certificate of appropriateness. Great pics, and good work. And a happy new year to you, sir!

Distributorcap said...

a mensch in part 4, menscher in part 5

a great 08 to you and SplotchClan

Splotchy said...

franiam, aw shucks.

matty boy, thanks a lot! For the bird ID, not the pun. I see that you have unleashed this and some more puns on your own blog. Shame on you! Shame, shame, shame!

barbara, as Huey Lewis once said, it's hip to be square.

freida b, speaking of strip clubs and a tight budget, the first time I went down to New Orleans, I had to borrow a couple singles from MizSplotchy in one of the French Quarter strip clubs.

moxie, cool! Looking forward to meeting you.

bubs, it was right in the heart of Bourbon Street.

wyldth1ng, ain't it, though?

CTC, I actually did not visit a strip club this year. Almost, but not quite.

ten s, I probably should have had a gumbo picture in my picture gumbo.

randal g, thanks a lot! And happy new year to you as well!

dc, and to you and yours!

Unknown said...

I am tired of complaining about the bad internet connection yesterday. Those satellite SoBs, if they can't give me all the band with I need why the heck are they in business. I digress.

I should say something about how I admire you for going to NOLA and providing a humanitarian service to the people there but I won't.

I am struck by the Big Daddy's Pic. I am drawn to it not because of the topless, bottomless or prices (I remember it was not cheap) but I am drawn to the memories!

dguzman said...

Hey, sorry I'm so late! Mattyboy nailed it--Great Egret, Ardea alba. Beautiful bird. Here's your birder facts: When it's hot and they have young in the nest, they spread their wings to give the babies some shade. They'll hold that pose, wings up and spread, for hours. How cool is that?

dguzman said...

Oh, and I am drawn to the dark square covering her "bottomless" parts....

Michael said...

Thanks for posting the photos. The bridge looks like the Claiborne Ave. Bridge. It crosses the Industrial Canal, separating "Bywater" (formerly the Upper 9th Ward) from the Lower
9th. There are a couple more bridges across the canal (St. Claude Ave. is just south, Florida Ave. is closer to Lake Ponchartrain).

And yeah, the bird looks like an egret or heron. We see a few of em up here too (I'm in Baton Rouge).

Splotchy said...

mathman, if it would not get you into too much trouble, please share some of these memories!

d, that's pretty nifty about the wings. I realize egrets are something pretty exotic to someone used the birds of Illinois (and so seeing them was quite a thrill), but reading your blog has really made me more attuned to the birds around me, and for this, I thank you.

michael, you know, I think you're right, that's probably the Claiborne bridge. Thanks a lot for visiting!