ahh so many interesting things(!!)

A now-oldish picture from the Mississippi Border.

Many things about which to speak.

Since I last updated (thanks for all your comments, ahem ahem), we have traveled to New Orleans (for almost a week), Baton Rouge, Lafayette, and now, a lovely little college town whose name I forget.

First, New Orleans. Allow me to whet your appetite with several choice pictures, most of which are of me. Another exciting thing about these pictures is that I AM NOT WEARING MY LITTLE BIKE AND BUILD ENSEMBLE IN ALL OF THEM. WOW!

Here is a picture of me and my flared-out* bike outside the church we stayed in:



*Here is a close-up example of flare:

(Matthew's mom sent this cow-horn to me, and for that I am forever grateful. Especially considering that my own mother never sends me mail. LOVE YOU MOM. Material goods do not make you happy, material goods do not make you happy.)


So happy. AND MATTHEW I AM SORRY FOR THE DOUBLE POST OF YOUR PICTURE.


On the banks of the Mississippi. Ah, the beauty of the industrial.

I have several other pictures of NOLA (as those in the know -- not me -- call it) but by and large I failed in the picture-taking department. Luckily a word says a thousand pictures (false).

The ride into New Orleans was fine -- long, hot, lots of flat tires -- but riding through towns that had been demolished by Katrina put everything into perspective. The number of driveways with no houses at the end was astonishing. Getting into the city, we rode though parts of the Ninth Ward. People were on their stoops, and life was continuing, but the devastation was readily apparent. And this is two years after the hurricane. I wasn't sure how to feel. Pity seemed condescending -- but thern and again I felt pretty damn condenscending already riding through on my shiny bicycle in my special matching jersey.

The days that followed helped to clarify my emotions at least a bit, and I began to feel less like a tourist to the destruction, and more like a participant in the rebuilding. I mostly helped paint on our "build days" -- god can I roll a paintbrush. The last day was especially great: the homeowners were there and they were so appreciative of our help. The mother gave me a hug when she walked in and then fed us a delicious lunch.

All in all, the city is amazing -- we got a chance to walk around a bit, go do the touristy things (Bourbon Street is a nightmare), see some jazz, EAT FOOD THAT WAS NOT PEANUT BUTTER AND JELLY, etc. I want to go back sometime for an extended period of time. There's an amazing volunteer community in the city now, and an incredible amount of optimism and spirit. There are so many more things to say but I am having trouble balancing my ever-meaningful coming-of-age life-changing-experience observations with day to day details. So. Moving on.

Here are some more pictures of our post-New Orleans rides.


Great road sign.


WE FOUND PUPPIES. And irrationally wanted to keep them as our mascots. But ended up giving them to someone who "worked for a vet for 6 years". Some claim that he was in fact a taxidermist. One thing is for certain: the puppies were the least clean in the land. One peed in my Camelbak.


WE FOUND A BURNING BUSH. Go down, Moses? (Or something like that. My biblical studies were halted around the second grade.)


And this is not from the road. But we found this dress hanging on the door of our room this afternoon. YES.

And with that, I'm off. The time I have on this library computer is running out almost as quickly as your attention span.