29/8/2011 - NOLA, revisited.

Another fun day in New Orleans today, apart from this time it was with Andrea, Walter and baby West.
Before Andrea picked me up at 2, my day kind of fell apart. I was meant to get up early and do some yoga, but I slept in so didn't have time to do any and have felt sluggish all day because of it. When I did get up, I didn't have a lot of time, so after a quick email check I went to the Post Office, where I had an argument with the woman because apparently I can't send things home by sea, which is bullshit because I did it just 2 days ago. Ended up having to pay £31 - what a joke. Then I went to books-a-million and got a little notebook, because I'm tired of using my journal to write things that aren't journal entries. In my little book, which is green and says 'Be The Change' on the cover, I now have a collection of chords for various songs for the piano, so if I stumble across one again, I won't be stuck for what to play - preparation or what? I'll also use it for recipes I learn, yoga sequences I find and other things I learn. Anyone who knows me well will also know why this book that I found is perfect for me, I didn't buy it though.

I came home and was about to sit outside and eat some yogurt when Andrea turned up, right on time! We went back to her place and I got to play her parents beautiful baby grand piano, which I loved! She recorded me a little, and it just felt so good t be playing and singing on a real piano again. Yes, I'm a piano snob - a keyboard is not the same thing! We then set off for New Orleans! Walter went to play basketball whilst me, Andrea and West went to the aquarium. It was awesome, there was an amazing massive tank full of all kinds of fish and creatures, as well as a shark which had a humpback. Pretty sure it wasn't meant to have a humpback as another one looked exactly the same, but with a flat back. But this big tank, which was the Gulf of Mexico tank, was sponsored and funded by all the major oil companies. Oh the irony that it's them who destroyed it in the first place so that the animals have to be conserved.

We walked around for a bit after this, got a drink and looked at the pretty buildings, then we went over to the restaurant we were meeting Walter at. I had the chicken and spinach warp, which was delicious. In the car ride home we spoke a lot about politics, Hurricane Katrina, oil companies, austerity measures. It was good to speak to someone who not only knows what they're talking about, but also holds similar views to my own.

Got back here, packed some more, refreshed myself on netball rules ready for tomorrow and now I really have to sleep. Shannon is picking me up at 7am - eek!

1000 miles seems pretty far, but they got planes and trains and cars, I'd walk to you if I had no other way.

Plain White T's, you know my brain. I'm taking a break from packing, been rolling and re-rolling clothes all night trying to get them to fit into my backpack. Packing is the worst part for me, I hate it. Plus I know I've bought things that aren't going to fit so I'll have to send them home - boo!

Hehe look at little chubby baby Russell in the photo behind me - such a cutie!

The one thing I never pack in my backpack is this hoodie. At first because it wouldn't fit, but it's become the hoodie I travel in now. I mean, I know I'm constantly travelling, but I mean my plane/train/bus hoodie that stays with me and my carry on luggage. There are conventional uses for it, y'know like keeping me warm when the aircon is too high or it's nighttime on a Greyhound bus from New York to Boone. Or to sit on if the seats look a bit suspect. But on that same Greyhound ride, I zipped it up around my legs and used it so I could change my underwear. Believe me, when you're on a bus for 24+ hours with very little sleep and food, changing your underwear is a simple pleasure that you wanna grant yourself. I think I've done pretty well on the packing though, although there's some stuff in the drier that still needs to be put in there, and obviously the stuff I need day-to-day can't be packed until Tuesday night. I'm actually looking forward to my 9 hour train journey. I like trains, and I enjoy the actual travelling part of travelling as much as anything else! I like having my iPod in and to look at the scenery blurring past me, it makes you feel important and insignificant all at the same time. 

I've been looking for things to do in Houston too, and found that on Monday 5th September there is an event called the 'Free Day of Yoga' in Mentil Park. I guess we know where I'll be Monday! It starts at 8.30am with a group meditation, then at 9.30am there's an hour and a quarter class with Raye Lynn Rath followed by music and food! There's also a free day in the Museum District at some point too. I've also found some sleeping pills to aid my 14 hour flight from LAX to Auckland, recommended by Shannon, because sleeping on planes is not something I do well... I don't like to sleep through dinner in all honesty. I don't even think airline food is all that bad - it's a free meal guys, c'mon. So I'll go buy those tomorrow, along with sending home excess clothes and books. 

TOMORROW I GET TO PLAY A PIANO - I AM PSYCHED. 

Oh, I bought this today too, because I enjoy conforming to the "I'm British so I love the Beatles" stereotype, not merely because it's true. It's also a cute shirt and I got it a size up so it's baggy and comfy and lovely. Only after Emma had helped me understand Juniors sizes though. You would assume if something said it was juniors it was for kids, no? Apparently not, it is actually generally teen clothes, but the sizes are in odd numbers - 3,5,7,9 etc - rather than conventional 'grown up' even sizes. So Emma explained to me that being a  US size 8 makes me a size 9 in Juniors. Very confusing for us foreigners... and angering considering all the cute clothes I've stayed away from because I thought they were for kids. 

My day tomorrow looks like this;

- Wake up mid morning
- Yoga
- Shower and get ready
- Pack clothes from the drier
- Ask Gerald to take me to the Post Office, again
- Some kind of contact with home
- Andrea's picking me up at 2pm
- Play the piano for a bit
- Go into New Orleans with her, Walter and baby West
- Have an awesome time
- Refresh myself on netball rules
- Sleeps ready for a super busy day on Tuesday.

... I do love lists.

"You can reach me by railway

                                                         You can reach me by trailway

You can reach me on an airplane

You can reach me with your mind

You can reach me by caravan

Cross the desert like an Arab man

I don’t care how you get here

Just get here if you can"

.......

"There are hills and mountains between us

Always something to get over

But if I had my way

Surely you would be closer

I need you closer"

28/8/2011 - Krewe of OAK

We're all aware that I headed off to New Orleans with Shannon last night. Actually, it was Shannon, her husband Chris, and their friend Andrea and Walter. I met Andrea and Walter last weekend (remember the Elvis saga?) and they're real good people. Everyone I've met here is really nice.

Shannon picked me up at 3, then we went to get Andrea. Andrea let me have a look at the dresses she had, and I picked out a gorgeous gold one to try on and possibly wear that night. She also bought a bag of goodies to decorate ourselves with - so awesome! Then we went back to Shannon's so we could choose dresses and get ready. I tried on the gold one and it was a bit short - but no fear, Andrea suggested some ruffly green shorts underneath and they worked perfectly! By now you're all thinking "Gold dress, green shorts with ruffles, Geri, what the hell?" but we were of course dressing up for the parade! Before we went to the actual parade, we went for dinner at a place called Luizza's which was lovely, if a bit chilly, and I had a really tasty crawfish pasta!

And to give you some information...

The Krewe of OAK describes itself as "More secretive that the Masonic hierarchy, more powerful than the Bilderbergers" and they hold a mid-summer Mardi Gras in August held in the Carollton neighbourhood. The difference is that the floats are made over golf carts and it's very inclusive - get involved! The parade route starts and ends at the Maple Leaf bar and proceeds down Oak Street, maybe this is where the name came from? Although members day that OAK stands for Outrageous and Kinky, and you could definitely see that in the costumes yesterday! There were brass bands and dance troupes and all kinds of people. We had so much fun, dancing around and generally having a lot of fun!

Also last night Andrea said I could go over to her place and play her parents grand piano - you guys have no idea how excited I am about this! I haven't played the piano since I was in Boone, and I miss it, and it's a real piano and I'm totally psyched! I don't know if I've mentioned before that Shannon is a school teacher, well I happened to be talking about netball last night and found out that they don't have netball here in America. So guess who is going to go teach netball to kids on Tuesday? As part of the curriculum, kids here have to learn a sport that's not popular in North America, enter me! Shannon's got to get permission from her principal but that should've be a problem. It will be so fun, must refresh myself on the rules though, it's been a while. Maybe that JSLA will actually come in handy.... ha!

I cannot wake up on time.

It's an issue, it really is. Or if I do wake up, I make a mental note to get up, then fall back asleep and miss whatever it is I'm supposed to be at. This morning, it was breakfast. All you can eat breakfast. I am disappointed in me for sleeping through the prospect of food.

Anyhow, going into New Orleans tonight with Shannon for a mini-parade called 'Outrageous and Kinky!' - yes, we're dressing up!

26/8/2011 - Swamp Tour!

Last night, I could not sleep. Simply - I went to bed at midnight, and laid awake until 5 or 6am when I finally dropped off, only to wake up again at 7.30ish. I am living on a maximum of 3 hours sleep, this does not bode well for my mood, or my tolerance level. I laid in bed until 8.30am, drifting in and out of sleep but not really gaining any. This has resulted in me practically being a zombie today.

However I powered through and got shit done! ("And in the interests of powering through...") Not only did I go to Gwen's office to print out my various tickets and booking confirmations, but I also made it to the Post Office. Came back, ate lunch and then went on my tour.

Turned up at the place, around 20 minutes away, and realised I was the only one there for a tour that started in 10 minutes. Brilliant. Nonetheless they ran the tour and $20 later there I am on a boat with an old guy who calls himself 'Cap'n Daniel' for 2 hours, in the middle of a swamp. Sounds safe, no? It was more than sketchy. No I exaggerate, Cap'n Daniel was actually quite nice, if a little odd. It was hot as balls on the boat, but I managed to keep myself in the shade so no burn, yay! Saw some alligators who didn't want to come eat. Then saw some raccoons who really do look like little bandits. Not only do they have the eye mask look going and the striped tail, but they're little hands and fingers are really quick, they're perfect little thieves. Also saw some birds (Blue Herring, Egret) but the best birds were the vultures. Firstly they were really creepy because they followed us and kept flying really close, like they were waiting for us to keel over so they could have dinner! But the reason I loved watching them was they reminded me of the vultures in the Jungle Book - "I dunno, what'd you wanna do?" 


I saw a 12ft alligator who is apparently named Big Mac eat some chicken. 12ft... that is bigger than two of me. This alligator could swallow me whole, twice. That stuff is scary. Also saw a smaller alligator called Old Peg-leg, self-explantory but because he is missing a leg. The swamp is beautiful, actually, but in it's own special ways.

So now I'm watching the news and thinking how lucky I am to be out of New York and North Carolina as Hurricane Irene looks like its going to cause destruction. New York has a mandatory evacuation notice, as well as much of the rest of the East coast.