Find me HERE.
Drive carefully.
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Cupcake and I spent five days in New Orleans last week. It's been a very long time since I graduated from Tulane Law School and I haven't been back since. My heart shattered along with so many others' after Hurricane Katrina and I've been pining to return so Cupcake and I went down the day after Christmas while her brother was visiting friends elsewhere. Some observations: Drew ("Feel the" or "Cool" or "It's a") Brees is adorable and has The. Best. Name. for stadium signs and advertising. You can buy a temporary tattoo that looks creepily like the quasi-football-shaped birthmark on Drew's right cheek, should you desire to wear one to the next Saints game. Alternatively, you can attend a game wearing a black and gold tutu, or this: 
There is no better dining experience anywhere in the world than what you'll find in New Orleans, whether it involves a chili omelet, pecan waffle and mocha freeze at the Camellia Grill; shrimp remoulade and Bananas Foster at Brennan's; turtle soup at Galatoire's (wish the service had been a bit more attentive); or Mile High Pie ("Mahl Ha Pah") at the Ponchartrain Hotel, may it rest in peace. Even for someone who hates eggs, spice and seafood ::coughCupcakecough:: there was plenty of delicious food to choose from, and nobody went hungry. I was fortunate to snag one tiny taste of Bananas Foster before receiving distinct fork marks in my wrist as a warning to stop reaching for another bite. 
Don't anybody panic but I think New Orleans is suffering from an epidemic of falling streetlights. The night we arrived we were standing on a street corner, minding our own business, reveling in a Saints' win along with 70,000 of our nearest and dearest new friends, when suddenly, out of nowhere, with no warning and to our surprise, the traffic signal not more than ten feet from where we stood keeled over into the street, where it courageously persisted in alternating green, yellow and red as a couple of blithely unconcerned policemen dragged it to the sidewalk. Cupcake swore it was not her fault: 
but for the next three days it seemed that everywhere we looked traffic lights were keeling over: 
The above photo was taken the night before we came home in an entirely different part of the city, where the light valiantly kept beaming signals to any birds or bats flying overhead that might have needed to know which way the traffic was supposed to be flowing at street level. New Orleans is recovering admirably from the ravages of Hurricane Katrina, with the help of the residents' joyful spirit and many generous hands, notably Brad Pitt's phenomenal Make It Right Foundation, which so far has built 73 homes in the devastated Lower Ninth Ward, all of which are energy efficient and storm resistant and dazzlingly modern. We took a taxi tour through the neighborhood and saw many exciting homes like these: 
All of these homes have solar panels and roof access, tall pilings to raise them high off the ground, and air conditioners mounted on the roof. Twenty-one architectural firms contributed an impressive array of designs so that homeowners can choose layouts and features that suit their tastes. We also saw many vacant lots and homes that looked like this: 
See the holes in the roof? That's where rescue workers had to use axes to extricate people trapped in the attic. See all the vacant space? That's where homes still need to be replaced. And please, would somebody finally open a grocery store or drugstore or school or restaurant in the Lower Ninth Ward so the residents that are slowly and doggedly trickling back into the community don't have to leave the neighborhood in order to live their lives? The people of New Orleans are relentlessly friendly. It's shocking to be greeted everywhere you go by a nod and "How y'all doin'?" and it's challenging to respond appropriately when you spend all day looking down because a) you're too shy to look people in the eye and b) you're monitoring where you're walking to ensure that you don't trip over a sidewalk that bubbles up nearly three feet due to the live oak roots beneath its surface: 
We tried to concentrate on returning all friendly greetings from streetcar drivers, streetcar passengers, waiters, homeless people, Saints fans, and homeless Saints fans riding streetcars. In conclusion... Okay N.O., you win. I won't stay away so long next time. Cupcake and I hope to see you soon.
