paisleypiper's Diaryland Diary ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- cresent city blues I'm updating from a hotel room in New Orleans via this strange web tv service called lodgenet. I'm not convinced of its merits, but, as I am lonely and needing to reach out I am actuall quite grateful for it. Alone in the Cresent City staying on the cusp of the French Quarter, how does that happen, you might wonder? I'm here for a conference on civic engagement educational research. I am the only person here from my city at an event where I'm under-credentialed. People look at me askance, they wonder how I can be permitted to be at their party ... actually they don't. I'm just reading that drama into the situation because I'm horribly terribly shy and really can't join other people's fun. And to tell you the truth I havh't seen many people alone or standing around with that friendly look on their faces. I've done enough networking to keep from becoming racked with guilt, though. New Orleans for a woman alone not particularly looking to not be alone is a bit daunting at night. I've never mastered the art of eating alone in a restaurant for dinner. My big dilema in hanging out in the hotel is whether I will get reprimanded at work for eating room service for dinner both nights. But I have done some exploring in pockets of time when I have not been dutifully attending to the research of my professional field. I've concluded that New Orleans is either an exotic city or almost sort of "third world" depending on where one is. The public schools are struggling. Someone told me they are the worst in the nation but I was able to fix that local impression with tales of the school district where I live. In some ways NO seems old and a bit European or South American. I love the architecture, the colors, the incredibly antique shops and art galleries, the weather. I'm stunned by the energy -- the hauntedness, the tarot card readers, the palm readers -- this clutural sense that spirits abound in the world. At the same time,I'm struck by the huge diference between the extremely wealthy and the poor. The debutants who spend 20,000 on their ooming out dress, the places with trash on the sidewalk and people on the streets making themselves at home. This evening I went on a walking tour of the haunted places. I have a certain amont of senstiviy to paranormal events and I must admit that I am not unaffected. In fact, I'm a bit uneasy at times out there. It could be my feeling that I am alone and ill equiped for a big city (i.e. I brought the wrong purse). Or it could be something else. My sense fill up, I take it all in and enjoy seeing different sights. At the same time, I'll be happy to retun home. I always miss Quinn, our home and the pup. 6:47 p.m. - 2003-11-17 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
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