The Rising Tide Conference: Success
Congrats to the organizers for pulling it off. I haven't beeen around so many cool people over the age of 25 since I was 25.One story I didn't tell: The Lakefront area is not my stomping ground and with my terrible sense of direction, I got lost at least 3 times. Not realizing how close I was, I stopped to ask a few folks on bicycles (fitted out in bright, new-looking biking gear) where the NO Yacht Club was. Only one turned to respond and he said, "Oh, you mean Southern, it's back that way." [Southern is the HBCU spin-off of UNO.]
"No, the NO Yacht Club."
"The Yacht Club used to be up that way but you're looking for Southern back behind you."
The thanks I gave was deeply insincere.
Oh, do I have to say these folks were white? Do I have to explain why Lakeview and the surrounding neighborhoods are a mystery to me? Is there any wonder WHY the US at large is uninterested in helping "black, poor" New Orleans?
G Bitch at 9:04 AM
11 Comments:
Hi G,
I met you at the NOLA bloggers conference on Saturday. I'm the old white lady. I got lost 3 times too. We were poor whites when I grew up in NO, so I did not know my way to the Yacht Club either. If there's a way to get lost, I will find it. There's is something missing with me when it comes to finding my way to strange places. I ended up going the wrong way down Pontchartrain Blvd. All the cars were blinking their lights until I could pull of into a driveway and get the hell out of their way.
I enjoyed the conference and meeting all the cool people who care so deeply about my home town.
Peggy Wilson, I'm afraid, was the exception; She's something else ain't she? While I was buying my book from Cooper and Block, she horned in on my conversation with them after I said that I'd have liked Landrieu to be elected. She went into a tirade about the Landrieu family. It was like waving a red flag in front of a bull.
If my memory serves me, she was Queen of Carnival back in the day. I suppose I should treat her highness with more respect, although she, herself, was on the "public dole" for a number of years too.
I thought you were great on the panel. You said your piece and said it well and then passed the mike on.
I'm pleased to have met you.
Thanks, Grandmere Mimi! Welcome! I enjoyed meeting you, too.
Yeah, the snooties are snooty to all.
And Peggy Wilson is....Peggy Wilson. Creepy.
No, G, PUT DOWN THAT GUN! They were trying to direct you to the Southern Yacht Club, which is indeed down the street. Many people don't know about the one we were at because Southern is more famous. They probably thought you were going to apply for a job flipping hamburgers there. Heh Heh.
And, ya'll, if Peggy Wilson was ever the queen of carnival, then I am the queen of fucking Bolivia.
Dangerblond, here's what the dividing line creates--2 languages. Not that him thinking I was looking for a fry cook job is any better.....(and is probably what I sniffed in the air)
Gun in holster.
But I'm still looking over my shoulder.
It was a fine venue for our purposes, but was definitely off the beaten path. We should've had people holding signs and directing y'all straight to the NOYC. We certainly didn't make it easy, and I apologize for the inconvenience. (Many more had similar difficulties.)
I just hope and pray those "helpful" cyclists were still out when the torrential rains hit at midday.
Thanks again for being a panelist, Dr. G.. And might I say that I think you're pretty cool your own self. (But when you uttered the word "grammar" during the afterparty, I did have to run away.)
====
What the hell, I'll say this too: Friday night, while I was talking with some of the NOYC members (who were in general extremely friendly and helpful) I asked an old guy who stayed during the storm what he did afterwards. "Pulled n---ers out of the water for two days."
I was caught (slightly!) off guard by that comment, not knowing whether to say "Uh, Great job!" or "PARDON ME? You were pulling WHO out of the water for two days?". Instead, I think I muttered a deadpan "wow, that's something else" and quickly excused myself.
Just another profile in liberal blogger "courage", I thought I'd share.
GB,
You should have punched that old guy! He was probably making up his 'heroic' role, anyhow.
The CP
Oh, I'd forgotten about the "public dole" comment. Thanks, Grandmere Mimi, for reminding me of that gem.
"The Yacht Club used to be up that way but you're looking for Southern back behind you."
If they were talking about the yacht club that used to be and Southern as two different things, then I think you had it right the first time, G-Bitch, because the Southern Yacht Club is the one that "used to be." It burned down in the aftermath of The Storm.
OK, Lisa, gun out of holster.
I got so entirely lost, I ended up being too late. Glad it went well though!!! :-)
I didn't really have a problem finding it but had it heavily mapquested. Coming up Canal there was no street sign on Robert E. Lee (there's a lot of no street sign going around it seems), but on Friday evening, driving in, I needed to change out of my car-riding clothes, so stopped at the BP on that corner to change, and asked. So I guess I cheated. I thought leaving on Friday night was the most remarkable because it was so dark. You could sense the emptiness.
It was great meeting you.
It was great meeting you, too, Sophmom.
I need to re-emphasize my poor sense of direction. Again. And one more time.
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