Wednesday July 15th, 2009
If anyone tells you that sleeping more than 10 hours is a bad thing, that person is lying to you. That was exactly what I did and it felt awesome. Today was much of the same good stuff as yesterday but with an unexpected visitor: clouds. An hour or two into the work day, clouds rolled in and brought relief from the pounding sun. What a difference a few clouds make. As a result of the favorable weather, we worked almost twice faster than yesterday.
Before lunch, we met Steven who was a resident of New Orleans all his life. Being a musician, he lived literally across the street and benefitted from Habitat for Humanity’s work. His previous home was destroyed in the hurricane. One condition to home ownership through Habitat was community service, which was a great way to facilitate the circle of giving. It was a great benefit to speak with and work alongside him. He had a cool, laid back personality which was complimented by the fact he had was a jazz trombone player. Prior to lunch, I asked him where the best place to get a Po’Boy for lunch.
A few miles west of out site on Saint Claude’s road, we found Gene’s. I ordered a Roast Beef Po’Boy which was roast beef, lettuce, and pickle on a toasted French bread. Very simple, but delicious. These things were meant to feed Po’ Boys or a lot of food for little money. That roast beef po’boy satisfied me in ways other sandwiches couldn’t. As we returned to the work site, it became dark and cloudy…
The rain came down with a ferocity that’s unrivaled by Chicago’s mild storms. It came hard and long enough to end our work day early. A 30 percent chance of scatter thunderstorms is no joke down here.
The storm subsided late in the afternoon. From my experience yesterday, I decided running would be a bad idea. In addition, I managed to strategically miss a nail and land my hammer into my knee. It sounds a lot worse than it felt, but it was good to give it a day’s rest.
Before long, Pastor Rustin and company offered us some good eats. Tonight was jambalaya. Similarly to the Po’Boy, jambalaya arose from the Cajun culture that was known to make a lot of food with cheap ingredients and spices such as paprika and cayenne. I think I found my favorite southern food.
Our day ended with another stroll down Bourbon Street. One of my goals while in New Orleans was to drink five drinks that the city was known for: Hurricane, Sazerac, Ramos Gin Fizz, One, and Two. Tonight I perched on a barstool at the Absinthe Bar to order a Ramos Gin Fizz. I knew I was in trouble when my bartender cracked an egg open as the first ingredient. The middle ingredients were on par with the usual cocktail mix of gin and some soda. She topped the drink off with whole milk before she shook it. My stomach yelled for mercy, but the sounds of Bourbon Street drowned all other sounds. Cheers to good health!
After slurping down that frothy drink, we headed home on Saint Claude Street, but were redirected after a dozen police closed down the road. Strange and interesting night.
