Memories

I am eating potato chips, drinking a tequila soda and listening to the Great Deluge--a book about Hurricane Katrina.  I have read Zeitoon, watched Treme and five days at Memorial Hospital, listened to several podcasts and another book about NOLA.  

My first visit to NOLA was in 1998.  I attended Mardi Gras with my friend, the bad Sarah (long story).  We left midterms at KU and drove the with no reservations.  We had a stop in Baton Rouge with my adoptive brother's family.  Malaysian cousins would welcome and host us.  They were incredible.  Three different families that offered us kindness, hospitality and karaoke.  Sarah was allergic to their cats and so we were moved, effortlessly, to one of the other cousin's homes.  The next morning, they followed us into NOLA to make sure that we were safe.  We did not have a hotel reservation or hostel.  Only a belief that we would figure it out.  Not to mention, Sarah's aunt would be in the city.  She attended Mardi Gras annually.  Unlike my adoptive family, Sarah's aunt shamed us for not having made accommodations.  She suggested that we would be sexually assaulted if we stayed in the truck or near the quarter without a hotel reservation.  Reluctantly, she offered us a place on her hotel floor after telling us it would cost her $50 per wrist band.  I told Sarah to handle it as my family had moved us seamlessly with no issue to accommodate Sarah's allergies.

We returned a year later with other friends of Sarah's.  This time we arranged accommodations and had a plan.  We would cab into the city and attend Mardi Gras.  I was with a few gals and few men.  We separated amongst the sexes and took on the quarter.  We arranged a meet up at 10:30 pm at Cafe Du Monde.  We went to Pat O'Brien's for hurricanes.  I remember being solo.  Sarah had grown up with Gina and I was the odd man out.  Cavalier, I thought I would be ok on my own.  They were hanging out and I remember talking to some random guy and him being a little suggestive/aggressive.  I became disoriented.  We had to meet up with the other guys at 10:30 at Cafe du Monde.  We arrived where I threw up crawfish all over the table.  Super classy.  One of my best moments.  Truly, I believe I was rufied at Pat O'Brien's.  To this day, I will not step into Pat O'Brien's.

I love New Orleans.  Always have.

I did visit NOLA in 2008 on a cross-country trip from Florida to Arizona.  My traveling companions were afraid of entering the city.  Freaked out by the visual destruction of the of Gulf Coast.  In 2008, it was still visible from Mississippi to Louisiana.  My friends could not wait to get to Dallas to somewhere we they felt safe.  We stayed between the Marigny and Quarter.  I felt fine.  My friends could not wake up fast enough to escape the city.

I think I am remembering where I was 20 years ago and being astounded by the lack of response for this city.  It is still disgusting how we treated the residents of New Orleans.

This book does not lack of details.  There is FEMA breakdown, communication breakdown between the local and state governments, lack of resources, government incompetence.  I do not think I understood the multitude of what the residents faced from watching the news.   Some of it was sensationalized at the Superdome.  That should not matter.  People were suffering.  No water, food, dry clothing, ability to move outside of where people found themselves.  

I know I am not doing this justice.  I am rambling.  Yet, this is the future of this country.  The climate denial and lack of aid to areas that are hit by hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes, haboobs, etc.  Find your community.  Build upon it.  We are the saviors.  Proven time and time again.

Upcoming events

Why do some people tend to self-sabotage?  Or am I the only one guilty of doing this to myself?  I have ideas and plans.  Talk about them and then struggle to bring them to life.  Sometimes waiting too long or talking myself out of doing them.  I think I have been this way since childhood.  Definitely in college.  I was in a class, senior year, to write a thesis and dissertation.  The requirement was that I attend a nightly class to discuss my thesis and have support amongst my peers.  I hated the class.  Felt uncomfortable and did anything in my power to avoid going to this class.  I felt that I didn't belong with the other history students who seemed more committed to their beliefs.  

Instead of completing the class, I arranged with my advisor to write a paper and not be considered for the dissertation aspect of it.  He would grade my paper instead of the professor in that class.  I was embarrassed by my lack of effort, but I didn't feel I was good enough for that class.  That was a defining moment of my life.  Opting to fail instead of striving for success.  It seemed easier to remain in the bubble of my comfort zone.

I believe I am thinking about that time as I have been curating a yoga retreat for the last few years.  I talked about it last year but didn't put much effort into it.  Timing seemed off and then 2024 was over and a new year had begun.  I didn't want to host a retreat in the winter, and summer could be challenging due to people's travel schedules, then there are holidays, etc.  You understand what I am saying, right?  I was making excuses for not actually putting anything together since it would be easier to fail than try to succeed.

This year I was determined to be different.  I looked at potential dates in June and had an idea of what I wanted to put together.  Still, I hesitated to create the optics to share it with others.  I have clients that are interested but needed more information.  I finally put together a flier with information last Saturday.  I shared it with some of my closest friends to have them look it over and make suggestions to what information I was missing.  After a few back and froths I composed the flier and just released it on my social media.  I was hoping to share it here, too.  For some reason, I am finding difficulty uploading the graphic from an attachment.  I will need to look into that.  Tre yoga retreat is in Santa Fe October 9th-12th, 2025.  Accommodations located near the plaza/Ft. Marcy Park.  Yoga offered twice daily with some free evening to enable exploration of the City Different.  I love Santa Fe--the food factor, history, mysticism, galleries, culture.  Truly it is one of a kind.

Regardless, I am putting it out there and am ready to do some different.  Ready to believe in myself and see what is possible instead of what I have always thought.  Easier to remain in the comfort bubble.  Time to move beyond it.