new Things I Ate in Cambodia: in recent memory

Monday, September 15, 2008

in recent memory



Some thoughts from the past week:

- I enjoy saying "bivalve". It is a classic and eminently useful word, especially here.

- Last Monday, I grew bored with being good and studying and decided to take the streetcar to Bourbon Street for no particular reason. As I was being Good, I declined many offers of drinks from various people and walked around for a bit flirting with cute national guardsmen and catching snatches of music from various nightclubs - every genre you can think of. I was leaving when I discovered a brass band had suddenly materalized on the corner - a very good one - so I decided to stay, watching as a variety of weirdos seeped out from the woodwork to shake their asses in a tourist-free-post-Gustav temporary stay. It was a good time.

(Also, an Entergy guy in a pickup blocked the entire St Charles line for about an hour because he went to go get a drink (as so many of us are wont to do) and forgot about his car. This mean the RTA system got flustered as hell, dispatching someone to find him in the bar, any bar, while someone else figured out if they could tow him. This was also a good time.)

- There's a sort of post-hurricane promenade people do, wandering about the neighborhood on foot, in twos or with a dog, seeing how the neighbors Made Out. They walk slow and look kinda dazed - Johnny lost his fence and Margaret's little stone angel done blown down and there goes Bob's new windows - and silently pray (how silently?) that it Did Not Happen To Them.

- Destruction was minimal. A lot of trees went down, in some places, and there's signs and street lamps scattered all over the place, and a big old pothole that likes to eat cars, but we'll live. I kicked a street lamp to see if it would change color again and a little ol' lady laughed at me, and I was duly chastened. Little old ladies run the south in a tight and lavender scented mafia.

- We had a lot of post-Ike wind this past Friday and the weekend or thereabouts, gusting and thumping about my windows and smashing palm fronds down and blowing kids all around the campus like billiard balls. This was exciting.

- Had a lovely time at August (again) last night with my Aunt Ellen, who's in town for business. We arrived around 7:30 through the rain and were introduced to our waiter, Seth, who we were both very fond of indeed. He did an excellent job - and either due to benevolence or the fact that Ellen ever-so-casually mentioned my blog, a few delicious freebies appeared. Once Ellen sends me the photos, I will of course write it up. August pretty much has me in the palm of its dirty, seductive little hand from here on out. Damn you, John Besh! I can't quit you! Now let me cover myself in braised pork cheek ravioli!

2 comments:

Passionate Eater said...

Wow, glad to hear that you are okay. Gosh, next time I go to August, I have to mention my blog too! Haha!

Faine said...

Seriously! I was initially a bit embarrassed but my aunt was definitely on to something...