On a personal note, I am really home sick for New Orleans and have been thinking about it a lot.
So here goes and thanks Paul
I just returned from a refreshing little weekend trip to SoCal for some fun in the sun. As I was driving down the coast I happened to catch a radio showcalled "Ridin Dirty" (http://www.ridindir tyradio.com). They were enlightening their fellow Californians about Carnival in NOLA. They even interviewed Arthur Hardy, Mr. Mardi Gras. I listened for about half an hour as they tried to describe something you really have to see to appreciate. I was amazed to hear that even people in Los Angeles are jealous of New Orleans' ability to throw a party.... and this was the day AFTER the Oscars. L.A. only knows how to throw parties for the uber rich while the not so rich have a riot. In NOLA, rich, poor and in between flood the streets to celebrate life. It is the greatest free party on Earth. Ain't no hurricane ever gonna stop it... New Orleans isn't a place so much as it's a cultural experience. In the words of one great Angelino,"Mentally or physically I want to be in New Orleans"... sitting on a sack of beans, of course...
