John Boutte' Singing Leonard Cohen's Hallelujah at dba (with us singing the chorus . . .)
Singing along with Bruce all day Sunday at the Fairgrounds. "New Orleans loves Clarence!" Something You've Got.
But first:
Zara's Market. Hubig's Pies. The Saint Charles Avenue Streetcar.
Mass at Saint Augustine's in Treme' – eyes filled up during the homily, ears filled up during the rest. Later, thinking: "I heard a great drummer on Sunday. Where? Ten o'clock mass . . ."
The Trolley Stop on St. Charles.
Earth Day in Bayou Saint John. Taxi drivers (too many to mention): "look for me on season three!" will do . . .
Getting my 14 year coin at a 7:15 AM meeting in the Lower Garden District.
Red beans and rice, jazz on Frenchmen Street.
Otis at Faubourg Art and Books. World Book Night – giving away The Stand (half a dozen) at Felix's Oyster Bar.
Breakfast at The Camellia Grill!
The Rink: Iced coffee at Still Perkin'. Garden District Book Shop. Butterfly in the Typewriter. The new Offbeat!
Seeing Big Sam at Café Reconcile, only telling him half of what I wanted to and then getting a second chance that night at Lafayette Square! Looking up to see him on stage with Tab Benoit.
Elizabeth's "Real Food Done Real Good."
Armstrong Park. Congo Square. Where it all started (?) It sure felt like it . . . Leo Nocentelli sits in.
Walking in the Garden District, holding hands, to Juan's Flying Burrito on Magazine.
Jazz Fest! (Got the tickets?!?)
Ya Ka May, crackling's, Boudin Balls, Strawberry Lemonade, Muffalettas! (vegetarian and otherwise), iced Café au Lait. MANGO FREEZE!
(NORTA rocks -- $2.50 round trip to the Fairgrounds each day. (FYI: Festival Express -- $18.00 for the same trip and you got to ride a pre-Katrina yellow school bus to boot!) Taking the 91 to Rampart Street, taking the 5 to the Bywater [driver gets out at Harrah's to use the ladies room, leaves the bus running . . . ]Hopping on and off the Streetcar!)
Having honest, intimate conversations with perfect strangers.
AMB stays put in the Jazz Tent, gets misted all day, and gets the best end of the deal . . . although she does miss Men of Class Social Aid and Pleasure Club and Paulin Brothers Brass Band.
101 Runners! Let’s go get 'em . . . .
Hopping out of a cab at on Frenchman and bumping into John Boutte'.
Susan at dba, our new best friend. Sharing the bar with the chief from Treme'.
Western swing at Checkpoint Charlie's (booze, grub, a pool table, paperback books and a fully functional Laundromat!)
Mark, an intern (mechanical engineering) our waiter at Café du Monde. (Where the only engineering required is how to get half a pound of confectioner's sugar on 3 beignets).
Back at he Fairgrounds . . . Trombone Shorty mails it in and I still can't get enough: "ooh, ah . . . ooh . . . ah, ah, ah!"
The good Doctor nails it – twice!
"From shotgun shack to the Super Dome . . . wherever this flag is flown. We take care of our own." And we did!
People hilariously intoxicated . . . dude knocks a lens out of his own shades, doesn't even notice, and apologizes to me when I point this out to him . . . oblivious!
Free Sangria on Gentilly (set me back about a sawbuck for the three days . . .) $1 Lemonade through the fence on Lopez.
And then . . . .
Blue Monday.
Shopping spree (that'll help!!): Southern Candy Company for pralines, Louisiana Music Factory for CD's and vibe, Beckham's Books for Black Cherry Blues and lunch at the Ruby Slipper (There's no place like . . .)
Bellman at the Marriott convinces me to cut it close and go back to LMF to see Jon Cleary do a live in-store. But first, sees my shirt and tells me about the Grateful Dead playing at The Warehouse in 1970 ("busted down on Bourbon Street . . ."). Says it was "the most uncomfortable place in the world to see music" (he went both nights). Tells me about tailgating at the Jazz Fest in Congo Square in those same years . . .
In-store starts on time! Cleary rocks: When You Get Back, Toussaint and Professor Longhair! (do I hafta go?!?)
Heading home, planning my next trip on the cab ride to the airport -- "Do you know what it means . . ."
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