Christmas in the South
It's the first Christmas I've spent in the south. Since my husband's cousin Dorothy had a family gathering in Baton Rouge, we just stayed in town and wandered. We found the Five Happiness Chinese Restaurant on Carrollton and had Christmas dinner there. It was great--just what the doctor ordered. The weather was overcast and chilly--a change from the very warm weather that greeted us when we arrived two weeks ago.
We're starting to get back into some kind of normal groove. The move and the real estate dealings were the hardest things I've ever done in my life. Now that we're here, it's strange not knowing what's next in life. We plan to eventually build a little house in Texas for now, but plans change as opportunities arise. I'm finally realizing that I have no real home to speak of, which is sort of par for most people in New Orleans. At least those folks KNOW that, in general, New Orleans is their home. For sure. No doubt. There is still this strange part of me that remembers my home being in Utah, but I think about it more, and realize that NO--that is not my home anymore. And it's strange being here this time and not having to go back to home, to work. My home was also my work, too. But that's not mine anymore either.
The one constant though is my husband. My best friend, business partner, and adventure buddy, he is the whole reason I'm even here. I may not have a home or a job at this point, but I do still have my husband--it could be worse. There are a lot of people here that, after the storm, after the return home, after cleaning and rebuilding, their relationships just fell apart...after all the really hard work we've been through, and living and working together since we met over ten years ago, I am happy that we are still hanging in there. But now we're in new waters. This will be a whole new chapter in our lives, and I can only pray that what has come before will prepare us for what lies ahead...whatever that is.
Hubby and I will actually begin working this week on the construction project we came here to do, so I don't know how busy or not busy I'll be in the long run as that job will soon be finished, and we will have to either a) move on, b)stay and get jobs, or c)do something completely, totally, as-yet-unforseen. I saw REALLY cool, big house on Esplanade that was for sale, but it was really big, really old, and really in need of lots of TLC. Lots. I plan to go take a look at it and see if I can get a showing--if it's safe to even enter, that is. I'll get pictures and put them here as time and opportunity permits.
-----
As an interesting side note, I've had a few sightings of famous people since we've arrived. Unfortunately, I've not seen anyone associated with the movie that's being filmed a few blocks away, but I did see George Lucas in a coffee shop on Magazine Street last week. For those citizens of New Orleans looking for Mayor C. Ray--I saw him at the Shops on Canal Place last week, too, and I said hello. He said hello back. And although I'm not 100% sure about this particular sighting, and not many folks will know who this is, I'm almost totally sure I saw MSNBC producer Willie Geist wandering Bourbon Street a while back when the Redskins were in town. He's really really tall. But I'm actually really short--almost vertically challenged, but not quite--so I would guess he would look pretty tall to me. With my luck spotting these people, it gives me hope that I could actually go out and find an Ivory-Billed Woodpecker, which in my moving recovery and general malingering, I've not yet done.
We're starting to get back into some kind of normal groove. The move and the real estate dealings were the hardest things I've ever done in my life. Now that we're here, it's strange not knowing what's next in life. We plan to eventually build a little house in Texas for now, but plans change as opportunities arise. I'm finally realizing that I have no real home to speak of, which is sort of par for most people in New Orleans. At least those folks KNOW that, in general, New Orleans is their home. For sure. No doubt. There is still this strange part of me that remembers my home being in Utah, but I think about it more, and realize that NO--that is not my home anymore. And it's strange being here this time and not having to go back to home, to work. My home was also my work, too. But that's not mine anymore either.
The one constant though is my husband. My best friend, business partner, and adventure buddy, he is the whole reason I'm even here. I may not have a home or a job at this point, but I do still have my husband--it could be worse. There are a lot of people here that, after the storm, after the return home, after cleaning and rebuilding, their relationships just fell apart...after all the really hard work we've been through, and living and working together since we met over ten years ago, I am happy that we are still hanging in there. But now we're in new waters. This will be a whole new chapter in our lives, and I can only pray that what has come before will prepare us for what lies ahead...whatever that is.
Hubby and I will actually begin working this week on the construction project we came here to do, so I don't know how busy or not busy I'll be in the long run as that job will soon be finished, and we will have to either a) move on, b)stay and get jobs, or c)do something completely, totally, as-yet-unforseen. I saw REALLY cool, big house on Esplanade that was for sale, but it was really big, really old, and really in need of lots of TLC. Lots. I plan to go take a look at it and see if I can get a showing--if it's safe to even enter, that is. I'll get pictures and put them here as time and opportunity permits.
-----
As an interesting side note, I've had a few sightings of famous people since we've arrived. Unfortunately, I've not seen anyone associated with the movie that's being filmed a few blocks away, but I did see George Lucas in a coffee shop on Magazine Street last week. For those citizens of New Orleans looking for Mayor C. Ray--I saw him at the Shops on Canal Place last week, too, and I said hello. He said hello back. And although I'm not 100% sure about this particular sighting, and not many folks will know who this is, I'm almost totally sure I saw MSNBC producer Willie Geist wandering Bourbon Street a while back when the Redskins were in town. He's really really tall. But I'm actually really short--almost vertically challenged, but not quite--so I would guess he would look pretty tall to me. With my luck spotting these people, it gives me hope that I could actually go out and find an Ivory-Billed Woodpecker, which in my moving recovery and general malingering, I've not yet done.
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home