Gone Traveling--Day #3&4

Days Three and Four went quickly. I was actually tied up in a seminar the large part of both days. This was my real reason for being in New Orleans. It was incredibly educational and interesting but I can't go into a lot of detail about it because it was a lot of SPS--Secret Police Sh--uh...Stuff. The program was "Street Survival", put on by Calibre Press, and it's one of the premier continuing education courses for law enforcement personnel. It's all about training and tactics designed to keep cops safe and sane and if you're on the job, it's well worth it, even if you have to pay for it yourself, as I did. It is, of course, strictly police-only--as courses like this should be. And even though I'm not presently on the street, I still stay connected. Besides, I need the deductions this year almost as much as I needed the short trip back to New Orleans.

All in all, I managed to enjoy myself. One of the two days, come lunchtime, I took a couple of my fellow attendees down Carondelet Street about a block off on Canal to a little joint called Hobnobbers. Now to call it a dive would be an insult to dives, but back behind the bar is a small kitchen and dining area that offers some fantastic no-frills local fare. I had to tell my guests to cover up their cop ID's, because this isn't the sort of place where you advertise that sort of thing, but for about ten bucks each, we each came away with paper plates heaped high with more catfish, shrimp, potatoes and other good stuff than we could comfortably eat. I love this place and if the health department ever finds out about it, it'll be gone the next day, but until then it'll always be a favorite of mine.

As the week-end grew closer, Bourbon Street became more and more lively. And as the cold front moved away and temperatures rose, more and more young ladies wore less and less clothing. I wasn't complaining. I stayed out late both nights, and just to tweak the seminar instructors who'd admonished us all not to show up hung over or drunk on the morning of the second day, I acquired a 32-ounce plastic cups from one of the "to-go" beer stands--one that bore the words "HUGE ASS BEER" in big blue letters--and before class I ducked into a local cafe and had it filled with coffee. Then I strode into the ballroom where the class was beginning, wearing my dark sunglasses and a few strands of Mardi-Gras beads that I'd likewise picked up just for this occasion and holding my cup up where the lecturer couldn't possibly miss it.
I give her credit...she knew it was a set-up and wasn't about to take the bait in front of two hundred or so cops, especially when they'd all seen it too and were waiting for her to say something. But she didn't. She caught me later and laughingly called me a name that I won't reprint here because my momma reads this site, but it was all good.

After the seminar was over, I retired to Landry's at Peter's and Decatur Streets to get one of the best shrimp po-boy's that you can find in New Orleans. I then strolled down the riverwalk to Cafe Du Monde to have an after-dinner order of beignets and their unique chicory coffee "Au Lait" while I read my book. Then I hit Bourbon Street and stood around drinking and taking in the sights for a few hours. Life, without a doubt, is good.