My friends in New Orleans

I have a history in that city going back about eleven years now. I lived in the French Quarter for a bit, and over in the Garden District too. I kept touch with my friends over the years until, sadly, most were displaced, either by Hurricane Katrina or Hurricane Jackie Clarkson, the doyenne realtor who became City Council President basically so she could turn the French Quarter into a clone of Colonial Williamsburg and increase the value of her properties there by driving out all of the "undesirables" (people who have less than a million dollars or so to their names).

Two of my oldest friends are Detrick, or "D", and Melanie, shown here. D is one of the French Quarter's oldest and most well-known street entertainers, and I've known him and Melanie since I first lived in New Orleans back when I was going to school there and they're great people.

Most nights, D can be found just off Bourbon Street (because sidewalk performers aren't allowed on Bourbon Street anymore per one of Queen Jackie's edicts) and he engages passers-by with his wit and invites them to pose for pictures in return for a bit of financial consideration. Here he is, doing his thing:
Also, I had the pleasure of meeting up with Glenn, who has been blogging from the French Quarter for years. He pulled the plug on his original blog not long ago, but he still has this one where he posts some fantastic photos of things around the Quarter. Although we probably agree on very little politically or philosophically, We've enjoyed each other's blogs for quite some time now and this time, we managed to get together for drinks. Here he is with Nicki.
Glenn, you're truly a gentleman and a scholar, and it was a delightful evening.




And then there's this guy: I don't know his name but he's been doing this in Jackson Square forever. He plays music on a bunch of glasses filled with varying amounts of water. He's teaching Nicki to do it here, and like all performers, naturally expects a few bucks for his efforts. But he was a fun guy, and no one was disappointed at the conclusion of her music lesson.