i am new orleans

i've always insisted in saying that i am from baton rouge because that's where i was born. i think it's pretentious and fake to say anything else, but when i think of home i don't think of baton rouge. i love the oak trees dripping with spanish moss, the chimes with its ridiculous selection of beers on tap, the etoufee at chelsea's and the lakes around lsu, but that really doesn't feel like home to me. to me, when i think of home, an aroma of new orleans comes to my mind accompanied by a montage of vivid pictures. it's the beignets at cafe du monde at 4 in the morning. the sun rising above the mississippi, pushing the moon on its way. its the bars lit by candles and the streets cluttered with transvestites and frat boys- the whole shebang. that is home to me: new orleans.

i yearn for this city like a drug, like a fix that i need when i'm away. the colors, the smells, the music literally feed me when i'm away. i close my eyes and smile when i think of this place, the closest thing to home i've got.

today, i returned to nola on an errand that led me to a friend's house which led us to a music festival and then lunch at coop's in the quarter. nothing planned or high stress, just easy living. i can feel myself relaxing into this mentality and letting go of all of the bullshit i was dealing with back in miami. people here have nothing to offer but their kindness, and they do it readily. it is such a beautiful shift from the culture of TAKE TAKE TAKE as fast as you can, before someone notices they're being ripped off. i tell you what, this city may not seem like much, but there is a spirit here that is indestructable. there is a vitality here that will persevere. there is a voice here that i admire and, though shabby and rustic it may seem, this town has a heartbeat. having said that, i will proudly, unreservedly pledge the dirty coast mantra, "i am new orleans"


ps- for bad ass t-shirts about new orleans with an indie flare, check out www.dirtycoast.com. they are bad ass. be a new orleanian wherever you are