Getting back on the wagon!

I fell off the blogging wagon for a few days, but I have returned! It's hard to keep up with it Friday and Saturday nights because my group members and I usually go out, so I'll probably be skipping those days in general. Not incidentally, above is the view from my dorm.

Friday at work was strenuous. I learned that the Microsoft Word manual I was writing was meant to be for ten forty-five minute sessions for residents who had rarely or never used a computer. I spent almost the entire day writing the manual. It certainly wasn't interesting work, but it felt good to know that it would be useful for those who will learn from it. That night we headed out to the French Quarter and then back to the dorms just to hang out and chat.

We were outside of the dorm at 9:45 on Saturday for our six-hour tour of the city with Professor Rich Campanella. It was really a gift to experience such an in-depth look at the city. Though we went to many places that I've already spent time in, such as the Ninth Ward, St. Bernard's Parish, and the French Quarter, we also visited several places I had only heard of or didn't know existed. It was fascinating to see the vibrant Vietnamese areas of the city, several areas undergoing extreme gentrification, and the little-known truck highway. Here is Professor Campanella with his mic:


Some parts of the tour were emotionally draining. Though I've been in the Ninth Ward several times, the unparalleled destruction in the area never ceases to shock me. All of us also grappeled with the fact that we were sitting in a comfortable, air-conditioned, twelve-passenger van to view one of the worst tragedies in American history. It's a good question to ask oneself: is the awareness gained from viewing the devastated areas of New Orleans worth the embarassment or anger of those citizens who are being watched?

That night we headed to the Central Business District in order to see the art gallery openings along the famous Julia Street. The art ranged from the extremely realist to the staunchly abstract; the forms included paintings, installations, sculptures, jewelry, collages, and more. Seeing all the art was wonderful, but I was particularly interested in the responses to Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath, of which there were many. One particularly interesting piece involved separate pages of a woman's journal post-Hurricane Betsy, all dyed variants of pink and red, neatly hung on the wall in ascending order.

Today was much more relaxed. I read a little of my book (The Autobiography of Malcolm X) before starting on my homework. I then watched the first disc (there are two dvds) of Spike Lee's documentary When the Levee Broke. The film is certainly emotionally draining, but I would recommend it to anyone who is interested in an intellectual, historical, and humanistic approach to Hurricane Katrina's origins, duration, and aftermath.