I went for my first bike ride in New Orleans today. It was 91 degrees, I was out for about an hour and came back wondering if I was dead. BUT, it was very nice. There is a bike path that runs along the top of the levee along the river. The New Orleans streets are so shitty and pot-holes and full of clinically insane drivers... that riding on the street is stressful and rather slow. So it was great to get up there and just ride, and not even have to stop. This city also doesn't really maintain public anything-- parks are threadbare and scary and obviously we know about silly things like schools and hospitals. But it was great to be on a rather nice road, ride along the river and explore. I passed countless bullhorns, elevated houses along the river, ports, families out riding.
On my first trip here, a speaker referred to the need to return to ones roots, especially those who "grew up drinking the water of the Mississippi." Well, I was also raised drinking Mississippi water... although long before it made its way all the way through the country. And I've been to the mouth of the Mississippi and grew up riding my bike along the very same river, 1200 miles north. So I had a very nice time, riding along, sweating profusely and thinking about all this and more.
Sunday, June 29, 2008
This Evening
In a great cultural experience, I went to the movies. I saw Get Smart in Harahan, LA. And I bought a daquiri at the snack bar and drank it during the movie-- the greatest movie innovation since sour cream & onion pringles instead of sugared popcorn of the Chilean cinematic experience. The movie was "eh." But the first half sure was funnier than the second half when the sugar and booze wore off.
Speaking of cultural experiences, watching the movie tonight was a lot like watching movies in another country. At certain points, I wasn't sure Lindsey and I were watching the same one everyone else was (and no, I don't think it was all the daquiris.) Like they laughed at puke and people falling down and the few genuinely funny lines, we cracked up and they were silent.
It was all in all a very nice night. I was supposed to do this, but it started raining like crazy at 4pm. So instead I went to an Obama party at a bar, then Thai food and then this weird movie experience. Very enjoyable. Just like last night, actually, but hold the upsetting ignorance.
Speaking of cultural experiences, watching the movie tonight was a lot like watching movies in another country. At certain points, I wasn't sure Lindsey and I were watching the same one everyone else was (and no, I don't think it was all the daquiris.) Like they laughed at puke and people falling down and the few genuinely funny lines, we cracked up and they were silent.
It was all in all a very nice night. I was supposed to do this, but it started raining like crazy at 4pm. So instead I went to an Obama party at a bar, then Thai food and then this weird movie experience. Very enjoyable. Just like last night, actually, but hold the upsetting ignorance.
Friday, June 27, 2008
The Rope
Today I went to magistrate court, like usual. I talked to some parents of two cousins, a boy and a girl, who are both in college. And were arrested yesterday on three counts of armed robbery each. The girl is 6 months pregnant. She got house arrest. The boy has $100,000 bond on each count. These kids fucked up big time... but I had a hard time not being able to make it better to their parents. Another client was about to be extradited on an out of state warrant, he didn't understand why or really what was happening to him. At one point, he mouthed to me, "help me." Maybe it's just that Fridays are tougher. Or maybe the days are equal, I am just out of steam by Friday. I left a little early, realizing I had already been there for 8 hours and would get more done by taking the work home and spending an hour on it over the weekend than continue to sit there and stare at it. A friend from work lives with 3 Tulane undergrads, I went with them to a restaurant here that has 7-cent mojitos until 7 on Fridays. We had 20. Well, 21 since the waitress spilled some on me and brought me a new one. The bill was $1.54. Then we went and ate the "best burgers in the city" at Port of Call. The work friend told me how much of a relief it is to hang out with these girls, because they are easy and fun and not in this crazy world we spend all day in. But they are also 21 and mostly affluent and sheltered and say thing like, "well, if we got arrested, they wouldn't bring us to that jail, would they?" And then she went on and on about how difficult the Katrina semester was for her, because she was at American and didn't even enjoy shopping. All she could think about was the clothes Tulane had boxed up from her dorm, waiting for her back in New Orleans. "Yeah," I said, "that's a real story of Katrina hardship." On the way home, we passed the tent city under the I-10 overpass downtown. One girl remarked how she had never seen it before... despite the years both it and she had been in the city. The one who Katrina took from the desire to shop said that some people choose to live that way. And all they do is sit there all day. And I snapped. No, noone prefers to live in a tent under the highway than in a home. And, actually, most of those people work. She is one of those people that don't seem to notice when you snap and when you are stewing in the front seat thinking they are at best ignorant and a waste of time and at worst a
bad person. Anyway, I don't find that relaxing or a relief at all. I find it frustrating and stressful.
I had been doing this weird immersion thing. Like I literally come home from work all day and watch Law & Order reruns on cable. I have started reading this book, Down in New Orleans by Billy Sothern. Sothern is a NYU law grad in his late 20s/early 30s now who moved down here a couple of years before the storm to do death penalty work. He is still here doing that, I know people who work for and with him. It's very readable, even if not really a break from real life. Some of the commenters on amazon.com talk about the book like it's unnecessary, like it's all been said before and like he lays it on too thick. If the New Orleans temporary residents I was with tonight are any indication, this isn't true at all. Plus, a local book by a death penalty lawyer my age has lots of good bar and restaurant ideas...
bad person. Anyway, I don't find that relaxing or a relief at all. I find it frustrating and stressful.
I had been doing this weird immersion thing. Like I literally come home from work all day and watch Law & Order reruns on cable. I have started reading this book, Down in New Orleans by Billy Sothern. Sothern is a NYU law grad in his late 20s/early 30s now who moved down here a couple of years before the storm to do death penalty work. He is still here doing that, I know people who work for and with him. It's very readable, even if not really a break from real life. Some of the commenters on amazon.com talk about the book like it's unnecessary, like it's all been said before and like he lays it on too thick. If the New Orleans temporary residents I was with tonight are any indication, this isn't true at all. Plus, a local book by a death penalty lawyer my age has lots of good bar and restaurant ideas...
Saturday, June 21, 2008
Cable Thoughts
In this weird new temporary life, I have some things I don't have in real life. Like a pool and cable. Here are some things about the cable:
-Cox cable apparently has a monopoly here (I got a pedicure today after first appearances and the ladies in the chairs next to me were complaining about it. At first appearances I met a man who lost a leg in a construction accident. He told me supports himself by doing surveys on the internet. Me: Wow, that's amazing. Him: Yeah, well... it's a lot of of surveys. What did I say about every thing that happens being bizarre and interesting...?) and they play an ad where there is someone checking out at the grocery. The clerk scans bread, $1.50. Milk, $1.60. Coffee, $4.69, etc. And then the clerk says, "ok, that'll be $23.50." And the customer just walks away. So the clerk turns to the next person and says, "ok, that will be $23.50 extra." The point is supposed to be that if one person steals cable, everyone else's bill goes up. I guess we are supposed to start reporting our neighbors or something. Since I am not paying for my cable (not stolen, just comes with the place) all I do is marvel at how cheap all the food is. I paid almost $4 for a loaf of bread today!
-The Real World: Hollywood is now 4 women and 3 men. More interestingly, there are three white people and three black people. This seems unprecedented in RW history. There's nothing really more to that, but it's interesting.
-Why do they play 3 Law and Orders at a time all week and barely any on the weekend? Seriously, what am I supposed to watch. Apparently the answer to that is "Just Friends."
-Cox cable apparently has a monopoly here (I got a pedicure today after first appearances and the ladies in the chairs next to me were complaining about it. At first appearances I met a man who lost a leg in a construction accident. He told me supports himself by doing surveys on the internet. Me: Wow, that's amazing. Him: Yeah, well... it's a lot of of surveys. What did I say about every thing that happens being bizarre and interesting...?) and they play an ad where there is someone checking out at the grocery. The clerk scans bread, $1.50. Milk, $1.60. Coffee, $4.69, etc. And then the clerk says, "ok, that'll be $23.50." And the customer just walks away. So the clerk turns to the next person and says, "ok, that will be $23.50 extra." The point is supposed to be that if one person steals cable, everyone else's bill goes up. I guess we are supposed to start reporting our neighbors or something. Since I am not paying for my cable (not stolen, just comes with the place) all I do is marvel at how cheap all the food is. I paid almost $4 for a loaf of bread today!
-The Real World: Hollywood is now 4 women and 3 men. More interestingly, there are three white people and three black people. This seems unprecedented in RW history. There's nothing really more to that, but it's interesting.
-Why do they play 3 Law and Orders at a time all week and barely any on the weekend? Seriously, what am I supposed to watch. Apparently the answer to that is "Just Friends."
Sorry
I am a bad blogger, a bad phone caller, a bad emailer lately. So many things happen every day, it's really very tiring. I could probably just blog each day's events and it would be interesting to read about. Today was a day that peoples' situations really got to me. I was driving home, thinking about the situations people are in, what happens to them (ok, not even people in general, but my clients in this system) and realized that my heart gets broken, like, 16 times per day. I feel well-prepared and the legal part is fine, the human suffering part really overwhelmed me today. I feel a little like a medic in a war zone, seeing terrible things constantly and people on the worst day of their lives. It's dramatic, but also true. For some reason one of our newer clients, who offered a police officer oral sex for $20, really got to me. I mean, the state of this woman's life that she needs that $20 so badly... that was the #13 heartbreak today.
Anyway, in typical legal and New Orleans fashion, I dealt with this all by getting drunk. I went to a fantastic and scary bar near the office where every beer is $1 and then out and about... including walking around the french quarter and the marigny drinking a six pack of miller lite out of plastic cups. And watching a scene from a new Carmen Electra movie be shot. It is ingeniously entitled "Mardi Gras."
The dialogue I saw went like this:
An ugly white guy and a pretty black girl standing in a "mardi gras" crowd full of families. A brass band is passing playing "when the saints go marching in."
Him: When are we going to get back to Mardi Gras?
Her: This IS Mardi Gras! Mardi Gras isn't just Girls Gone Wild. It's more than tits and beads, it's a celebrate of our city, of our people. That man right there (the grand marshall) has been doing this for over 40 years! C'mon, show me what you've got!
And then he fat-guy comedically dances off scene, following the grand marshall.
Needless to say, I felt nauseated and it looks like a hit.
Anyway, in typical legal and New Orleans fashion, I dealt with this all by getting drunk. I went to a fantastic and scary bar near the office where every beer is $1 and then out and about... including walking around the french quarter and the marigny drinking a six pack of miller lite out of plastic cups. And watching a scene from a new Carmen Electra movie be shot. It is ingeniously entitled "Mardi Gras."
The dialogue I saw went like this:
An ugly white guy and a pretty black girl standing in a "mardi gras" crowd full of families. A brass band is passing playing "when the saints go marching in."
Him: When are we going to get back to Mardi Gras?
Her: This IS Mardi Gras! Mardi Gras isn't just Girls Gone Wild. It's more than tits and beads, it's a celebrate of our city, of our people. That man right there (the grand marshall) has been doing this for over 40 years! C'mon, show me what you've got!
And then he fat-guy comedically dances off scene, following the grand marshall.
Needless to say, I felt nauseated and it looks like a hit.
Monday, June 16, 2008
Sunday, June 15, 2008
Scary Morning
I woke up this morning at about 8 to a huge thunder and lightning storm. So this is unusual for the morning, most anywhere, right? I had had big plans for the morning, since I have to go in to do first appearances this afternoon. I wanted to go grocery shopping and various other errands. So the storm went on until about 10:30 and finally stopped. I got dressed and hit the road. Things were wet and saturated, but I headed west to the next parish over for some big box shopping. Once I got over to this shopping area, the water started to get deeper and deeper. There were tons of cars and people pulled into the center divider. I didn't have my cell phone or know exactly where I was. Everything was going very slowly and eventually the water was about halfway up the door of the truck. It seemed to be getting deeper as I went, the lanes going the other way were obviously deeper than where I was... but I least I knew it got better going that way. So I turned around and spent 5-10 minutes terrified the truck would eventually just quit. I could hear water coming in somewhere.... fuck fuck fuck fuck. I could see the road going up over an overpass, so I just kept going, whimpering "c'mon, c'mon, c'mon...."
The story ends with me going to a grocery store closer to home, noticing that the bed of the truck had, in fact, gotten wet... and while I know flooding has been serious up north, too... learning an important lesson about not fucking with water here in New Orleans. You can read about it here.
The story ends with me going to a grocery store closer to home, noticing that the bed of the truck had, in fact, gotten wet... and while I know flooding has been serious up north, too... learning an important lesson about not fucking with water here in New Orleans. You can read about it here.
Thursday, June 12, 2008
Day 4
Is over. There are so many things that are disturbing about the way that things work down here, it would be hard to list them comprehensively. So I'll start randomly. No lawyers or law clerks have been allowed to see their clients at the House of Detention for the past two days because they are filming a Jim Carrey movie inside it. I saw 51 people get their "first appearance" this morning (where the judge determines whether there is probable cause to hold them and what their bond will be) in about an hour and half. That's three minutes per person... except the judge was on his cell phone much of the time.
The state has 45 days to decide whether to charge a misdemeanor and 60 days for a felony. In Louisiana, a felony is anything punishable by 6 months or more. In federal criminal law, and I believe every other state, a felony is one year or longer. They are charging second possession of marijuanas as felonies. This means the second time someone is caught with a joint, they can be held for two months before charges are even filed. This also means that getting arrested, even if charges aren't eventually brought, causes many people to lose their jobs, house, visitation with children. One man I talked to today was most concerned that his cat locked in his apartment and his girlfriend was in Las Vegas.
Of the 51 people this morning, 50 were black and one was Latino. It's really bizarre and not any less shocking than anyone would expect. More shocking because I am working with some amazing attorneys who are smart and dedicated and in completely over their heads, trying to do right in a system with so many wrongs.
The state has 45 days to decide whether to charge a misdemeanor and 60 days for a felony. In Louisiana, a felony is anything punishable by 6 months or more. In federal criminal law, and I believe every other state, a felony is one year or longer. They are charging second possession of marijuanas as felonies. This means the second time someone is caught with a joint, they can be held for two months before charges are even filed. This also means that getting arrested, even if charges aren't eventually brought, causes many people to lose their jobs, house, visitation with children. One man I talked to today was most concerned that his cat locked in his apartment and his girlfriend was in Las Vegas.
Of the 51 people this morning, 50 were black and one was Latino. It's really bizarre and not any less shocking than anyone would expect. More shocking because I am working with some amazing attorneys who are smart and dedicated and in completely over their heads, trying to do right in a system with so many wrongs.
Monday, June 09, 2008
Things from Today that Indicate We Are Not in Wisconsin Anymore
1. You must be indicted by a grand jury if your offense is punishable by life in prison or DEATH.
2. The jury must agree 10/12 to acquit or convict if your sentence can include HARD LABOR.
3.
2. The jury must agree 10/12 to acquit or convict if your sentence can include HARD LABOR.
3.
Sunday, June 08, 2008
New Orleans, Summer 08
I am sitting in my borrowed apartment in New Orleans, listening to Law & Order: SVU on the tv behind me. I just finished a large bowl of gazpacho I made from purchases at Whole Foods this afternoon. It is delicious. I got in yesterday, driving through the night with my very sweet and helpful boyfriend who drove down with me. My mom got anxious and Charlie got a long weekend drive and a flight back to Madison. We hit the road after work time on Friday and pushed through the night, arriving at about 11am on Saturday. Then we slept. And had dinner. And watched tv. And slept more. And ate again. And went to the airport. I am lucky.
And I start work tomorrow. The first day we meet for Orientation not at the office, but I think I can take the streetcar to the office when the time comes, which is great.
Ok, updates to come, back to L & O.
And I start work tomorrow. The first day we meet for Orientation not at the office, but I think I can take the streetcar to the office when the time comes, which is great.
Ok, updates to come, back to L & O.
Thursday, June 05, 2008
Politico
I have a couple of other blog postings in the hopper, but I am in Day 4 of listening to public radio while packing... and this is driving me nuts.
What the hell is wrong with Hillary supporters?!!? (in general, of course some are sensible, like my wife)
Women keep calling in and saying they are Hillary supporters and will now vote for McCain. WTF? Why were you supporting Hillary in the first place? It obviously wasn't to avoid war in Iran, to exit the war in Iraq, for reproductive rights or to protect the environment. Clearly you weren't backing her for universal health care and money for schools and to take care of our most vulnerable neighbors and to rescue us from the past 7 years of bad decisions. This isn't 2000! I, too, thought we had the luxury to pick and choose and poo poo the candidate who wasn't exactly what we were looking for. Al Gore... meh. And then we saw how bad it could get. And then we got John Kerry and he still wasn't something to write home about, but he was something. Now we do have someone to write home about. We have the first African-American nominee of a mainstream party. And a man people are excited about and who stands for something and stands for something very different than what we have and what McCain offers more of. I think this whackos need to take a hard look at themselves, why they made the choice they did in Hillary and what kind of country they want to live in.
And then, like all of us, they need to start working like hell to make it a reality.
What the hell is wrong with Hillary supporters?!!? (in general, of course some are sensible, like my wife)
Women keep calling in and saying they are Hillary supporters and will now vote for McCain. WTF? Why were you supporting Hillary in the first place? It obviously wasn't to avoid war in Iran, to exit the war in Iraq, for reproductive rights or to protect the environment. Clearly you weren't backing her for universal health care and money for schools and to take care of our most vulnerable neighbors and to rescue us from the past 7 years of bad decisions. This isn't 2000! I, too, thought we had the luxury to pick and choose and poo poo the candidate who wasn't exactly what we were looking for. Al Gore... meh. And then we saw how bad it could get. And then we got John Kerry and he still wasn't something to write home about, but he was something. Now we do have someone to write home about. We have the first African-American nominee of a mainstream party. And a man people are excited about and who stands for something and stands for something very different than what we have and what McCain offers more of. I think this whackos need to take a hard look at themselves, why they made the choice they did in Hillary and what kind of country they want to live in.
And then, like all of us, they need to start working like hell to make it a reality.
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