A Week in the Life of a New Orleans Bonner

So right now its 7pm, on Thursday night, and we are waiting to see where we will end up for dinner. There has been much debate and discussion throughout the day, since it turns out people have spent more money than they bargained for on this trip. Candy and soda at rest stops are a killer. Anyways, my vote is for Mothers, a great restaurant with some good ole' Po'Boys that New Orleans is so famous for. I went there early in the week with Adam, Chad, Laura, and John, and it was delicious. Chad and I split an omelette and it was the best omelette we've ever had.

As for today, I spent the entire day at Rescue Mission New Orleans, helping out in any way I could. We made a bunch of food bags and moved heavy objects, which I liked because of its manliness. To be real, I wish we had more to do. Rescue Mission is great and they are doing great things, I am really grateful, but it seemed to me that they couldn't handle so many volunteers. So, at times, we were looking for things to do. On the bright side, this allowed us to talk to the great people who worked there. Efran, the ripped worker in the warehouse, told us that he has a masters in Psychology and Philosophy, but he somehow ended up as a superintendent of construction. He used words in sentences I didn't know... I really like him.

Our vans happened to be parked next to a man sleeping on the outside ground; it was the first time I've seen a man sleeping on the ground outside. It was really symbolic for me. I know that New Orleans wasn't the holy grail of cities before Katrina, but that just reminded me of the seriousness of help New Orleans really needs. It brought on feelings of helplessness and eagerness. Helplessness for feeling like no matter what I do, there will always be a man sleeping on the ground somewhere, eagerness for using my full potential to help as best I possibly can.

I would recommend to everyone who visits New Orleans to spend a good 30 minutes driving around town. Wave at some folks, they will wave back at you. Everybody loves a hearty volunteer. While we were moving boxes from a warehouse to Rescue Mission down the block, the man we were working with told us its ok to move the pallets in the street, because the cars will move for us and the cops respect us enough not to tell us to move. It really shows how much they love volunteers down here in NOLA. If you aren't a volunteer, they'll probably wave back anyway because that's how they are down here.

Finally, while you are on your 30 minute drive, take some pictures, because this place is too beautiful not to. Even in the poorer areas, every house is a different color. Every person is a different color. Every personality is a different color. The thing about New Orleans, is that you can spend just one week here, and feel like you are a part of a lifetime of history of this city. That is why you should visit New Orleans.