If you have ever lived or been to New Orleans, you understand that this city stands apart from any other city in the world. From the minute you step foot there, you are quickly infected with a contagious energy that stays with you long after you leave. I know this haunting feeling all too well. I often times go in and out of severe withdrawal from NO and quite frequently try to think of ways to pull off a full time gig there (I have not yet been successful in that dept…working on it…).
Sunday night HBO premiered David Simon’s newest hit, Treme. Structurally, you can detect both the subtle and obvious parallels between this show and previous ones….most notably, The Wire (which is still the most intelligent and compelling show ever made). Simon is a master storyteller. He has the ability to infuse the viewer with whatever raw emotion he is trying to get across. In this set up, we are brought to New Orleans, 3 months after the levees broke. Simon walked me through it all last night….from anger to hope to humor to disgust to deep pride to a feeling that it is almost my personal job to help protect the deep and rich culture that make up every particle of NO. I came this close (insert hand gesture here) to packing up my car and getting out of dodge last night.
NO moves to its own beats and grooves….which is probably one of the reasons why I continue to hold it very close to the center of my soul. Anybody that identifies New Orleans with just a storm, has missed the boat. You can’t kill soul.
buy a t-shirt, support ongoing relief efforts:
http://www.reneworleans.com/
