Comments on: Day 1087: Neither Here, Nor There

By: A

Thu, 21 Aug 2008 00:54:17 +0000

I think there are entirely too many of us who know exactly how you feel–transplanted New Orleanians, for whom the magical pull of this city is strong, but who also feel the pull of our families, our former lives, and the sense of normalcy that life somewhere else could bring. On some days, that sense of normalcy sounds like a death knell–how could I move to a place where Mardi Gras and second lines don’t exist, where this joy of life doesn’t exist, after living here and experiencing it? And sometimes, that sense of normalcy, in all of its dullness, is something I long for. I’m married to a native New Orleanian, so when I said my vows, I knew I was committing not only to life with him but to life in New Orleans. Yes, if I really wanted to leave and insisted on it, he would follow. But a part of him would die in doing so. And yet sometimes, I long for it. You are most definitely not alone. Beautifully written post.

By: Adrastos

Adrastos — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 14:56:27 +0000

Sorry about your mother, M. Me, I never judge people who move on. It’s the natural order of things. Besides, I’m so not into moralizing. I leave that to the delusional folks who thin they’re perfect.

By: pistolette

pistolette — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 18:44:44 +0000

I’ve had numerous people in my life come and go from New Orleans in the last three years (some several times). And since I did the same thing myself I really can’t come down hard in favor of one or the other. We are experiencing an exceptional situation here, and our choices regarding home and career are not simple anymore. Best of luck with the decision-making.

By: gregp

gregp — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 12:41:27 +0000

We’ve been tossing similar stay-or-go ideas around. Much love to you and your wondrous family.

By: Varg

Varg — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 12:30:10 +0000

There is a grandiose malaise gripping the city this August. You can see it in the air. Many are feeling it, the sinners and the saints.

By: E.J.

E.J. — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 11:42:04 +0000

I second Kevin. Your words also really hit home for me. Exactly what I’ve been feeling and wondering.

By: liprap

liprap — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 00:29:21 +0000

I’ve begun to go back and forth a little on this, too. Were we really meant to live and work so far away from our extended families? Is this another form of divide and conquer in terms of our country’s (and the many corporations within it) prosperity – split you off from your family and make you more beholden to the almighty gods of money and achievement? How can we really take care of our loved ones who need that care without completely ripping our lives to shreds and putting them back together in a different way?

There are no easy, concise answers to these questions. All that remains, in the end, is that we don’t do to others the things that are hateful to us. And it’s amazing how far that can take us all.

By: HumidCity » Blog Archive » For The Attention Span Challenged (Are You Listening, Ray?)

Tue, 19 Aug 2008 00:05:45 +0000

[...] Vatul Blog: On returning to New Orleans, I’ve discovered that the city wrongly demolished a home, Jessica [...]

By: Karen

Karen — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 00:04:10 +0000

Lucky Lucky Granddaughter all that love for you.

By: Kevin

Kevin — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 22:47:29 +0000

“My beautiful, smart, agile, strong, strident, able busybody of a mother had a really hard time keeping it together and, to her helpless and onlooking daughter, it seemed like an invisible someone taking a knife to Mona Lisa, a hammer to David, a match to a monument.”

“Before I let go of my grandmother and let her see my face again, I willed my eyes to suck those tears back in, for I would not allow her to see me upset. I would not force her to consider her mortality at that moment, not because of me. She would see her happy and vibrant granddaughter and think of all the good times we’ve had together.”

Maitri – you do realize that there are novels published every day without a single paragraph that carries the power of the words you type on your blog?

You, and Folse, and Cliff, and so many others are born writers.