Okay, I take back what I said about LA drivers. I love LA drivers. Texas drivers and to a smaller extent Louisiana drivers I'm now not so sure about. The thing that gets to me the most is this: there's a stream of cars in the fast lane overtaking a semi, but someone from the back of the line gets into the slow lane, speeds up right to the back of the semi, and then cuts in. What did they gain by this? I don't get it. Everybody then brakes when the miscreant cuts in, letting forth a stream of brake lights that slows down everyone all the way down the fast lane (one unnecessary flashing of brake lights can cause delays of up to 20 minutes; I think I read that somewhere). Although maybe I should take back the comment about LA drivers: the car that was the worst culprit today had California plates. He or she cut in front of me, leading me to do something I rarely do, which was to flash my brights at them several times. I'm sure I accompanied that with some hearty swearing.
But for the most part the drive from San Antonio wasn't too bad. There was a lot of construction and at least one wreck, which I thought would delay me so I wouldn't be able to make dinner over at Clancy's. I got into New Orleans about 8 15 and was seated at the bar by 8 45. Brian is Scott's friend who is a part owner, manager and head chef at this place. It's an old house, at one time owned by someone named Clancy, which then became a corner store until it eventually became a fancy neighbourhood joint in the 80s. Brian's stepfather owns part of it too, I think, which is how he got into the business, starting in the dish pit in 1994. It was cool to get into New Orleans and plunge straight into a neighbourhood instead of the touristy areas. Brian fed me a very good meal, gratis, which was very nice of him, and after he was finished working, he came and had a beer with me. Nice fella, and an excellent chef. I spoke with a couple of neighbourhood guys at the bar as well as Garth, the bartender. A very nice intro to this interesting city.
I didn't really plan where I was going to stay and I've ended up at the very reasonably priced Holiday Inn Express downtown, located only a few blocks from Canal Street. I took the risk of parking on the street but it seems like a nice area. There's a bed, a bathroom, and wifi. What more does 21st century man need?
Had a great time having breakfast with Charla, or Dr. Tully as she's known professionally, in the morning in San Antonio. I'd missed her company, and somehow, her voice. It's hard to describe. It's a little scratchy and she has a really laid back way of speaking, totaling to speech that is somehow endearing. I completely missed her husband but I heard him showering. I also had a dream in which he claimed never to have met me, even though I had before they got married. I now wish I could have stayed in San Antonio (despite her very shy dog being bothered by my presence) and not had this little arrangement for dinner tonight at Clancy's. Charla and I go back a long time and she's someone who I wish lived closer.
I'll close with my strange entry into Oklahoma City (pictures above) a couple of days ago. I got into the city a little before Ryan or Lindsay were back from their respective jobs, so Lindsay told me of a couple of places I should check out in the area. I walked into this little gourmet food store called C Market and ran into Tyler, who used to work at the Third Place coffee shop (the Side Street of Stillwater for me). That was interesting in itself, especially after I found out later that he's also one of Lindsay's ex-boyfriends (Ryan had a running joke that she had a lot of those; that's a bit of pot-kettle-black action though, knowing what I know of his dating history). After the C Market, I walked down the street, and a sign that said Going Out For Business caught my eye. It was a store that sold used motel and hotel fixtures, and although it was shuttered, I could still see all the old refrigerators and stoves and random fixtures through the dirty windows. Further down the street, there was a very colourful Asian store. This store seemed to sell everything because it had ads outside for food, shoes and even beds. Two people emerged as I walked by, a man and a woman, and the man was quite interested in my camera and started chatting with me. He then went to his car and gave me his card and told me to call him sometime.
I really don't know why. And as I took pictures of the store, his lady friend honked her car horn, called me over, and then asked me very seriously if I wanted to buy the store. She said she'd give me a good price. I told her I didn't live in Oklahoma City so she asked me to ask around and gave me her card (hers had a bit more information than the guy's; his simply stated his name and number on a blue sky with clouds background. I'll have to scan these when I get back to Portland and put them on here). So here I am putting it out there if anyone is interested in buying an Asian store located in Oklahoma City that sells everything imaginable. I've got the contact info you need.View Leg 9: New Orleans in a larger map
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