After Saturdays Saddle Sore run from Maryland to New Orleans and my adventure Sunday morning riding in a flooded St. Charles Ave. the rest of the day was an actual delight. Arriving at my friends basement apartment I was able to change out of the sopping wet clothes, enjoy a hot cup of coffee and warm conversation with Bo and Julie. Having Debbie visiting at the same time was an added bonus as she's always good a for a laugh or two. Of course we were all laughing at my antics now that I was dry and safely ensconced in their delightful flat. That afternoon before dropping Debbie off at the airport we went and had lunch at very nice restaurant - unfortunately I don't remember the name. Bo pointed out where the water was during the Katrina flood and I was amazed. He then pointed out that every occupied building in the area had to have anything below the second floor gutted and rebuilt. That also meant that all the electrical and HVAC systems below ground had to be replaced in these buildings. The extent of the damage took on a whole new meaning. Especially the number of office buildings that were still closed. After dropping Debbie off at the airport it was on to the nearest Best Buy so I could replace my iPhone - ouch that was expensive mistake. When we got back to their apartment Bo and I grabbed a beer and went for a walk to the Missisipi and then thru the Audubon Park.
Monday morning I saw Bo off to work and then Julie took me to breakfast at The Camellia Grill. The wait staff were all wearing white jackets with black bow ties and were as entertaining as the food was good. After breakfast we headed back so I could pack up the bike and head out of town.
This is a slide show movie of my trip to New Orleans, the Gulf Coast and the Smoky Mountains. 2700+ miles in 5 days.
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What I hadn't mentioned in my New Orleans "ride report" is that just as I got onto Interstate 10 on my way into the city my iPhone decided to commit suicide by jumping from the RAM cradle out onto the highway. To say that this left me in a bit of a lurch would be an understatement. I was planning on using the phone as my GPS for the rest of my trip, plus I had all of my contacts on the phone. Unbelievable how much of my life was wrapped up in that little piece of hardware but now being without it I felt like a limb had been removed.
I was able to get to the hotel that night but only because I had Google Mapped it umpteen times in preparation for the trip. But how was I going to hook up with my friends the next day? The only thing I knew is that I was going to meet them for church and that the church was on St. Charles Ave. near the Audubon Park and that the service started at 10:00 AM. I had a restless nights sleep even after driving straight for over 18 hours and woke up around 6:00 AM. The cheap Motel 6 room that I was staying in near the airport didn't have a clock so I flipped channels looking for the local news and to find out the actual time. The only channel with the time displayed happened to be the weather channel and my worry-o-meter pegged 11 when I saw the radar image for New Orleans. Coming in from the SW was a huge red and orange blob with a little ticker tape warning of accompanying tornadoes. OH! this was looking like it was going to be a most interesting morning. The weather reporter made it sound like it was going to hit in a few hours so I decided I'd head to church early.
May 15, 2010 - I open one eye, taking a second to focus on the alarm clock, a garish blue light blinks back 1:00 AM, and a silent “noooo” whimpers in my head. I need to sleep. I can't be thinking about what lies ahead in another 2 ½ hours. Sleep, go back to sleep. I finally do only to wake up again at 2:35 AM. This is as bad as when I was 8 years old on Christmas Eve; every hour or so I'd wake up dreaming of what awaited me under the tree. I'd be so anxious that I wouldn't be able to sleep the last few hours before we were allowed to wake up Mom and Dad. Now here I was at the ripe middle age of 49 with those same jittery feelings. No use in trying to sleep at this point.
Getting ready for my first IBA certified Saddlesore 1000 ride this coming Saturday. I'm planning on leaving the house at 4:00 AM with the intent of being in New Orleans that evening around 11:00 PM. A friend of mine from church runs a sign company and created me a sign on reflective aluminum (same material as a street sign) for the trip. The image is of the sign mounted on my top roll bag.
May 15, 2010 - I open one eye, taking a second to focus on the alarm clock, a garish blue light blinks back 1:00 AM, and a silent “noooo” whimpers in my head. I need to sleep. I can't be thinking about what lies ahead in another 2 ½ hours. Sleep, go back to sleep. I finally do only to wake up again at 2:35 AM. This is as bad as when I was 8 years old on Christmas Eve; every hour or so I'd wake up dreaming of what awaited me under the tree. I'd be so anxious that I wouldn't be able to sleep the last few hours before we were allowed to wake up Mom and Dad. Now here I was at the ripe middle age of 49 with those same jittery feelings. No use in trying to sleep at this point.
