"You gotta catch those, Nigger"

Well, I've arrived in New Orleans and my road trip through the South has come to a close, and while I greatly enjoyed my trip, ultimately it's observations like the title quote that make me realize I love the Northeast.

I feel a little guilty titling my Blog post with that quote, actually. I really did have a remarkable time, and stayed with some remarkable people, and saw a part of the country I had never seen before. And I experienced virtually no racism during my trip. But I did on my last stop before New Orleans, in Alabama, while watching a football game with some UAla boys, and listening to such an offensive epithet thrown out so casually,makes me wonder what could possibly lurk between the surface under more people i met. I'm not saying that racism doesn't exist up in the North, but I am saying that in such a situation the people I know would at least keep their prejudices to themselves.

But enough of that. The trip was great. I left on Sunday and made my down to New Orleans, stopping in DC, Chapel Hill, Atlanta, and Birmingham. I've been driving a 98 Buick LeSabre, with my clothes and a laptop in the trunk, and a pile of casette tapes in the seat next to me. The car is without CD player, so my road trip soundtrack was lo-fi. Usually my sountrack switched between Dr. John, The Police, a ridiculously cheesy (ridiculously good) 80s mix, and George Gershwin. These moments of driving down long stretches of road with nothing but wind and music were some of my favorite parts of the trip. I usually had the windows open, and one arm out of the car.

The moment I felt like I was really doing something special was in Virginia, as I crossed the Susquehannah river. The police was playing, the sun was glowing, the sight was beautiful. Maybe it was just because of how cinematic the whole experience felt, but the whole thing made me scream.

Nothing extraordinary happened. This wasn't a crazy road trip. I barely partied. But it was incredibly satisfying. I had an opportunity to see good friends at their homes, and such opportunities are bound to become few and far between the more years Lawrenceville falls behind us. And I got to see a part of the country that I'd barely visited. In fact, the trip down was so fulfilling I wish now I'd scheduled more time to get to New Orleans. A week seemed like a long time, but it was anything but.

Anyway, tomorrow is my first day of work. I'll try to publish something then.