Violent Storms

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It’s about one in the morning and it has been storming something fierce outside for the last hour or so. The lightning is illuminating the sky near constantly and the rain is coming down in tremendous bands. Every now and then the wind kicks up to what seems like over 50 mph. All the water coming down from the roof is rushing to the street where it has overwhelmed the few drains that exist. As I sat watching from my front porch I noticed that the water had reached about halfway up the wheels of my car, which was parked in the street. Fearing that the car would be flooded I waded out into the maelstrom… the water almost reached my knees as I stepped off the sidewalk. Luckily the car started and I was able to move it onto the front lawn. Man, this is scary!

A flash of anger.

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Tonight there was a “Shabbat 1000” dinner at Tulane. Apparently, this is something that is held around the country which attempts to bring together massive amounts of Jews to share a Shabbat meal. Because of the large number of people (not sure it was 1000 though,) it was held in the gym of the athletic center here. As you might imagine, the gym has terrible acoustics, so when the Rabbi (Orthodox Chabad) began speaking through a makeshift loudspeaker system, it was very difficult to hear and understand him.

Anyway, after the women lit the candles, the Rabbi was apparently forbidden to use electronic devices. I missed this transition because I was up wandering around. So I was quite surprised when I glanced to the dais to see the Orthodox Rabbi slamming the table in fury because he was being totally drowned out and was unable to get the attention of the rather talkative audience. It was just this brief moment, but he was pissed as hell and it made me laugh a bit. I must be evil. Anyway, he did regain some semblance of control (but really, what were they thinking?) and after a short inaudible service we were allowed to eat! Aah, redemption!

Getting Off

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I enjoyed this video about a former journalism professor who has gone off the grid in upstate NY with a somewhat odd farmer companion; it makes me a little nostalgic for the beauty of the the Northeast! I was pretty impressed with the man’s comments about what he would do should he ever get a life threatening disease. No doubt a national health care system would make such decisions less dramatic. . . I wonder if he pays taxes.

Anyway, the video got me thinking about how I might become a little more sustainable myself. According to a Louisiana State University horticulturist, “Options include fig, citrus, blueberry, pawpaw, pomegranate and persimmon. . . Most of these can be easily grown, are low-maintenance, have nice landscape form, texture and color and provide wildlife benefits.” Imagine fresh pomegranates off the vine! I think I’ll ask my landlord before I start digging. Honestly, though, have any of you converted some wasteful grass into productive cropland?