50 people, 1 question

By the end of today...


Fifty People, One Question: New Orleans from Benjamin Reece on Vimeo.

ht blake and voodooventures

Interviews comin' up

So I've always been really into (in case you haven't noticed...ahem) the mythical, imminent convergence of the great cities along the mississippi into a "mega region." It's gonna happen in the next 5 years, just wait.

So, now I get to talk to people about it. This is truly wonderful. First up, the venerable Chris Schultz of New Orleans' Voodoo Ventures. He recently posted about a tipping point that's been happening in Louisiana ...

I was having the conversation on Friday night about if we are getting close to a tipping point here in New Orleans and in Louisiana with regards to technology and startup culture. As I’ve been talking about for a while, we need an ecosystem. Entrepreneurs need to know one-another and they need to know whats going on. We need organizations and a government that support startups. Its happening right now.

Don't ya think that's interesting? I'll be sending him questions soon (and posting them soon-ish), so if you've got some questions about startups, technology, social media, gumbo or humidity (or perhaps you'd like to discuss the better merits of dixieland trombone, or the best way to have a crawfish boil...or maybe you'd like to ask him just what it DOES mean to miss new orleans.) ...he may have some insight for ya.

Nothing makes me happier than seeing different kinds of people hang out in real life, thus my enthusiasm for barcamps, coworking, and bar-hopping -- reminds me...were you at the record spin? b/c yeah, it was like that, so maybe you should've COME! ---so hey, the time is now for this site to be a place for me to bring all the people that I think should meet -- in REAL life -- to meet in the almost real life of the Mississippi River Valley Girl blog.

I've emailed Dick Fleming of the The St. Louis Regional Chamber & Growth Association (RCGA)-- so here's hoping he takes a break from his busy remarkably connecting and pod-casting schedule to answer some questions, too.

Stay posted. Send questions! Send suggestions. It's Fine in '09!

WHYS

You know I need to tell y'all about my recent visit to the SYMPHONY, but due to some recent upheaval (ever seen Burn Notice?) over here in real life, I'll just leave you to ponder this list, written by the folks at the ideavillage in NOLA.

Why I am here...

…because life is too short and too precious to claw my way through Wall Street. Because the Pyramids were not built treading along in a hamster wheel.

…because I figured a 1500-mile road trip to begin a new life in an unfamiliar place would make for a unique story. I am proud to live somewhere where such a tale has become blasé.

…because New Orleanians open their doors, pour stiff drinks, fill plates high, and demand little of their guests beyond an adventurous tongue.

…because the architecture is the most amazing I’ve seen. Anywhere.

…because the city is in dire need of a brewing co-op and I hope to provide it.

…because I have an eye for what makes a city work, having lived in Boulder, Seattle, and Saratoga Springs, and because New Orleans has ten times the intrinsic charm of these other cities put together.

…because Cajun slang is interesting, southern drawls pacifying, and Yat dialects just downright bizarre.

…because there is real soul here: a tangible and visceral loyalty to a dynamic cultural ethic.

…because there are real minds here: those who heed the calls of intellectual adventure and find deep satisfaction through attacking problems at their roots.

…because a potential roommate warned me recently of the seeming permanence of endemic poverty and government corruption, and of the futility in wasting a swollen heart on a city with real problems. It sounded like a dare, and I never turn down a dare. *

-Jeff Sandman

*sound familiar?

Is it strange that I look to Nola? Is the urgency to innovate and revitalize stronger there? I don't know, but if more people thought about it as much as I think about it...we both might get somewhere. :)

How great is this?

Cajuns for Obama!
(I can't decide what I like more: the theme of the video or the fact that they're speaking french)



ht humidhaney

Wisdom

"you can't get to wonderful without passing through alright."
-Bill Withers

Wisdom the book.

I like the video.

I also LOVE that they got Bill Withers!!!! His song, Lean on me, changed the world as much as Ted Kennedy, and don't tell me any different.




hat tip to the blake, inspiring mere hours after returning from NOLA evacuation (impressed)

Pirated Bricks from St. Louis paving renovatoin on the far south side - New Orleans

MyFox St. Louis | FOX Files: Burning Bricks For New Orleans:

this is crazy.
I've always thought that there's a way for our cities, Nola and St. Louis to grow out of whatever blight we've endured together (or separately), and its just wacky to see this black market brick trade undermining that. It's crazy!

props to Matt at StL Dotage for the heads up.

the humid haney rant: Acadiana Tattoo Gets Written Up in the TP

Folks at DirtyCoast being outstanding - again. Can't wait to see what the humidbeings site is like when it launches.

"In its e-newsletter on Thursday, the company offered to pay for 10 people to have its Acadiana Self-Reliance symbol tattooed on their bodies. Within minutes of posting it, 15 people had already volunteered, 'including a reverend,' said Dirty Coast owner Blake Haney."

rallying

I want.





504ever? Yes.

314ever? Does it take a hurricane to rally? Should it?

Policemen support the arts!

I liked the policeman I saw yesterday at the 20th ward meeting, he seemed alright.

It's a lil' off topic, but I like the way this video portrays the NOPD.


Get Behind the Badge - Steps from NOPJF on Vimeo.

Mississippi River Vallely thinkin

Have I blogged this? I just think it's *interesting* how the dots are the same sizes in my 3 fav cities.

“How do we approach the issue from a proactive rather than an anti-anything perspective?”

NOLA's got something, here.

StayLocal.org

Sound familiar?

So I say it's time to play a new game, New Orleans. The new game demands fairer assessments, because fairer assessments will help unify the city by refocusing attention away from individual property assessments, and upon the crappy city services and schools which are underwritten by community tax dollars. The underassessed crony enclaves in Uptown and other areas can't game the system anymore. They'll have to face the music, because their tax bills will no longer be effectively subsidized by everyone else. They're finally getting hit in the pocketbook, and you can bet that will get their attention.

Memphis love

So this cat just sent me a BUNCH of "esoteric" Memphis blogs (the "what makes memphis memphis crowd), per my request - I am stoked! Ask and you shall receive! I mean, hey - bloggers are a friendly crew. I've really gotten into the NOLA blogs that were reccomended to me by this fella - they're quite organized/mobilized/active down south. I think st. louis has just as many blogs and bloggers ... but wouldn't a st. louis version of rising tide be cool? Just a thought. If the opportunities to make a little change coming out of katrina -- of which there are plenty o' examples in NOLA - drift right up the river, let's catch'em!

In other words, I love river city bloggers/blogs. There's a lot we've got in common (good and not so good) going on with our respective municipalities, and hey, if the meeting of minds begins on the blogs, it begins on the blogs! I think it's very safe to say I'm not the first to note that there's a lot we river towns can learn from each other. So, school is in session for me - I have some reading to do!

In the ain't life funny section of this post, this is a picture of where I learned to walk...in Memphis. I'm pretty lucky that I can say I took my first steps on my own two feet right here on the mini mississippi river replica - Mud Island - in the Memphis. Props to Grandma White for encouraging me to learn to walk in a totally awesome and prophetic sorta place!