A New City

So I'm here at the First ever CME Unity Summit in New Orleans, LA.  Now, I should be excited because it's the first time in the history of the CME Church that all our connectional meetings have come together in one place -- it's an historic moment.  But quite frankly, I'm excited to be in New Orleans, a city I've never been in before.

The flight was uneventful.  I try to travel from JFK because it tends to be cheaper than LGA, and if I take the SuperShuttle, the difference in transpo costs is negligible.  It was nonstop, and except for the fact that they had a bit of difficulty finding a jetbridge when we landed in NOLA, it was fine. The flight was nearly empty -- everyone got their own seat, just about.  I saw a woman with some earrings that were adorable.  I asked her if they were the Cartier series, since they looked like the little bangle with the screws on it.  She said no, that they were just screws and were made by some designer in NYC. Wish I'd paid more attention.  I really liked them. They were just flat, like a screw, but I liked them.

There were some issues with transpo, but fortunately, I saw a group of people praying and went up to join them.  There was Rev. Regina Reese-Young leading the prayer, and she got me a ride with her friend Vernessa and the Pastor of the church in Detroit(Pastor Gordon?) that my own pastor once pastored.

From now on, I'll always upgrade to a club floor. First of all, I sorta like the exclusivity, but more importantly -- it's cheaper.  You get the same breakfast and dinner buffets that everyone else gets, but you don't have to pay for it.  And you get free use of internet in the lounge (I don't think they give it to you free in your rooms, unfortunately).  But internet is like $14.95 per day, and the dinner buffet alone was $30.00.  Add in the cost of breakfast, and the upgrade is a no-brainer.  Even if I choose to dine out, I still save money!  I tried to explain this to someone, but they declined, then before I even landed, they were texting me asking me to get them a key to the club floor. It appears hotels are getting smarter -- claiming to be "under renovation," they give us access to the same restaurant everyone else has access to, and they give us a check -- they just tell us it won't be charged.  We shall see.  But in the interim, it certainly helps to explain to my friends why I can't give them a hookup.

So I got to the hotel, set my bag down, and went to the "complimentary hors d'euvres" or however you spell it.  I never had finger foods like this:  There was a salad bar, a chicken tortilla soup in which you could actually taste the lime, some sort of andouille sausage, red beans with sausage, rice, corn (I skipped those two), and plates and plates of pralines and brownies. As much as you wanted, no charge.  Unfortunately, I still can't eat very much, but what I tasted was DELICIOUS!  I fell in love from the first taste of the soup!  I'd actually thought that all those years in darkrooms had allowed the acetic acid to ruin my nasal passages and destroy my sense of taste (that's my story and I'm sticking with it...). But I found out today that my sense of taste is completely intact -- I just need food that is seasoned with a little BAM!!

Speaking of which, I do hope to get to Emeril's place for lunch tomorrow. 

One of the cool things about these meetings is meeting people.  In addition to the people who brought me to the hotel, I met a Ms. Johnson from Memphis, who came here by train, I met a Cassandry (yes, Y)from the Ninth, I met another woman from the Ninth I'd seen in Alaska, and I've managed to see many of the people from the Seventh as well as many more from across our Zion.  Between Facebook and our in-person gatherings, I'm loving my CME Church family!  We may have our issues, but when we come together, we are amazing!

Anyway, after the pralines, and to avoid a sugar coma, I went for a little walk.  I went outside and heard music, so I followed it.  The street musicians here play snare drums instead of water buckets (so the drums sound sharper, more rhythmic and not so quasi-melodious), and the beat is a little more jazzy.  Add to that the brass of the trumpets and trombones, and there's a very distinct sound here.  The guys were on the corner of Canal and Bourbon.  Finding myself on Bourbon street, I walked down it. I went into a coupla clubs (no cover), but they were pretty empty. After a while, it just seemed like endless clubs playing almost studio music, and there was a constant smell of pot everywhere, though I never saw any.  It was new and different, but not quite exciting. 

So I turned down some street that was a little less touristy and then turned down another street that used to be the Royal Street when the French ruled Louisiana, and looked at some cute shops with WW1 antiques and intricate masks.  I also saw little hitching posts on the street, then wandered into some praline shop.  But I got out with only a Coke Zero.

Tomorrow I hope to go on the Nanchez Steamer and do some sightseeing. I know it's a church meeting, but I think one of the great deficits of our organization is that we encourage people to come to meetings in all sorts of places, then leave them within the four walls of the hotel.  How in the world are we supposed to do ministry to people if we don't even go out to meet them where they are?  If I got to a new city, I want to see the city!  I don't recall a Commission to go into all the hotels, but to go into all the world, and IMHO, that means OUT INTO the world.

Oh, well.  It's late, I'm in a new city, and I'm having a ball.  Probably should have brought my laptop; while it feels good to write again, I am sitting across from the bar.  I guess that in this town we're supposed to get used to the smell of alcohol, but I still don't like it...  Nevertheless, I'm in a new city and I'm going to enjoy it!