24/7: NOLA

Twenty-for (the) Seventh: Twenty ways you may already experience New Orleans everyday. I absolutely love the full experience of being there, but let's explore how New Orleans visits you, here, every day.


1. Coffee: Between French Market, Cafe du Monde, Luzianne, New Orleans Coffee Company, PJ's Coffee, Orleans Coffee Company, and Community Coffee, New Orleans has got you covered every morning of the week.

2. Or perhaps you drink an international coffee, or sugar, or banana on the side. These are some of the coastal city's many imports. NOLA, the largest city in Louisiana and one of the largest in the south, has always been one of the largest, busiest, and most efficient international ports of entry for the United States. It is also a major hub of transportation with an international airport, bus lines, rail cars, traffic along the Mississippi, and highways. In fact, the familiar transcontinental I-10 runs right through the city.

3. Industrialization quickly arose, and continues to print and publish; manufacture wood, paper, metal, clothing, medical and building equipment, communication systems, and aircraft parts; build and repair ships; and processes a great variety of food and beverages. On that note, let's get more specific:

4. Representing (and selling) the cajun cuisine in your local grocery is Zatarain's for lunch.

5. Kick up your midday meal with copious amounts of Louisiana's pure Crystal hot sauce.

6. I grew up distracting myself from dental work by melting into the JazzFest Posters on the office walls.

7. Under the influence of dental anesthesia, your memories piece together something from high school history class; The United States only planned on picking up New Orleans and the immediate surroundings before settling for the entire Louisiana Purchase.

8. You may pick up some of K-Paul's Magic Seasoning Blends or Emeril's Essence Spices to get the soul you're craving for dinner,

9. And use any of the plenty New Orleans Cookbooks available.

10. Note: Louisiana supplies 95% of the crawfish harvested in the United States, and perhaps more astonishing, supplies 90% of the world's crawfish - of which 70% is actually consumed locally.

11. Time for the big guns: McIlhenny Co. Tobasco Brand hot sauces.

12. Wash it down with your favorite Abita flagship, seasonal, or harvest brew.

13. Switch on the television and catch the Saints, the Tigers, or any of New Orleans sports teams.

14. If you're more in the mood for a movie filmed in New Orleans, perhaps consider Ray, or The Curious Case of Benjamin Button from your many options.

15. Treat yourself to a dessert sno-ball.

16. Head out to hear some live music... this is a big one from New Orleans... JAZZ (and think about the music of America, and the world, that have evolved from, or been influenced by, JAZZ).

17. As well NOLA arts in general,

18. And other famous and influential people who came form New Orleans.

19. Too soon? Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans. If you reside in North Carolina, South Carolina, Connecticut, Delaware, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, NEw Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, or Washington D.C., 2012 unfortunately brought quite the Hurricane Sandy of a storm to your own doorstep.

20. So finally, there's no better way to celebrate life than with an authentic "jazz funeral." The philosophy has caught on in your home town, but nobody kicks the bucket and keeps carrying the song still in it quite like good ol' New Orleans. Cheers.