Bone White Marble and Bible Bedtime Stories

Yesterday was a very slow day. Originally we were supposed to go to the zoo but we woke up late and Amanda had lost her friends phone number. At 1 we were supposed to meet at Taylor's gallery so his business partner, Mike, could give us a free tour around the French Quarter. Amanda was trying to help them get advertisements into that Hilton. We arrived exactly at 1 and Taylor was nowhere to be seen; undoubtedly hungover in his art-filled, wood-paneled apartment.

We left the gallery as soon as we arrived. Mike's 15 year old daughter was also there to accompany us on the tour. Every few blocks he would stop and talk about architecture or termites or people dying. Our final destination was the St. Louis cemetery on the northern border of the quarter. It covered about 9 sq. city blocks and was surrounded by a plain white rock wall. I expected to see lots of scattered grave stones with a mausoleum of two thrown in for the more wealthy Catholics. Instead, what I saw appeared to be a small city of the dead. Over the first decades of New Orleans' existence it's inhabitants quickly learned that burying people in swampy ground was the not the best way to never see them again. Marble and stone mausoleums were cramped together so closely that the stone walking paths between them had to be maneuvered in single file. Built before the days where Catholicism allowed cremation, the surrounding walls were full of man sized holes that were rented out for a year and a day. Baking inside rock under the Louisiana sun acted as their equivalent of cremation. When your time in the wall was up your remains were placed inside a bag, stamped into a finer dust, and thrown into the family tomb with everyone else.

There were two particualarly interesting tombs that I would like to comment on. The first being that of Marie Laveau, otherwise known as the "voodoo queen." It is said to be the third most visited grave in the world. Her resting place consists of a small, marble crypt covered in "XXX"'s and adorned with everything from flowers to empty alcohol bottles. There is some kind of superstition that if you spin around, toss pennies on the ground and draw three X's on her tomb she will grant you a wish. If it comes true you are supposed to return to her grave and cross your out your X's. Whether it is because she has lost her magic or the possibility of being arrested for further defilement of a grave not many of the X's were crossed out.
The other notable tomb is relatively new and not yet occupied. Near the center of the cemetary is are newly paved sidewalks that lead to a freshly white washed pyramid. This is the future tomb of famous, mediocre actor Nicolas Cage.

The rest of the day and night held no more extremely exciting events. Amanda and I watched movies and made grilled cheese sandwiches. We tried to go out dancing in the evening but couldn't find anything of particular interest. Not wanting to go to sleep we stayed up till at least 4 in the morning watching YouTube videos, laughing at Look At This Fucking Hipster, and reading/making fun of our favorite stories from the Bible.