Just Another Day in New Orleans

Tragedy is common in New Orleans. Murders, hurricanes, poverty, indictments, you name it, we've got it. But the most recent tragedy, the oil spill in the gulf, is in a class of its own.

You would think a city that got pummeled by a hurricane and nearly destroyed by levee failures would be immune to worrying about an oil spill. We nearly drowned in Katrina, but we didn't. We survived, and will continue to do so. So what's a little oil in the gulf?

To southeast Louisiana, it's big. And eventually, it will be to the rest of the country, if not the world. Like Katrina, the damage was preventable. If the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers had not had designed flaws in the levee protection system, New Orleans would not have flooded. This is no longer speculation but has been proven. Likewise, had BP paid the extra half a billion dollars for the automatic shut off for their rig, the oil flow would have shut off prior to the entire rig sinking. As it stands, oil is still continuously pumping out into the Gulf of Mexico.

And the Gulf of Mexico is by no means a Louisiana problem. The entire southern coast of the United States, as well as the east coast of Mexico, will be greatly affected by massive amounts of oil washing up on shore. This has ramifications so huge it's hard to put into words.

The people down here are standing in line to buy up seafood, as clearly, we won't be having fresh shrimp, crawfish, or other types of seafood for quite some time. But it's not just this year we have to worry about. The entire ecosystem is going to be disrupted, likely for years. Shrimp and crawfish will not be back, much less suitable for consumption, for years to come. Animals and plants that live in or near the gulf are going to be poisoned, and those that do survive will not have a suitable environment for a long time coming. Species of animal and plant life may disappear forever.

And how long will it take to rid the water of this oil, particularly when it is still flowing? Will this oil evaporate and fall down in the rain, contaminating water supplies, poisoning crops, lowering the quality of our atmosphere? Will we breathe in oil the way we breathed in mold, seeing another spike in asthma and upper respiratory diseases and illnesses like we did after Katrina?

What happens if another big storm hits, whether it's Louisiana, Texas or Florida? The gulf water will get tossed around and tidal surge can send this oily water onto even more land than it is already invading.

Not to mention the number of people in southeast Louisiana, as well as the entire coast, who make their living in the gulf. Fishing is a huge industry in coastal areas. What will happen to these people who can no longer make a living because of the oil spill?

We have had oil spills before. This one is unique in that they have still not cut off the spill. The rig has sunk, apparently too deep into the gulf to send human beings down to figure out a way to turn it off. Maybe it will run out before they get it turned off. Either way, gas prices will end up going up, and if BP is the only gas station in your neck of the woods, you'll be feeling it.

But New Orleans will keep on dancing on Bourbon Street, hosting Jazz Fest, spending every last penny on Saints season tickets. We've always been the red-headed stepchild of the United States, so whatever happens, it's just another day for us. Whether our fishermen have to survive on welfare and food stamps or our children end up in emergency rooms from breathing problems, we will endure. We always do.

GUMBO JUSTICE Tour

My publisher, Billie Johnson, was in town for the Epicon conference, which is an e-publishing conference. Oak Tree Press has books on Kindle as well as in print, and with the e-market expanding, it was a good conference to attend. Oak Tree also had two writers up for awards, Mike Orenduff and Marilyn Meredith, so there was more than one reason to attend. (Mike Orenduff won for his Pot Thief Who Studied Pythagoras. Go Mike!)

While Billie was here in town, I gave her the Gumbo Justice New Orleans Tour. Julio (my husband) and I showed her around the locations that are in the novel, including the courthouse, the district attorney's office and The Hole, the bar owned by Ryan's brother where Ryan drowns her sorrows. I also showed her a few spots that are going to be featured in Jambalaya Justice, coming out this summer.

We did the traditional down town French Quarter jaunt, but because Billie is the adventurous type who knows very little fear, we took her to the ninth ward. For those who don't know, the ninth ward is the area of New Orleans the most decimated by Katrina, the place where Brad Pitt is building houses and where the Musician's Village is located.

The ninth ward is showing some progress, but it's amazing how little work has actually been done since the storm. As you leave downtown and head toward the ninth ward, the damage to the buildings becomes more prevalent and the neighborhood becomes questionable. Some of the buildings have not yet been gutted. And then you cross the canal and see grass and dirt, an area that was once a thriving suburban neighborhood now dotted with only an occasional new construction.

This goes on for miles. There's a small section with a handful of new houses, all raised on platforms, and all brightly colored as if to make up for the depressing landscape. It's clear that a lot has been lost here, and it takes gumption for the people who stayed to rebuild to do it. The isolation, going on five years later, is haunting.

Some houses still have "X" spray painted on them, with numbers in each segment. The numbers tell a story, how many people were found in the house dead, if the workers who investigated saw pets that needed rescuing, the date the house was checked, all a constant reminder to the people who have returned that many still will not.

And on top of everything, crime has returned full force, murders and robberies easier to commit with fewer witnesses around and the National Guard gone.

But Billie Johnson braved the tour with us, and while out there, we saw other groups touring the ruins, the canal, taking pictures of the new construction. Perhaps next time she comes in town, we'll have more progress to show.

New Orleans Saints and Gumbo Justice

I had to take a few minutes away from working on my manuscript for the follow up to Gumbo Justice, Jambalaya Justice, to make a quick note about our boys in black and gold. There is actually a Gumbo Justice connection- Big Mike, Ryan's junior prosecutor, is a former Saints player. But aside from that, our team is proving to be a source of pride for our troubled city.

New Orleans is the most wonderful and the most terrible city in the United States. The architecture is beautiful, the people are friendly, and the food is beyond compare. When I travel, the one thing that universally disappoints me is the food. None of it comes close to New Orleans.

And then we have the undeniable bad. We have a high murder rate, the most crooked politicians in the country, the huge disparity between the rich and the poor, and one of the worst education systems in the country. We have a lot to be ashamed of.

But not our football team. Not this year. Most of us have followed the Saints come rain or shine, hell or high water, good or bad. And there has been a lot of bad. We wore paper bags on our faces, but we still went to the games and cheered. We paid for tickets when we were the worst team in the league. And now, we just might be the best.

And that makes a big difference in a city struggling to come back. During Saints' games, the crime temporarily ceases. Even murderers somehow respect the black and gold enough to put off their killings until after game time. They might kill someone during the Martin Luther King parade, but the Saints game is sacred.

There are many in this city barely making ends meet. Some people are not back in their homes, some have lost loved ones, some have families still spread out all over the country, displaced from Katrina. Some have lost jobs in companies that have left the city forever, some formerly good neighborhoods are on the decline. Surviving here is not an automatic for anyone, individual or business, and some people here have very little to look forward to.

But for two or three hours on a Sunday, for sixteen regular weeks and three weeks of playoffs, and, of course, if God really is still watching, the Superbowl, they can forget their own problems, and cheer for something going right in New Orleans. And just maybe be inspired. If the Saints can do what they're doing, with their track record, anything is possible.

And so on Monday, we persevere.

Gumbo Justice at Book Club Queen

I forgot to mention I've got a new review and interview for Gumbo Justice at http://www.book-club-queen.com/holli-castillo.html and http://www.book-club-queen.com/gumbo-justice.html.

Gumbo Justice, Angel Trap and Jambalaya Justice

Book sales for Gumbo Justice at the Bazaar went pretty well. It was a little too cold for my liking, but it was a clear day and a nice crowd showed up and I sold a few books, so it was all good. I have to say it was interesting talking to people for a change. I'm holed up in my house a great majority of the time, especially since the car wreck, and getting out in the fresh air and chatting with strangers who like to read was a welcomed distraction.

As for Angel Trap, I'm still waiting on a few contests placings, some I won't find out until next year. I also found out I placed second in a screenwriting contests that was not based upon Angel Trap, but upon writing assignments we were given. It was pretty cool, an international contest, and with second place I won entry into a six-month online screenwriting course I've really wanted to take but didn't want to put out the money.

Last, I'm working on Jambalaya Justice, the follow up to Gumbo Justice, hoping to have it ready in time so my publisher will release it in June. I would like to be one of those writers who puts out a new book a year, and would hate to go over that time frame, so I'm hard at work.

Working On Now

This weekend, I'll be selling signed copies of Gumbo Justice at a Holiday Bazaar in Metairie. It should be an interesting experience, as I've never sold books anywhere that wasn't directly related to writers and writing.

Currently, I'm working on the follow up, titled Jambalaya Justice. I'm pretty sure I'll keep the title.

I'm also waiting to learn the fate of Angel Trap in a few other screenplay contests. It's kind of frustrating to make it to semi-finals and finals and even second place but never quite grab the first place slot. I guess for my first screenplay it's a good start, but I'm trying to figure out what keeps it from winning number one.

I am also still marketing Gumbo Justice, which becomes more difficult as more time passes. Hopefully I can do enough publicity to keep some interest until the second book comes out.

GUMBO JUSTICE Featured at Bookland Heights

I am featured at http://booklandheights.blogspot.com/ for the week. Bookland Heights is a wonderful site that features a different author and his or her work every week. It is a nice bit of free publicity, but more importantly a way for the public to learn a little bit more about novels and the writers. I check it every week even when I'm not featured to see who's on it and to learn a little about other writers and their works.