Only in the (Dirty) Big Easy

I've lived in New Orleans for about 13 1/2 months now. At just over a year in the Big Easy, you may think I've seen some pretty wild stuff but the truth is I haven't really.



Sure on Mardi Gras day I saw a 90 year-old man riding a bicycle down the street wearing a leotard and a tu-tu, but it's Mardi Gras...what do you expect.



Because Lindsey works evenings from 4:00 to 12:00, I have a lot of free time after work that I usually spend watching movies at home or the theater, playing video games, or blogging. We've been married for well over a year, and I still eat dinner at night like any single bachelor would. Cooking for one just sucks, so Ramen noodles, mac 'n cheese and fast food are regular staples in the Sonnier household.



Last night I was starving, and all of the food in the refridgerator had been thrown out because of Hurricane Ivan. Our power was out for a good 12 hours, and I just don't trust mayo that's gotten warm overnight.



I walked down the street to one of my favorite local dives: Igor's Bar, Gameroom, and Laundromat. That's right...no typo there...laundromat. You can get a beer and do your laundry while playing pool until 4:00 am on a Sunday here in New Orleans. It's great.



Igor's also serves food, and I have not found a burger that I like better in the greater New Orleans area. So last night, ravished with hunger, that is where I went.



Well, while sitting at the bar enjoying my burger and steak fries with a New Castle, two young women walk in and join a few friends at the bar. All of them appear to be regulars...somehow you can just spot them. One of the women was wearing a pair of blue jeans and a dark, navy sweater, and the other was wearing a small satin bath robe.



Since I was alone at the bar, I didn't have much to do other than look around the bar at whatever I could find that might be interesting. And then it happened; my first true New Orleans experience that can only be written off to the fact that "Hey it's New Orleans, what are you gonna do?" The woman in the bath robe is sitting four seats down the bar from me. While speaking to her friend in the blue sweater, she opens the robe to reveal that she is completely naked other than the robe. And she wasn't being shy about it either. From where I was sitting, I could plainly see everything that she wasn't wearing, no hidden details here.



It was crazy. I couldn't believe what I was seeing. But then, I could believe it a little. It's New Orleans, what are you gonna do? I finished my beer and went about my night.