Shit
So today was my first day of bar-hopping, by which I mean that I went to one bar and the guy told me to come back on Friday to talk to the other bartender (???), and then I went to a neighborhood tavern that I was told about by my pre-contacted interviewee, who is a folklorist and therefore knows a ton about NOLA. He also told me the story of being held up by a guy with a gun in a bar in the middle of the day. The bar is along the street that is my destination-station for bar-hopping in the next few afternoons. Hmm. Anyway, I gathered quite a bit of data today, and all the people I talked to offered to buy me drinks (I had accepted Coca Cola because I had thought it rude to sit in the bar talking to anyone and not give the bar any business, but by the time I'd left had had about a gallon of Coca Cola, all on various people I'd interviewed. Good, 'cause I'm broke, and shows you how nice some people can be!! Excepting, of course, the fact that I don't really like Coca Cola at all and that I ended up feeling kind of sick, therefore altogether skipping dinner due to fear of vomiting! A beautiful mental image, I know).
It was definitely fascinating to talk to people, but... this is only day 2, I know, but I'm being told that nothing's changed in perceptions since the storm. I just don't know what to think. If this is seriously the case, then I don't know what my thesis is about. I worked for 2 months on Silverstein's indexicality theory and need to read a ton about prestige still, but... I just wonder how it's possible that a year and a half ago people were telling me they missed Y'ats and felt sorry for them, and now there's just nothing there. I know the city has gotten back on its feet a significant bit in that time frame (not completely, but there's definitely been improvement), but... seriously? Nothing? Nothing there??
I'm really terrified because if this is the case, I have no idea what the fuck I'm going to be writing for the next 3 months. :(
It was definitely fascinating to talk to people, but... this is only day 2, I know, but I'm being told that nothing's changed in perceptions since the storm. I just don't know what to think. If this is seriously the case, then I don't know what my thesis is about. I worked for 2 months on Silverstein's indexicality theory and need to read a ton about prestige still, but... I just wonder how it's possible that a year and a half ago people were telling me they missed Y'ats and felt sorry for them, and now there's just nothing there. I know the city has gotten back on its feet a significant bit in that time frame (not completely, but there's definitely been improvement), but... seriously? Nothing? Nothing there??
I'm really terrified because if this is the case, I have no idea what the fuck I'm going to be writing for the next 3 months. :(