My love letter to Louisiana

I see a lot of talk about #Louisiana ranking lowest among the states in various national rankings. It is far from perfect, and it is hard for many people, but it was many wonderful features too: it is wonderfully culturally and racially diverse, a dollar goes a long way, and the cultural gumbo is unique. Here is a short list of what I love about the state.

(1) Diversity – 2^nd highest percentage of African Americans of any state. Our three largest cities have black women as mayors (let me know when your state does that.) Spanish, Native and French influences abound and there are large Honduran and Vietnamese populations as well. https://www.roadsnacks.net/most-african-american-states-in-america/

(2) Affordability – you can buy a house cheap (one of the top 10 states for that). My five bedroom, with a pool, and big front and backyards cost less than my brother's one bedroom apartment in Queens. Wish it was easier for the poor to move up, but middle class life here is pretty good in terms of affordable houses. https://www.businessinsider.com/cost-to-buy-a-house-in-every-state-ranked-2018-8#40-nebraska-12

(3)  Louisiana is one of the friendliest states (#12). I am still shocked as a New Yorker that people let me borrow their truck, and help me change a flat, and are genuinely kind to strangers. “Oh darling, how can I help you?” is not an uncommon refrain. Southern hospitality is a real thing https://bigseventravel.com/2019/08/the-50-friendliest-states-in-america/

(4) Louisiana is one of the most fun states. Ranking probably goes up if you like to drink. New Orleans is Disney World for adults. Mardi Gras is amazing and ridiculously fun if you do it right – as locals do

 https://wallethub.com/edu/most-fun-states/34665/

(5) Great food – The seafood is amazing as is crawfish season, king cake, etc. Ranking probably goes down if you are vegan, or vegetarian as I was (now pescatarian) – you can still get fat. Many people live off the land eating deer, alligator, duck, crawfish, squirrel, feral hog etc.  #4 in this ranking of states: https://www.thrillist.com/eat/nation/every-state-ranked-by-its-food-drink

(6) Great music: New Orleans Jazz, Zydeco, Cajun, etc. Louis Armstrong to Lead Belly, Buckwheat Zydeco to BeauSoleil. There are always festivals and free concerts, Cajun dances to Blues and Jazz Fests, and I love that people really love to dance here. https://www.deep-south-usa.com/louisiana/music

(7) The weather: okay it gets ridiculously hot in the summer which is six months long, but hey – no shoveling snow, your car lasts a lot longer without all that salt on the road. You can sit outside in December; you don’t need a big winter coat or furry boots. I love snow, but I also like an extended Fall. This list agrees with me. https://medium.com/thrive-global/top-us-states-with-the-best-climate-year-round-c2d71225e629

 

(8) Big Water – you got the Gulf of Mexico and the Mississippi – bayous and bays. I love that I can be so close to so much water – yes, sometimes too much water. There is really something about paddling through a nice bayou.

 

(9) Mystery - Where else in the U.S. can you feel like voodoo and magic might be real; where they give ghost tours (in earnest) and talk about vampires and the "rougaroo." There are some amazing storytellers here and everything feels possible. People who need to escape their past often claim they are from Louisiana (e.g. Henry Morton Stanley, John James Audubon, Paul Belloni Du Chaillu, Tommy Wiseau). It's easy to fit in because everyone can belong here.

I’ve lived in Montreal, Arlington, Ann Arbor and I grew up in New York City. None of those places are perfect, and I love features of all of them, but I have a hard time thinking of ever leaving Louisiana. There is a reason it has the highest rate of philopatry (4 out of 5 residents were born in the state) https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/08/13/upshot/where-people-in-each-state-were-born.html

Yes, I know there is lots of bad too, but I think the state gets better every year. I know lots of people trying to make it better and I know they will succeed. This post is just a reminder there is lots to love about living here.