Author: Josh (Page 6 of 19)

I'm currently a PhD candidate in sociolinguistics at the University of Georgia.

Je suis actuellement candidat de doctorat en sociolinguistique à l'University of Georgia.

Watch a 73 year old white man get funky.

June 19, 2014 / Josh / 0 Comments

That man is Dr. John, seen here at this year’s French Quarter Fest:

I also took some video of two Mardi Gras Indian tribes meeting back during Super Sunday:

Super Sunday is an annual daytime gathering of all the Mardi Gras Indians in New Orleans. This is their most public showing as their normal parade routes and times are difficult to find. At one time, these tribes would likely have met in a violent clash. Today, thanks to the efforts of Big Chief Tootie Montana in the 1960s, they meet in a sort of contest over who’s the “prettiest.”

If you’re familiar with the song Iko Iko, you’re actually already familiar with some of the chants that the Mardi Gras Indians use. Of course, no one seems to know what they mean, and it’s probably better that way. New Orleans is probably one of the few places in the world where the local culture is both alive and mythical at the same time.

Before I die I want to live in New Orleans.

June 7, 2014 / Josh / 0 Comments

Don’t we all.

Currently on the side of the Ogden Museum. The original was thought up by New Orleans artist Candy Chang and placed on the side of an abandoned building somewhere in the Bywater neighborhood.

Une autre journée.

May 25, 2014 / Josh / 0 Comments

Tout quelqu’un s’en va
Tout paré à oublier
Quelqu’un qui s’en va
Jamais pour pas rien
Qui espère tout assuré
Demain sera une autre journée
Qui reste avec quelqu’un
Équand tout quelqu’un s’en va

Qui reste dedans.

April 27, 2014 / Josh / 0 Comments

Il y a rien qu’une peinture
Qui reste dedans
Pas personne
Pas moi
Je fixe avec les yeux
Sur le mur
Non, pas moi
Je vas quitter pour
Pour m’en aller ?
Mais il y a encore une peinture là
Qui reste dedans
Avec les branches si longues et noires que ça encerne
Le ‘tit monde
Qui reste pas dedans
Éoù les heures passent sans
Jonglage
Sans parlage
Sans tapage, tatamage, ni trimage
Sans son
Ça c’est juste
Une peinture
Qui reste dedans
Qui me fait penser à toi
Droite là
Si loin d’icitte

A little bit of Mardi Gras.

March 5, 2014 / Josh / 0 Comments

Took a few videos from Mardi Gras week. Here they are.

Bacchus parade:

Orpheus parade on Lundi Gras:

Private party in the Frenchmen Market on Mardi Gras day. I second lined with this bunch through the French Quarter before we ended up here:

I also took a video the morning of Mardi Gras day of the Krewe of JULU parade that I marched with to get downtown, which was pretty amazing, but my phone didn’t save the clip. It’s about time to replace that thing.

At least one interesting thing happened during the Super Bowl.

February 3, 2014 / Josh / 1 Comment

Because the game itself was boring.

Language Log did a little rundown of the languages used as well as the responses. The negative responses seem to be aimed at immigrants but ask speakers of Navajo or Hawaiian or Central Alaskan Yup’ik if it’s un-American to sing America the Beautiful in a language other than English. These languages were in place before the areas they’re spoken in ever became American and they’re still spoken today, perhaps even by monolinguals.

The opinion of one former U.S. congressman, Allen West (R-FL), stood out and is particularly interesting as he cites Theodore Roosevelt’s idea of a homogenous American culture, which, according to folklorist Barry Ancelet, set the stage for the stigmatization of French right here in Louisiana, yet another language which was dominant before and well after this area became part of the United States.

Maybe Coca-Cola could have really given the xenophobes food for thought if they had included one or more of these languages.

He knew.

January 30, 2014 / Josh / 0 Comments

“I hope this Acadian music and language too doesn’t ever die out because it’s too beautiful. People think that just because America is mainly English speaking that everything should be English speaking but I think that we’d lose something if we lost this.”

I gotta admit, I know next to nothing about Pete Seeger and I’m really not fond of the whole “now that he’s just died, lets all suddenly be his biggest fans” thing. However, I think it’s pretty great that he was not only aware of the culture of southern Louisiana even back in ’60s but that he enjoyed the music enough to put it on TV.

Second lining through city hall.

January 17, 2014 / Josh / 0 Comments

We were protesting against a noise ordinance which led us right into city hall and then into the council chamber where the musicians played a funeral dirge then The Tremé Song by John Boutté. (Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to save that video.)

This is an important issue for the people of New Orleans. If you want to learn more, visit maccno.com.