Currently listening to some soft rock at Cafe Beignets off Bourbon Street, waiting for an order of red beans and rice before headed to tour the Port of New Orleans as I end my time at Transportation Marketing and Sales Association ELEVATE Conference.
The last few days have been full of learning, networking, and the culture of New Orleans.
Kids playing bucket drums for tips on Bourbon St. way past “bedtime”.
Jam bands of guitars, saxophones, tubas, drums and outstanding vocalists stopping passerbys with their talent and charisma.
People from all around the world are getting a taste of this southern melting pot, each one to the beat of their own drum.
Power Acronym 164: D.R.U.M.
Discovery
There's a lot to discover in the French Quarter of New Orleans. You never know what might be around the next corner.
Bars, antique shops, restaurants, historical landmarks, street performers, tarot card readers, artists, tourists of all kinds.
The sun rises and sets just like anywhere else but the morning to midnight is altogether different from day to day.
Revelry
There's a cacophony of music spilling into the street and off the street late into the night as thousands of people let loose and let the good times roll.
I'm not sure how folks who work on Bourbon St. get used to it, but we humans can adapt to all sorts of conditions.
Whether the noise comes from the streets of the city, inside our head, the work we do or the home we have…it's important to find an inner peace and quiet sanctuary to ensure long term well being.
Umbrage
NOLA certainly has something for everyone but it's up to you to decide what's for you and isn't.
Umbrage is defined as an offense or annoyance, which isn't difficult to have when in a place with so much going on.
Voodoo, psychic readings, homelessness, drugs, drinking, lifestyles of all kinds are all things that could potentially offend you - and you will come into contact with it.
There is no shortage of stimulus which makes the response all the more important.
Mask
You don't have to spend many hours in NOLA to see a Mardi Gras mask.
Masking became a tradition because, during early Carnivals, people put on masks to be able to mingle outside their class and keep their reputation untarnished.
In psychology, masking is presenting oneself in a way that conforms to societal expectations or norms, even if it contradicts what one is truly experiencing internally.
I'm thankful that my experience at TMSA was filled with genuine people with a passion for personal and professional growth and the work we do every day.
Being around others who have that internal drive and true enthusiasm is inspiring.
"This is the clearest sign of a mind that lacks awareness: it constantly changes its identity. In my view, there is nothing more shameful than a mind that is inconsistent with itself. Consider it a great accomplishment to act as one person. But only the wise play a single role. The rest of us wear many masks. One minute we will seem frugal and serious, the next moment wasteful and silly. We keep changing our characters, taking on a new role that is its opposite. You should, then, demand this of yourself: play a single character until the curtain falls."
SENECA
Power Acronym Daily
Daily acronyms to encourage, enrich, and empower.
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