Magazine Street, New Orleans

Magazine Street.  For the life of me I can't remember what they sell.

I was walking down Magazine Street this afternoon and I noticed an Up in Smoke outlet on the Jackson Avenue intersection.  I hadn't noticed it before.  I am interested in all kinds of smoking products, whether I am interested in smoking them or not.  I just find it interesting that this niche market exists after all the anti-smoking hullaballoo I am used to in New England.  Did you know that in Boston, pharmacies cannot sell tobacco products?  Not only is smoking forbidden indoors, in workplaces, in restaurants, and in bars, it is also forbidden on the outdoor patios of said places.  It makes for an interesting culture as people get up, leave their drinks temporarily behind (no drinking on the street in Boston) and walk half a block to have a cigarette.  The city claims this is good for business.  I have no opinion pro or con but I am happier in New Orleans whether I smoke or not.  Live and let live.

While I doubt Up in Smoke carries the kinds of pipes I'm interested in, the shop is worth an investigation just to make sure.

Anyhow, I don't know if this head shop just opened or if it has been there the whole three and a half months I've been passing the storefront since I've moved here.  That's the thing about New Orleans: the city is so thick with details that it takes repeated exposure for me to notice them all.  This isn't true of just Magazine Street; it is every street.

When I posted the photo above of the next sign on our tour down Magazine Street, I couldn't remember what was in the window.  I still can't though I obviously walked by it today.  I was too busy looking in the Aidan Gill window next door.  See?  This is what New Orleans does.  It captivates your imagine with one facet and then reveals another when you aren't paying attention.  Luckily I have another errand to run in the neighborhood tomorrow.

Cheers,
WK