On my way to my room in New Orleans, I passed by a vintage store that somehow seemed to beckon. The fact I was starving and there was a food pop up going on outside also certainly didn't hurt. The shop, Independencest was run by Nathan, coincidentally also my name, and as he and I got to talking it felt like I'd met a southern (and Jewish) version of myself (or vice versa), as we had eerily similar interests in music, vintage guitars, denim and design. Trying to pare down the discussion we had about American culture into anything less than a thousand word article would be difficult, and he was one of the most interesting, thoughtful and passionate folks I met on the entire trip. With that being, he made a comment about New Orleans that I felt was very prescient. "We've got to work together here, Black, White, Hispanic because we know no one else is looking out for us so we've got to do it ourselves." I liked Nathan, I hope our paths cross again.