Just outta curiosity, DarkLordNacho, are you a native or are you a transplant?
Mind you, in my experience the people there are warm, friendly, and very colorful, but not very willing to allow "outsiders" (read anybody whose name does not end in an "X") in their inner circle of friends. It was a very insular few years for my family and myself where our acquaintances were those who were like us and were from out-of-state. The black vs white thing is/was crazy bad when I lived there, underaged drinking is so over the top that I'd see 8 and 9 year olds pulling on 40's at Mardi Gras. For that matter, the legal age drinking problem is equally as bad; and having sloughs on both sides of the road on every road in and out of town is not healthy for drunk drivers.
Frankly, I stand amazed that anybody lives south of I-10, what with all the pollution, filth, poegee (sp?) plants, rusted drilling equipment everywhere, drawbridges holding up traffic, crime, roustabouts, and swamps that are down there. Granted, there is a beauty about the place at times, but when they're burning the marshes and you can't see 100 yards for the smoke, I dunno. I did what I had to do: I left.
Totem