Comic Con!

Saturday Shelby and I headed back to Kenner to go to something I've been looking forward to for a while: Nola Comic Con! It's not that I'm a huge comic fan, which I'm not, or that I have an urge to dress like a super hero, because I don't, but I was interested in finally meeting Dustin's friend from work, Jon. We'd never met face-to-face, but we play Xbox Live together all the time. It was nice to finally meet him and put a face to the excellent zombie killing skills. This cool cat doesn't just practice paramedicine and behead the digital walking dead, he also runs Mass Casualty Comics, along with a fellow medic, Sean, and is in charge of the Barely Rotten Girls, a pin-up-esque zombified modeling group. They'd just put out their first calender and were promoting it with a booth at comic con. I met two of the girls (very nice) and got to have a look at the calender (very cool). Shelby and I walked around for a while, me pretending I knew anything about the characters or books I was perusing. We talked to the people who run Bloodletting, an online vampire RPG that sounds pretty cool. They gave Shelby some "freaky" teeth, and said with them in she looked like on of the characters, The Little Girl. They asked to take her picture, which I obliged, and plan on photoshopping it for use on the site. She's quite excited about it. Jon is also thinking about doing a shoot, for the BRG coffee table book that will be out next year, involving her, but not as a bloody zombie, just as a precious little girl smiling at one. Once we left, she had to call everyone we know and tell them how she was going to be a "little girl zombie vampire on a book and a website!" and that she was going to be the first Barely Rotten Little Girl, all of which took some clarifying once I got the phone away from her.

After the convention, we went to Golden Corral there in Kenner, which was nothing short of disappointing. I miss the magnificent, Vegas-style Golden Corral we had in Beaumont. We also went by Aquatic Specialties. Again. I had to return the bedeviling little sea urchin we bought. He was cute, but he kept going around and knocking everything over and/or irritating it. They were cool though and gave me store credit, so we bought a little yellow watchman goby for Dustin.

Because Sunday was pretty much a repeat of the day before, I'm adding the summary here as well. Kenner, Comic Con, Barely Rotten Girl booth. Actually, we went to Burger King before we left town, because I love me some BK fries and a Jr. Whopper. Mmmm. Once we arrived at the Ponchartrain Center, Jon got us in all official-like, and we hung out with him at the booth. Shelby and some little boys whose parents had booths set up a make-shift playdate behind us and played Power Rangers. It was adorable. When one's dad walk off to talk to someone, he stood up and yelled "But who's gonna watch me!" I told him I would and gave him a piece of candy, which in retrospect, sounds really stranger danger-ish. When the comvntion started winding down, we really didn't have anything to do, so Jon handed Shelby a few calenders and told her he'd give her a $5 for every one she sold. She got off to a slow start, being so shy, she was just walking up to people, tugging on their shirt and thrusting a calendar at them. But she eventually got the pitch down and sold one to an illustrator who couldn't resist such a cute salesperson. Jan handed over the dough and took her to a booth that sold children's comics. She chose a Scooby Doo one, and was told it was $7. She said "Well, I only have five," and once again, such a darling face couldn't be turned down. Uncle Jon was very impressed with her hustling (oh, and by the way, he morphed into 'Uncle Jon' before the end of the weekend due to the kind attention he paid Shelby, as well as the five bucks and his bag of candy). Shelby got the sales bug and was ready to make another Lincoln, but there were no takers amongst the few straggling patrons, so she settled for handing out flyers for the calendar release party two weeks from now. When it was time to shut down, it was time for us to split, so we Uncle Jon headed out front where he caught her a few of the million dragonflies that were out that day.

Once back in the Crescent City, we ran by Rouses store to pick up a few things and headed home. Hanging out at a comic booth surrounded by awesome people is tiring.

Exploring Kenner

Friday, Dustin was off work, so we made a trip to Kenner to Aquatic Specialties, a cool fish store specializing in salt water creatures where we spend entirely too much money. We were absolutely starving, though, so before buying some live fish, we went to eat some raw fish.

Using my handy dandy MyTouch, I found a few listings for sushi on Williams Boulevard, and decided whichever one we came to first would be the winner of our patronage. Sake Sushi claimed the prize. The place was empty As in, other than us, the only people sitting at a table were the waitstaff because they had nothing to do. That worried us. Dustin said it was like the beginning of Kitchen Nightmares when Gordon Ramsey makes his first visit to the abandoned dining room of the ailing restaurant. Luckily, this place wasn't a candidate for the show (at least not by judging the food). Dustin had two glasses of the house chardonnay (I didn't care for it whatsoever, but it was only a few dollars). I ordered the miso soup and the Sake roll; Dustin a snow crab roll, spicy tuna and Philadelphia roll; and we ordered Shelby a terriyaki chicken bento box. Dustin's looked good, my Sake roll was huge and incredibly filling, as well as insanely delicious- tempura shrimp and a Japanese mayonnaise sauce (not too much) rolled in nori and rice, topped with snow crab, topped with raw tuna, topped with avocado. Holy crap that thing was good. Dustin and Shelby each had a piece and I was still stuffed when I was done. Shelby really did us proud with her bento. I was thinking it would be a small-ish box, but it was about the size of a standard school tray. There was a whole chicken breast, one broccoli floret, one baby carrot, one baby corn, two dumplings, a peeled and creatively sliced orange, a whole California roll and fried rice. Did I mention it came with miso soup and a salad, too? For $7.95. And Shelby finished it! It took about an hour, but she did it, minus the dumpling Dustin and I stole and the broccoli. She also didn't finish the rice, but seriously, she had just eaten an entire sushi roll. I let it slide. The total came to $50-something. Which I don't think was bad given that the service was extremely friendly (almost creepy friendly) and quick and the food was good.

Having filled our bellies with aquatic goodies, we headed to the fish store. While Dustin talked shop with one of the staff, Shelby and I browsed the fish, crabs, urchins, starfish and the lone beige, bright blue spotted ray. He is so funny. If you get near the glass, he faces off with you and bumps the glass with his.... lip? Whatever the front-most part of his pancake-like body is. Doing this makes his "face" crinkle and his eyes look as though the brows have come down, causing him to look as though he's quite angry with you, as well as very much like a cartoon character. I'll see if the computer will allow me to upload the picture I took of him. Dustin settled on a reddish, skinny hand shaped tree thing, an emerald crab (which is not bright green, I was sad to find) and a koko worm- a long, twisty purple tube about the width of a finger that has a red and white stripped feather duster thing that comes out of the end. The feather duster is the animal, I'm not really sure what the tube is. I wanted a bit more color, so I got a cute little electric lime green soft coral. I ca't remember what it's called, but it sure is cute. It's a "baby," meaning it was a new cutting not quite ready to be in a tank with other things, but he let me buy it anyway. It's the brightest green I've ever seen, and it glows under the black light like a neon sign. I like it.

After going fishing, we went to Academy (where Dustin bought some golf stuff) and the Dollar Tree (where I bought some stuff). When I was in the Dollar Tree, Dustin and Shelby went into PetCo. Imagine my surprise to walk out of my respective store to see them coming out if theirs, Shelby with a mouse in her hands. A mouse. That her daddy bought her. I said it then and I'm saying it now, the care of this animal will not be added to the list of my household duties! She is kinda cute, though. Shelby named her Tinkerbell, and she's a light honey color.

Upon leaving Kenner, we met Frank for pizza and brews, though I just had a beer, still being full from lunch. Shelby regaled everyone in the place with her tale of finding the perfect mouse and talking her daddy into buying it. We stayed and chatted with Frank and Tim for a couple hours before finally heading home, where we aquainted the new corals to their new home and readied the cage for Tinkerbell.

Again I say: Mouse-keeping, not my job. Even if it is a cute little thing.

... Or, "Jeffe"

Very little rivals being able to get all froo-froo, walking out the front door and walking to your evening hotspot in either convenience or coolness. Laura, my beloved bad influence, and I walked a mere block and a half to Frankie & Johnnie's for a seasonal treat of Abita Strawberry and boiled crawfish. My first of the season! Though the next batch isn't far behind.

Then we walked another block or so to Dos Jefes. Every time Dustin and I pass by, we say "Or, 'Jeff,' " because we're nerds, but also because we saw an episode of a sitcom once where a guy approached a fellow Spanish student and introduced himself by saying "Hi, I'm Jeff, or, 'Jefe'." Which, of course, does not mean Jeff. Actually, there's much debate amongst the locals as to whether it is pronounced "hefes" or "Jeffs". Laura has chosen "Jefays", which works for me, since the way you say the name doesn't change what they do, and they do it well. Steve, the friendly and knowledgeable bartender, was pleased to answer our many questions about the wine and the cigars, and spent a fair amount of time hand squeezing limes for their margaritas (they don't use any artificial mixes). We enjoyed good conversation, two glasses of white each- one a Toscano, the other I couldn't pronounce but was good- and two lady-sized cigars, one of which was flavored with vanilla, while the slightly larger also involved some exotic spices. We just happened to pick the one and only night on the calender that didn't feature live music. From the pool tables in the back to the courtyard on the side, it seems a great place to take out of town guests for a relaxed good time. My only complaint is the bathroom. Four words: shower curtains for doors. 'Nuff said.

We also patronized the Brothers Three on Magazine. A dive, yes, but as long as you don't mind the crummy bathroom and the friendly geezer telling you about the time he saw Garth Brooks shot out of a cannon, it's not a bad place to slum it.

Rounding out the night, as she and I often do, with burgers at J'Anita's, we felt quite satisfied. We also tried the mini tacos, an excellent after-drinks finger food. Covered in melted cheddar, they were greasy, but so, so good.

With the exception of thinking I lost my debit card, searching the sidewalks and calling to have it canceled only to find I'd left it at home, it was a delightful evening out in my favorite neighborhood.

Lazy Saturday Afternoon

In order to keep our green thumbs motivated ("green" may be a bit of a stretch for us...) Laura and I like to mosey on over to the Green Parrot Nursery down the street to see what's shakin' in the flora world. As I've mentioned before, they've been renovating up a storm, so there's always something new to check out. Laura was able to find the gardenias she's been wanting, and I found some edemame plants I'm quite interested in. I have to do some more research, though, to see if they'll survive long enough down here to yield a whole bowl of soybeans.

Flowers bought, we walked home and sat on the porch chit chatting and chalking on the sidewalk. Then I saw the weirdest thing- a rat! On the telephone line across the street! It was huge!!! I started pointing and screaming, and a guy who had been turning his car around thought I was referring to him. He gave us an odd, somewhat scornful look and sped away. I felt kind of bad, but I wasn't yelling at him, I was yelling about the rat! I don't now where it went once it jumped onto a tree, but I hope I never see it ever again. However, the unwanted rodent drew our attention to the telephone pole, and to the sign upon said pole. Braving the possibility of attack, we (cautiously) walked to the other side of the road to check it out. It stated that there would be no parking on Wednesday from 5am to 3pm due to filming. I desperately want to know what's going down, but don't know who to call find out. They film so many things here. But we've all decided to get up early Wednesday and sit on the porch to gawk at the happenings on our fair street. Our luck they'll just park a huge prop trailer in front of our houses and do the interesting stuff elsewhere. Who knows, maybe we'll get spots as extras.

And, possibly, one step closer to Ryan Reynolds.

Margaritas & Shopping

-Is quite possibly one of the most marvelous combinations ever.

Since moving to New Orleans, we don't eat Mexican food nearly as much as we used to. There's just not a Taqueria on every corner like there is in most of Texas. But when we need to get that queso fix, we know where to go. Nacho Mama's (we'll find another South-of-the-border eatery one of these days, but there's no rush, we love this place). I won't dwell, because if you've ever read this blog before you have a 42% chance of having heard about it (food for thought: 86% of all statistics are made up on the spot). The meal was quite acceptable: tacos for Dustin, taco salad with ground beef for me, mini chimis for the little one and some jumbo shrimp and steak fajitas for our friend. It was his birthday, so I decided to celebrate with a couple margaritas. Only two, it was one in the afternoon, after all.

After stuffing ourselves silly, Dustin and his buddy headed to the aquarium store. When they were there, the fish people had to run them out, as they had to make a delivery of some sort of special black rocks to the filming site of The Green Lantern. Ryan Reynolds has been in town for a while shooting, though I'm not sure if he's still here. It's probably for the best- he was in serious danger of being kidnapped. You win this round, Scarlett Jo.

Shelby and I decided to walk through some of the shops there on Magazine. American Apperal wasn't anything special, and their stuff was a little high. Then we went to Tomato and looked around, followed by the shoe store Elle (need a job? They're looking), and Hemline. I was kind of surprised how sparse their selections were. Not so surprised to find nothing bigger than tiny looking Larges. I've been dying to check out the Buffalo Exchange, so we did. They have a great collection of previously owned yet meticulously cared for clothing and accessories (and lamps). A friend once inquired about bringing some clothes to them and said the guidelines were quite stringent, which is good for me, I'd rather not have unidentified stains on my new-to-me clothing. The prices vary, some high, some low. I found not one, but two cute things in my size after only looking for a few minutes, a $7 pencil skirt and a $14 paisley printed mini dress. Shelby chose the blue dress over the skirt, as I only had a $20 on me and couldn't decide. The quirky staff was very friendly and made us feel welcome (some sales associates on Magazine can be a bit condescending or quiet) It came to just over $15 with tax. Since we were headed back to the car, I declined the bag, and was given a 5 cent token: When you don't take one of their bags, you get this token and are able to put it into one of three local non-profit slots, then the Buffalo Exchange will donate that 5 cents to the chosen charity. We picked Hands On New Orleans, since I hope to work with them in the future. The Buffalo Exchange has been enthusiastically added to my return trip list.

Anybody Else Thinking Sushi?

Yesterday we took trip to Metarie to the fish store. Dustin has invested in a Nano Cube- a saltwater tank that mimics a natural reef and ecosystem. Neptune needed some more water and to browse the ever-changing variety of corals, anemones, fish and other sea creatures the store offers. I'd never been, Shelby was excited to see all the fishies. I figured the tanks would be interesting enough, but the things they had in there I hadn't even seen on Discovery, let alone in a home tank. There was even a sandy colored sting ray with vibrant blue spots. The diversity displayed in the many tanks was amazing. All colors of the rainbow, pulsing in the gelatinous skin of an anemone or streaking across a fish's scales. It was quite the sight.

We got our 10 gallons of freshly salted water (I have no idea exactly what they do to it), some brine shrimp and krill to feed our little buddies, and a few new friends. I've been wanting a serpent starfish ever since I saw a YouTube video of one devouring a snack just like an octopus. Dustin also got me an adorable little purple and white sea urchin, who insists on adorning himself with shells he finds on the sandy bottom of the tank. Dustin picked up some flat, neon colored, glow in the dark mushrooms and a peach colored anemone with finger like fronds it uses to snatch food from the water. I never thought I'd spend $121 on fish. At least not the kind I couldn't eat. I seriously wanted a sushi fix after being in that place. Is that wrong? Instead, we went home so Dustin could get ready for work and I made creole omletes with crawfish cream sauce.

Once we got our new aquatic friends in their new home and Dustin off to work, Shelby and I walked down the street to Green Parrot Nursery to look at the Spring arrivals. They're still constructing some new structures, but they've made a huge concrete fountain that's home to several huge koi fish. We looked at the blueberry plants and mire lemon trees, and decided just to pick up some plain terra cotta pots for the plants we already have (since the Wal-Mart doesn't carry them anymore). I'm hoping to walk down to the hobby store next to get some acrylic paint so Shelby and I can unleash our creativity on the plain pots. I'll let you know how it goes!

French Quarter Festivities

Do not plan on riding the Streetcar on St. Charles going in the direction of the French Quarter on a busy festival weekend. Don't do it.

As I'm sure you've deduced, that's what Shelby and I did Saturday. We parked near The Avenue just off of St. Charles and walked to the nearest car stop. We waited around for about 10 minutes, a small crowd gathering, before a man walking by, in attire not befitting someone walking any measurable distance, informed us that the coming Streetcar had hit a car. Bemoaning of the stupidity of tourists commenced as we started an exodus of would-be passengers-turned-pedestrians towards the Quarter. Shelby and I walked to the Lee Circle stop and waited a bit, to rest and to see if a car would come by. One finally did, and much to my surprise, opened his doors to us despite the obvious over crowding. There was just enough room in front for Shelby and I to put our money in the recepticle and turn around, doors almost closing on our noses. The driver took the Circle so fast I really thought I'd fly out and hit someone on the sidewalk. Our ride came to an end not far away, just far enough to have a conversation about jewelry with the well dressed man nearest me, small talk seeming called for as we were close enough to smell each other's deodorant. We continued our walk down Canal before coming to Decatur and crossing the street, which was blocked at one side of the intersection by police for whatever reason.

Passing a window full of gas lanterns, we stopped in to have a look around. Jack's Metal Arts makes their own custom style of the old fashioned gas lanterns adorning so many New Orleans homes. They also do other custom work, sell hardware and lighting accessories and the odd antique that finds it's way to them. The owner, whom I assume is Jack, and I had a lengthy conversation about the quality of their work and the pros and cons of different parts of the city.

After resuming our journey across the Quarter, our destination being Dustin on duty at the corner of Barracks and Decatur, we saw all manner of craziness. The city is always full of pleasant oddity, but festivals and tourists bring the characters out in droves. We counted no less than three fully painted people, more crazy hair than I can list and two people walking around with costumes and enormous paper mache heads. Those were actually really cool. When we passed the Convent of the Ursulines, I told Shelby about the vampire(s) that lives in the attic, sealed in with special nails from the Vatican holding down the shutters (hey, that's what I heard!). She responded with that mix of skepticism and curiosity she has when we talk about how the fences around the above ground cemetaries are to keep the zombies from getting out.

Finally, almost three hours after telling Dustin we were getting ready to leave the house, we made it to the old US Mint. We hung out in front of Envie for a while with Dustin, talking and listening to the live band that had set up a stage within the gates of the Mint, and enjoying the rare chance to spend time with him while he was at work. We also got to see the cute little Gator-like ambulance they use for special French Quarter events. After swaying to the beat for a while, Shelby and I went in search of street food. Having been in operation since that morning, the booths were running low on provisions. I was sad to find there was no longer any crawfish bread or shrimp and grits, so we got two shrimp & pork spring rolls and a crawfish eggroll from Amy's Vietnamese. For $3, I'm really glad that eggroll was awesome. We shared our fare with Dustin, and it didn't go quite far enough. So We decided to go to The Italian Barrel right across the street. The place looks like a good spot to sit outside and enjoy some wine and cheese on a slow week day. They have a case in front that they keep their delicious looking fromage selection in. The prices are high, though. We got the two cheapest things on the menu (which also seemed the easiest to eat standing up outside)- bruschetta and grissini wraps (thin breadsticks wrapped in prusciutto). It took over an hour to get our two appetizers to go, neither of which had to be cooked, BTW. When one of the waitresses offered to bring us some bread, another told her not to because we were a to-go order. I understand, but come on! Over an hour! A long enough time for Dustin to get a call and have to leave, which meant that we might as well have ordered eat-in. So we sat there and ate our (delicious, really) food out of the styrofoam, with no free bread. It was $14 for three thick slices of bread with tomatoes, oil and cheese and three bread sticks wrapped in ham. And I know it's just bread in a bowl, but free restaurant bread is special, and I was hungry. Thumb down for you, Italian Barrel.

While we were waiting, though, we spied Treme's Steve Zahn as he walked by (rather in a huff, it seemed), which was cool. I took a picture of the back of his head, to be posted to the Facebook page soon.

The remaining stick and tomato bread in tow, we watched the people dancing merrily in the street, including an old man no younger than 78 years old cutting one heck of a rug. When he sat down to rest, he offered us the free chair beside him. We declined, but he offered to watch our stuff for us if we cared to dance. Seeing as how he was quite aged and probably couldn't run very fast, thus making him not much of a purse snatching threat, I left my bag and leftovers under his watchful eye and Shelby and I did our own rug cutting. I love to dance, but to see me dance is like watching someone have a seizure, so I don't do it often. When you're dancing with a kid, however, you can dance like an epileptic lunatic and no one cares, so I did. I also truly love Zydeco music. It reminds me of my PawPaw, and makes me feel warm and fuzzy, even though I have no idea what's being sung when Creole or French is used. We danced for a good four or five songs and mama was done. So we bade farewell to the sweet old gentleman and browsed a shop across the corner. Outside, Defend New Orleans had a booth set up, I bought a DNO pin for my messenger bag and Shelby got a free Defend Who Dat sticker, maintaing her record of having never been to the Quarter without someone giving her something for free.

I noticed it was starting to get a bit dim, so we began our return trip. We bought a bottle of water at one of the convenience/trinket stores and sat on a bench beside the gold statue (I think it's Joan of Arc), beneath a tree that had small fragrant flowers all over. We also noticed that there was a dog leash and a broom in it. Once we resumed our walk, we came upon an interesting shop. I can't for the life of me remember the name. It's filled with traditional Asian puppets, wooden figures of every sort, jewelry and ceremonial masks of varied origin. The owner, a man who DJ's in is off hours under the name Sight, was quite friendly and more than willing to answer our questions about his unique wares. Shelby even felt comfortable enough to ask questions of her own. He explained the usage of the Tibetan children's masks, which he let her try on, and the concept of abstract art, which probably went about two inches over her head. He also told us of his contempt for digital music in the club scene and the superiority of vinyl.

Once we left Sight's company, we walked to Canal. Well, I walked, Shelby bummed a ride in my arms. Great way to work off a crawfish eggroll! We were able to catch the Streetcar just off of Canal, only slightly further from the door this time, and rode it almost all the way to The Avenue. We probably could have ridden it all the way, but I was afraid we'd miss our stop in the dark.

I'm confident in believing all the walking of the day burned off not only our street food, but our homemade buffalo tacos that night, and probably my egg the next morning. Calorie burning aside, it was a Saturday truly well spent.

A Cheesy Little Date

Last night Dustin and I enlisted the services of our beloved babysitter and took a night off from our nightly routine. After all the OT he's been pulling in, Dustin deserved a break. We were going to try Sushi Brothers, again, but they were so packed I was afraid we'd add a migraine to our hunger pangs. The Melting Pot is right down the street, and there happened to be some free street-side parking.

I'd never been, so I was quite happy Dustin suggested it. They weren't that crowded, though with the deceptively deep dinning area, even if they were 3/4 full, you could still enjoy an intimate dinner for two. We were seated beside the nearly two story glass-walled wine room with a clear view of their nice selection (from which we partook, of course). Our friendly waiter, Rick, explained the menu to us and we chose their current promotion, the Pacific Islands Big Night Out- a four course meal, all but the main course of which is interchangeable, for two at $85. We stuck to the arrangement and started with Feng Shui Cheese Fondue. The mix of Havarti cheese and Sake just didn't work for me. But the green apples and bread to dip in it was good. The following course of lettuce wraps was absolutely delicious. Large leaves of crisp lettuce stuffed with finely shredded vegetables, bean sprouts and toasted almonds served with mandarin sesame sauce that was just beautiful. The main course did not disappoint. After detailed instructions, including not to go pot-to-mouth with the skewers (those things get hot!) we received a platter filled with raw meat (which would have definitely freaked me out any other day), four chunks each of pork, chicken, beef, ahi tuna, two shrimp, four vegetable dumplings and a lobster tail. Each was lightly pre-seasoned, and our chosen preparation, an island inspired blend of citrus and spices called Mojo, was boiling away, ready for our little morsels to take a swim. And the sauces! Not one, or two, or three, but eight sauces, each totally different from the other and absolutely delicious. There was also a bowl full of potatoes, mushrooms and broccoli. Is it any wonder it took us 3 hours to eat supper? But the process was fascinating and romantic (though we stopped short of feeding each other). It was one of the most fun meals I've ever had in a sophisticated setting. But hold on, kiddies, we're not done yet. There was still the dessert course. We had the recommended Yin & Yang fondue: dark chocolate swirled with passion fruit-infused white chocolate in the shape of, what else, a Yin-Yang sign. The plate of dippable treats they brought blew the wonder at the sauces out of the water. A slice of cheesecake, two bites of brownie, two bites of pound cake, Oreo- and graham cracker-crusted marshmallows, rice crispy treats and a bowl of sliced strawberries. And a cherry. Whoa. That stuff was sinfully good. We also had after dinner drinks, Dustin a grasshopper and I a coffee with Amaretto. Oh, and did I mention the fabulous wine Rick suggested, Zin of Zins? Yeah, we had two. Bottles. (Spread over a 3+ hour span, with food, it wasn't so bad.) So, feeling stuffed to the gills, and a bit swimy, we chatted with the friendly waitstaff a while before paying our $162 bill (before tip) and walked to the Avenue so I could try the new Hurricane Saison on the balcony, then went home before we were tempted to stay for another brew, which our full tummies would have firmly protested, I have no doubt.

Because we had so much fun dipping sharp objects topped with meat and vegetables into boiling liquids, Dustin has proclaimed that our monthly date nights will henceforth take place at The Melting Pot. Um, yeah. I had a fabulous time, but I like variety. Not to mention it would seriously drain our date budget, but I'm sure I'll be ready for a return trip in about six weeks.

Visiting Mayberry

Sunday, being Easter and all, Shelby and I rode with Dustin's cousin to Cotton Port to meet their family. He and Paige's grandmothers are sisters, making them second cousins. I think. Genetics are funny, because I never thought Dustin looked much like anyone in his family other than maybe his mom. But he really looks like the people I met yesterday, and Shelby resembles them, too. Many look like they could be his brothers and sisters.

After a three hour drive (which felt a lot longer coming back than going), and stopping on the side of the road to buy strawberries, we arrived to a full house of open arms and warm welcomes. And, of course, good food. There was a box full of baby bunnies for the kids to play with, swings to swing on and eggs to hunt, so needless to say Shelby had a good time with her "new" cousins, only one of which she'd met before. I had a lovely visit with the adults and was treated to a few albums of family photos and amusing stories to go with each sepia or black-and-white photograph. I also got to hold the new baby that had been baptised that day, smelling of anointing oil and baby soap.

After re-tasting a few things and finally peeling the kids off of each other, we headed home. The backseat was full of noise and dirty little feet, but they had all fallen asleep before we made it back to New Orleans. Having caught a few glances of the plantation homes hiding behind trees and moss earlier, I made an effort to watch the countryside more on the return trip. The landscape was gorgeous. If I hadn't become so accustom to the convenience of living in a city, my next choice would be to live in places like the ones we drove through. Rolling hills, farmland, streams and lakes, flowers and towering trees, grazing cows and horses. And of course, those awe-inspiring antebellum homes. I tell you, if I was a millionaire.... I just can't get over them.

While I loved getting to see a different side of Louisiana, I'm glad that we live where we do. It's so interesting and exciting, though, that whole other worlds of history and architecture exist just beyond our city limits. Maybe a few more excursions are on the itinerary for this Summer.

Fun On The Streets

Reason number 271 that New Orleans is awesome: Greenness. It's not a word, but it should be. There are ever so many more environmentally minded awesome people here. I'm sure that's due to the fact that there are substantially more people in the immediate area than in any other place I've live, but I'm glad that with so many people around, those that are "aware" (not just specifically about the health of the planet, but of other good-doing issues as well) stand out and shine through.

Saturday Shelby and I went to our first Crescent City Farmer's Market Downtown at the corner of Girod and Magazine, which happens every first Saturday. It was inside a warehouse, and would benefit from having some fans or something to tamp down the heat that comes from being in a sun-drenched metal building surrounded by other people, but it was great nonetheless. People were selling salad & cooking greens and vegetables of many varieties, jars and jars of homemade preserves and jellies, Smith's Creamery was there selling cow's milk (the same dairy that we buy our butter from, both of which can be picked up at Rouses), fresh goat milk and cheese (the tastiest chevre I've ever had- especially drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with sea salt, garlic and thyme!), organic juices and popcicles, bakery fresh breads and desserts. You can also buy your own herb plants, tomato plants and other plants. There were even a few people selling fresh meat, mostly lamb and goat. A guy was selling home grown mushrooms of the wild varieties and mushroom starter kits, which I'd like to look further into, and since I'm the only one in the house that eats mushrooms, they'd be all mine! Mwaha! A woman and her children were selling tamales, of which we bought two, and someone was selling home made Greek food. And I've never seen so many fresh strawberries. Being the day before Easter, one of the coordinators had boiled eggs to give to children in little "nests" (Shelby was really disappointed when she realized the egg she'd been given wasn't going to hatch), and we got to pet a baby chicken who was there promoting hatchling sales. They sell all types of yard birds, including turkeys and guineas. I may just have to work on Dustin a bit more to let me get some chickens. We got there late, so a lot of the stuff was gone or dwindling, but we'll know better next time.

After making the rounds, buying a few things and getting surveyed by the woman at the door, Shelby and I walked back down the street with our goat cheese, cheese tamales and Cherokee heirloom tomato plant to our car a few blocks away. If there's one thing, other than my love of green chiles, that I learned living in New Mexico, it's an appreciation for scratch-made tamales sold by someone's mama. We stopped halfway to sit on a concrete block on the sidewalk and have our snack. There was a nice breeze blowing, and it was great to eat street food on the street and relax.

Snack finished, goodies loaded and seat belts fastened, we drove to Napoleon where we parked to attend the Freret Street Fair. The deceptively sized event was just absolutely fantastic. So much so that I had to will the goofy smile off my face. It really didn't look like much from the street, but looks can be deceiving. Inside that chain link fence was a cross section of all things New Orleans. A live band, featuring my favorite of all instruments, the washboard, played for the crowd, where dogs from the Humane Society wearing "Adopt Me" vests made the rounds with their young volunteers and the smell of food wafted through the air.

Having been volunteers with the ASPCA back home, Shelby and I signed up for our local branch. I also signed up with the Sula foundation, a local Pitbull rescue (that happens to share my grandmother's unique name). We signed the petition provided by the Gulf Restoration Network asking Wal-Mart to stop selling cyprus mulch, which I found out is taken from our natural hurricane barriers rather than made from wood manufacturing scraps, like I thought. Fight the Blight was there handing out neighborhood information and listings of homes for sale in the area that are being offered (mostly) at decent prices to those that are willing to get their hands dirty and do some renovating. I was pleased to meet the friendly folks from Hands On New Orleans, an organization that offers opportunities to volunteer in the community through their e-mail list. They send periodic updates of things going on in the community that you can choose to participate in, or not. There's no pressure (because if I'm going to volunteer, it's not really volunteering if I do it because someone guilted me into it!), which I love, and you can search their calender for specific projects you're interested in. I'm looking forward to my first event!

There was booth after booth of eclectic goodness. Art, crafts, books, clothing, found objects-turned-jewelry, unique utilizations of beer caps and magazine ads, glass decorations, comic books, too many things to name. We're going to start giving our used wine bottles, great quantities that we produce, to a woman that kilns them into submission and makes serving boards out of them. A man was selling hand blown glass works that he and his wife make downtown at the New Orleans Glassworks studio. The studio offers classes for a decent fee, and I've been dying for Dustin and I to go. Across the way from him was a very nice man and his daughter selling stone coasters with iconic New Orleans signage on them. I just love those things. Dustin has a large one on his chair table, as he usually has more than one drink with him at any given time. The man making them uses one as a mouse pad. There are standard sized ones as well, of course. Theirs is a family production, even getting the kids involved, who affix the cork to the bottoms of the tiles. The Big Easy Rollergirls were in attendance promoting their sport and hawking their shirts and stickers. They were friendlier than I expected, I admit, and tried to recruit Shelby early, to which she just blushed and spurted "I love roller skates!" before hiding her face in my skirt. I really look forward to going to my first match (or game, or whatever they call it) and reporting back to you all the guts and glory details. There were several people selling clothes, among them Fleurty Girl (highly recommended by Laura), a shop called Skull De Lys with edgy, urban-style NOLA gear, and a woman selling Nepalese cotton shirts and wraps. I wish I could find the e-mail address she wrote down for me, because the children's clothes were perfect for Summer and only $10 each.

And the food! I should have brought more money and had lunch. I only brought a few bucks because I didn't intend to spend any. I'm still kicking myself. I had my first official New Orleans Sno Ball (still hard for me not to say "snow cone"), coconut, just like the necklace Dustin got for my birthday from Mignon Faget. The stand was a trailer made to look like a streetcar, which, of course, made the sno balls taste better. They came in a Chinese takeout box, just like the fries someone else was selling, fried with whole heads of garlic, fresh rosemary or dusted liberally with parmesean cheese. Fish tacos, gumbo, BBQ, pasta made from vegetables (Shelby Approved uncooked pasta, which will soon be available for home delivery). The mingling aromas of all the mouthwatering choices provided a high that can only come from the combined stimuli of an outdoor event.

I'm sure I've missed a few things, there was just so much to see and smell and talk about. I don't know when the next one is, or if it's a monthly or yearling thing, bit I hope the former, as this was something I want to experience again and again. Luckily, in New Orleans, there's always something happening right around the corner.