New in Nola

Tattoos & House Guests

2010-06-20T19:19:00.000-05:00

We've all heard those creepy stories about people meeting internet people face-to-face and then someone gets murdered/kidnapped/inappropriately groped. But apparently, people you meet on Xbox LIVE are totally legit, because none of the above happened when we finally met our buddies Headless Rage and Zombee Queen (aka Ty & Ashley). They came to town to visit their zombie killing comrades (Dustin and I, or Sitesemt and TheHausewife) and soak up some Nawlins culture. And also sling some ink. Ty, who is a professional artist and tattooist in Florida, worked at an incredibly convenient parlor and over the course of the week several friends and co-workers got some fresh ink, including me. It's my first tattoo and I was happy that a friend of mine was able to do it for me.

But this wasn't just a working holiday. We also got to play tour guide for them, and Ty's mom, and show off our Nola knowledge. Probably out favorite thing to do when people come to town is feed 'em. The food here is unparalleled no matter where you're from, so we like to show it off, and take a little bit of credit. Among the deliciousness we demonstrated was the Oak Street Cafe. We stopped in for lunch one day where we all came away stuffed and happy. I had the fabulous Mediterranean omelet while Dustin had the Grilled Godmother. I can't recall what all everyone else had, but I know what they didn't have: complaints. We took them to Masperos and had highly satisfactory burgers and po-boys. We paid too much for overly sweet daquaris when we went to the French Quarter to show them around, and for the guys to buy skull bracelets at Rev Zombie's. Succulent BBQ was had at VooDoo BBQ and the best turkey burger and rings ever were consumed at GB's Patio Bar & Grill (the only place that let's late-nighters like us bring kiddoes until 11pm). We even had 5am mini tacos at the Avenue Pub once. Honestly, after eating out almost every meal for an entire week, I can't remember all of them. A couple of times I did cook for the crowd. I even made brain shaped meatloaf and jello one night. It was a hit, even if the fruity brains looked so real none of the kids would really eat it.

We also had no shortage of liquid refreshment. The only night we really went out on the town we had our good friend Jon be our guide. He took us to one of my husband's favorite spots (one I'd never been to), The Dungeon. I liked it. From the quiet patio area where we discussed horror and sci-fi literature and film, to the dominatrix mannequins in the cage, to the bathroom hidden by a bookshelf, and in spite of the enormous rat that scuttled by us as we drank our Sex With An Alligator shots, it was a hit. Other than a few drinks to accompany meals and the grand search that took place in order to find Strongbow that ended at Whole Foods (which I found a few days ago, more reasonably priced, at Rouses), most drinks were either gin & tonic or Abita here at the house.

The activity of tourists second only to eating and drinking is picture taking. They were able to do plenty, in the French Quarter and also in the cemeteries, where we searched for good lighting and Marie Laveau (whose grave they found the next day all by themselves). They really are impressive.

I always love having guests and enjoying the city from a tourist's point of view. It keeps the perspective fresh. You do things you don't usually think to do in order to show your friends a good time, and often discover something new that might otherwise have gone unnoticed. I can't wait for them to visit again and we can continue our gastronomical adventures.

Long Time, No Blog

2010-06-12T20:43:00.001-05:00

Whew! It's been a while hasn't it? I sort of took a month off, what with out of town guests, birthdays and trips to Texas, I hadn't a spare moment to collect my thoughts, much less write them down with the humor and wit you good people have come to expect from my little ol' blog.

I'm also participating in a creative boot camp to jump start the artistic motor within. It's a pretty cool deal, so check it out if you're into writing, painting, photography, needlepoint, whatever, and need a little kick in artsy pants.

I've got some fun stuff to post, just as soon as I get a chance to breath. In the meantime, feel free to write me with suggestions, comments, free gifts, snide remarks, whatever ya like. I always love me some feedback!

Green Lantern of Jealousy

2010-05-13T17:11:00.004-05:00

I am seriously starting to get jealous: Today Dustin is on set for the filming of The Green Lantern (he was also there one day last week). The City has an ambulance there everyday in case anyone needs medical attention. You know how stars can be prone to anxiety, conniptions and not having their whims catered to. Due to a confidentiality agreement, he can't spill all the interesting and and mundane details, but he did mention when I spoke to him earlier (in husshed tones, since he was sitting near the director) that Ryan Reynolds was within arms reach. I told him to tell Ryan hello for me, and possibly give him my number.

I'll let ya know if he calls.

Pedicures of the Undead

2010-05-10T16:16:00.000-05:00

Saturday was a big day. Not only did Shelby, Patricia and I go get pedicures ($25- $2 less than an adult pedicure- to wash and paint a preschooler's feet??? We probably won't be back to Star Nails.), Dustin finally got to take his grandfather to the WWII museum. They said it was amazing, especially the 4D movie, directed by Tom Hanks. I can't wait to see it for myself.

After all the polish was applied and rationing relived, Dustin and I got all pretty and went to the Barely Rotten Girls calendar release party at The Bar in Kenner. We had a blast! I love a good, dark, dingy bar. If that bar serves cheap PBR, I feel like I'm home. The heavy metal wasn't really my cup of Pabst, but it wasn't bad. And it was nice to meet the BRGs in person. There was a screening of the short film they filmed at the Mortuary, but I couldn't really see it over the crowd. Coming from Mass Casualty, I have no doubt it was deliciously macabre. We were able to get our calendar and limited edition poster, and have a great time.

When the film was over and people started to trickle out, a few of us decided to head down to the Quarter in honor of one of our friend's 21st birthday. We had a slice at our old pizza place, Vieux Carre pizza and then went to Pat O's for drinks. They were ridiculously packed. It seems that this weekend was a big one for reunions and weddings (and a few prom kids trying out their fake ID's), and everyone wanted a hurricane. After hanging out for a while, it was suggested we go to the Gold Mine. I'd never been, so it was nice to take a walk to a new place.

There were concert posters all over, most from before my time, black lights and Boomerang playing on all the flat screens. The music selection was good, and we spent the night dancing our butts and watching the Jetsons. To see everyone loosen up and have fun was a real treat.

We stayed out longer than we'd planned- we were going to try to go home on time to catch Saturday Night Live. But that's what DVR is for, so I didn't miss out on the Betty White goodness. A little delayed SNL gratification was worth our night on the town.

Invasion of the In-Laws

2010-05-08T14:58:00.002-05:00

Yesterday my mother-in-law and her father, whom we all affectionately know as Dee, made the trip from Port Arthur, Texas to visit us. Having spent most of the day in the car, they wanted to rest up a bit before we squired them around town. Patricia has been to see us three times since we've moved, but it was Dee's first time to be in New Orleans in over 30 years. Although he's from Bunkie (holy crap, this place has a website!?), he's only been to NOLA twice, the first time in the late 40's. And of course, we had to hear the tale recounted of that horrible trip to the sinful city, where he went to visit a relative at Charity Hospital and had his car broken into. The bandit broke the window and made off with a suit jacket and a basket of fruit. Thankfully, he didn't think to look in the glove box, where Dustin's grandmother's wedding ring happened to be.

Once the visitors were rested, we loaded up the MIL's PT Cruiser and road from Audubon Park, down St. Charles, took Decatur to Esplanade and back up to Rampart. Dustin also drove us by the house where he got sot at while responding to a call, and a place that he gets hot wings from while on duty. Finally we drove back across the highway and went to VooDoo BBQ where Dustin and I left the others in the car to make our to-go order.

We've never had any problem with VooDoo, and their food is delicious. But last night, we waited almost an hour for our food, as people who came in well after we did were eating and leaving. When we finally said something, they discovered that the wrong name had been put on our ticket (not really understanding that one, as we were given a number for our table). I don't know what that had to do with the fact that our food hadn't been boxed yet. The man offered us a free brownie, so we accepted (seriously, do we look like the kind of people who refuse free brownies?). The girl came out and yelled the wrong name, which we knew from our talk with the other waiter, before acting like she was going to take our food back to the kitchen. Se spoke up, got our grub and finally headed back to the car full of starving people. My pulled pork was delicious as always, as was Dustin's brisket and chicken. They got Patricia's side wrong, but she said she didn't mind as the Gris Gris Greens turned out to be quite tasty. And they didn't give us our brownie. So, since we were all set for brownies, Dustin took his mom to Winn Dixie to get dessert. He came back with a giant cookie decorated for someone's graduation (I asked him Who's graduating? and he said "I don't know, but I'm gonna eat their cookie!") and some New Orleans brand ice cream. The have such delicious flavors! We've had the Bananas Foster before, which tasted just like the real thing, and this time we had the Coffee & Chicory and Vanilla, both of which were rich and yummy.

I think our dessert was a fitting end to a nice day about town. I love being able to share the city we love with the people we love. :)

An Impromptu Before-The-Prices-Go-Up Cookout

2010-05-02T17:52:00.000-05:00

If you've been near a TV in the last week or so, you've probably heard about the massive oil catastrophe. It's such a horrific thing to happen, but to happen when the oysters I would be eating next year are just babies in their comfy little oyster beds- sacrilege! As well as the devastating damage it's doing to our coast, our natural hurricane barrier and our wildlife, it is seriously gong to cramp our seafood style.

So since we're bracing for the impact this disaster is going have on the prices of shrimp, crab, oysters and fish, we decided to take advantage of the shellfish we knew was uncontaminated. We'd heard tell of long lines winding from the seafood counter, but Laura said she had no trouble picking up the oysters for our little feast. We grilled some fish he had stored in her freezer, and grilled it with just a little salt, pepper and fresh lemon. The oysters we ate raw on crackers with a dash of Crystal. I'd never eaten pre-shucked oysters from the sore raw, but there were no ill effects, and they sure were tasty.

The next day, Dustin and I thawed the local shrimp I had in the freezer and fried it up with the rest of the oysters (oh Laura, by the way, we ate the rest of your oysters) and had po-boys with my home made tarter sauce.

The full extent of the damage done by BP's idiocy won't fully be felt until next year, when all those poor baby oysters and shrimp haven't had a chance to grow up into the delicious mouthfuls we know and love. Thanks a lot, BP, you've ruined my next two Summers. Shame on you!

Comic Con!

2010-04-26T13:40:00.004-05:00

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

2010-04-25T12:57:00.000-05:00

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"

2010-04-22T19:56:00.000-05:00

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

2010-04-19T12:44:00.004-05:00

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

2010-04-17T12:11:00.000-05:00

-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?

2010-04-13T18:05:00.005-05:00

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

2010-04-12T12:35:00.011-05:00

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

2010-04-10T19:15:00.000-05:00

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

2010-04-05T10:46:00.003-05:00

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

2010-04-04T20:58:00.001-05:00

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.

St. Patrick's On Top Of Dorothy

2010-03-25T20:08:00.004-05:00

As you might have noticed, there's been a lag in the posting the last week or so. That's easily explained, as we were in Dublin, Ireland for St. Patrick's day. It was amazing! Truly a vacation to remember. But, as this is New In Nola, and not Doing It In Dublin, I won't go into specifics. If you'd like to know anything about the land of my husband's forefathers, don't hesitate to ask!

The Saturday before St. Patrick's Day is a day of much revelry and chaos. We arose bright and early, donned our matching green Saints shirts (aww), fancy novelty beads and flashing shamrock earrings (or at least I did) and headed to the car, already loaded down with bag after bag of beads from Beads By The Dozen. We met with the other float-goers of our group at the EMS HQ and then proceeded to the line-up. I've never ridden in a parade such as this, and was so excited to not only be on a float, but also on the top deck of a float, a float that was Wizard of Oz themed! Lugging the 500 pound bags of beads to said float- not as excited. But once we got everything loaded, our places staked out and our throws stacked neatly, all that was left was to wait. And wait. We were done prepping by 8:30 or 9, and the parade didn't start until about one. So, what is there to do when standing on a giant sack of cabbage while looking at the back of Dorothy's enormous head? Beer, anyone? (Although we also had momosas. Gotta start the day right.)

Things picked up after someone walked to Wal-Mart to pick up a battery operated boombox, and we girls made our final trips to Mojo's for the bathroom (small and dingy, but adequate; a purchase must be made prior to usage). The float behind us was in good spirits, apparently they had some popular local DJ in their float blasting music and shouting out, but I didn't recognize him. Once we got underway, the commotion quickened and you could feel the festive spirit vibrating through the jostling floorboards, through your body and up to your arm as we flung beads at parade goers. I was a bit nervous, not wanting to hit anyone in the face or anything, but I think I got pretty darn good. Good to the point where I'd point at people, then haul back and launch it right into their outstretched hands. That, silly as it may sound, is an awesome feeling. Ah, the power of the parade thrower. People love you! Unless you through them something broken, or hit them in the face (I did happen to hit two children and make them cry- worst feeling ever). The best is when you point, throw, they catch, and then you both smile and thumbs up, or some other shared affirmation of victory. It's a total high. I had a few tiny parachute bunnies, which I tossed to little kids when we were stopped, and they really seemed to love them. I think the best was the flowers- faux carnations of white and green, which I bent the bendable stem on, then wound with beads so they could be thrown farther. I think those were Dustin's favorite, as he seemed to have developed a system of pointing to a pretty girl, point the flower at her, kissing it and then tossing it down to her with a flourish. He was quite popular. It's a good thing he was up there out of reach.

The tables turned at one point, however, when a group of people having a crawfish boil on the neutral ground (the grassy median where the streetcars run) started throwing crawfish to us! One of the girls promised them some good stuff if she got one. She said it was the tastiest one she ever had. Dustin got a potato. I only got crawfish juice in my eye, but it was still funny. After that, we all tried to get the few other folks having crawfish along the way to do the same. They just looked at us like we were weirdos and turned away. Party poopers.

Now being a seasoned thrower, I will divulge a few guidelines if you happen to be in the crowd at the next parade:

1) If you aren't looking at me, hands up, I will not throw to you. I don't know if you're paying attention and I don't want to knock you out.

2) If you are holding a baby, especially one that is too tiny to be out or one that is screaming from all the over-stimulation, I will not throw to you, and may even give you a dirty look, depending on the circumstance.

3) If I have obviously thrown to a child near you, and you grab the beads, I will be wishing many bad karma points at you, as that is the only harm I can do you from atop the float.

4) If you act like a jerk, you will not be getting any beads. And my husband will probably verbally abuse you, as you rightly deserve.

5) If the float is not in motion and I've already thrown you something. Don't ask for more. Also, see number 4.

6) If you are thrown something awesome- a garter, beads with large trinkets attached, appropriately themed rubber duck- at least smile and wave. They're not that expensive, but they're not cheap, either. I singled you out to receive your goody, it's only good manners to acknowledge it.

7) Wear sunscreen.

That last one applies all around. I forwent the sunscreen, and ended up with a farmer's sunburn, as well as sunburns on my earlobes, complete with tiny tan lines from my earring wires. After 9 hours in the sun, I don't know what I expected. Other than a few sunburns, some disturbed equilibriums and someone getting hit in the head with a street light (the light was hurt more than him), all went exceptionally well.

After the parade, we collected our things, dismounted the now-trashed float (the fee we paid covers clean-up, thank goodness for that!), and hitched a ride back to the cars. We hung out in the parking lot of HQ talking to people who were getting off or coming onto work (which I'm sure they appreciated, since they didn't get to attend the event), then headed to Magazine for some food other than liquid hops and potato chips. After searching for the least crowded establishment, no easy feat at all after a parade, we decided on Byblos. I'm so glad we did. The food was phenomenal. And I'm not just saying that because everything tastes awesome after a long day and a few drinks. I got the vegetarian plate, a combination of four tastes of your choosing. I got mousaka, baba ghanuj, hummus and spanakopita. The best Greek food I've ever had. Dustin got the drunken halloumi, which looked really good, but he and his friend Josh finished it before I could get my fork in there. The atmosphere was nice (and the ladies room clean and well appointed). And there were paper table cloths to draw on, so Shelby will be well entertained when we take here there, too. Our bill came to between $35-$40 for our food plus drinks (I had water and a glass of wine, I think Dustin had a beer).

With such a full day behind us, we fell half dead into the sheets about 10:30, feeling like it was 3am. It was a great night of sleep.

The Accidental Night Out

2010-03-14T10:00:00.002-05:00

With Shelby making the grandparent rounds in Texas, and me pretty much over my blasted cold, Dustin and I took advantage of his only night off in a while and got out of the house. We drove around a bit, as you know we love to do, and went for sushi. Sushi Brother's was closed, so we parked in their parking lot again anyway and went to Hoshun. During happy hour, beer, sake and some wines are two-for-one, so we had some Blue Moon with our Linner (you know, like brunch, except between lunch and dinner). We ordered their yummy miso soup and the rangoons. Theirs are crawfish as well as crab and come perfectly stacked on a little puddle of a lightly spicy orange sauce. They were the best rangoons I've ever had (and I've had a lot!). Then we got our sushi: I had the Uptown roll and the crunchy roll (both delicious but too much for me to finish, and I can put away a lot of sushi) & Dustin got a crawfish roll and two other spicy rolls I didn't pay much attention to. It all came to a little over $40.

Completely stuffed, we drove to the ginormous Borders Bookstore on Magazine. It's seriously huge- have you ever seen a bookstore with an escalator in it? I have! We bought some coffee and purchased several books (and added more to our future reading lists) for our upcoming flights to and from Ireland. I also got an Andy Warhol-style Wizard of Oz bookmark, which I like more and more the more I look at it.

Then, being able to be spontaneous with our temproary freedom, we went to the Avenue. When I was growing up, my old fashioned parents- normally great instillers of abstinence- would dole out the Wild Turkey for what ailed us like it was NyQuil. So in keeping with tradition I ordered a shot of Jameson with an Orange juice back to help rid my system once and for all of whatever bug I caught back in Texas. It seemed to be working so well, I had another.

And that's when things picked up. When I was out of town, Dustin and a friend checked out a bar in the French Quarter called The Dungeon. He said it definitely lived up to it's name, red walls, secret passages and all, so I had to see it. But they, like Sushi Brother's, were closed. So instead we parked a few blocks off Bourbon and went to Jean Lafittes. We drank hurricanes and watched E! and had a great time talking about this and that. This particular night there was a man at the piano in the back and he played beautifully.

Once our Jean Lafitte plastic cups were empty, rinsed and stuffed in my messenger bag, we walked down Bourbon, something we hadn't done in ages. The karaoke was in full swing at Fat Cat's, so we settled in with a beer and watched the show. Once we'd had our fill of bad eighties songs, we went to the Boondock Saint and had a great time visiting with the bartender, Tricia. She's so cute, with her curly blonde hair and cheerful personality. It really balances out the Boondock Saints playing on constant repeat behind the bar.

After we bid Tricia farewell and walked back to the car, we were on our way home, until we drove by Le Bon Temp Rouler on Magazine. We'd never been, so we stopped in, and just happened to run into one of Dustin's coworkers (this one a cop). So we visited with him and a few other friendly drinkers at the bar until it was absolutely time to go home and crash.

I seem to remember some McDonald's in there somewhere between that last bar and bed, but if I don't remember it, the calories don't count, so we'll just leave it at that.

French Wine And Catholic Mojitos

2010-03-13T11:00:00.000-06:00

In honor of one of the Paramedic's birthdays, several of Dustin's fellow medics (except him, he had to work) gathered at Bacchanal on Poland, and I was invited to come along. Driving down North Rampart at dusk, I had a wave of..... I don't know exactly what. I drove past the way we used to come into town every time we visited, and I remembered that feeling of excitement and anticipation that used to sweep me once we made the curve past the Police station. Looking at the three story buildings with iron balconies in the fading light, I was glad that I lived in New Orleans.

And after I got through feeling all giddy- and paying entirely too much for gas at the nearest station- I found Bacchanal's. It's a nondescript little place on a corner, but once you go in, you see that it might just be something special. There are wine racks everywhere, as well as a few coolers filled with beer, water and cheeses to accompany your vino. Behind the cash register there's a chalk board with a few selections, and I wish I could remember what I got. I had only one glass, but it was superb. A white wine that was crisp and fruity, but not really sweet. I thought I tasted elderberry, which is a flavor I love and miss very much from when we used to forage the berries out of the wilderness ourselves to turn into jelly when I was a kid. I followed the party out into the patio area. The ground is uneven, the trees and shrubs are exactly where God put them, the tables don't match and the tiki torches and strung lights are set about haphazardly, but it was beautiful. Everyone else had already eaten (I swear, I was only 10 minutes late! People trying to make me look bad...), so I didn't order anything, but they do offer some sandwiches, cheese plates and other light offerings. The ladies room was pretty clean, has a fuul length mirror and the hot water works, so they get a good score on that front. We stayed for a little over an hour, but just about the time the jazz band started playing on the little wooden stage in the corner, the party was ready to move on.

Since I'd missed out on the sandwiches, I decided to fulfill a constant craving I have and went to the Avenue. The guacamole watch board had a smiley face, so we were good to go. I had a Coke and my guacamole and got ready to meet back up with everyone else.

The party had moved to St. Joe's on Magazine. So.... That's where I went. I'd never been, and it was quite a place. I'm not entirely sure that all the crosses hanging from the ceiling are exactly kosher (religious pun not really intended), but I liked the church pews next to the pool table and the cherubs behind the bar. The bathroom walls are also quite unique, with bits of broken tiles and mirrors mosaiced into them. The back covered patio area is amazing. The rafters are filled with red Chinese lanterns, there are candles and Asian religious-type statues above the bar. Absolutely beautiful. Almost as beautiful as the blueberry mojitos. They were the best, hand muddled right there while you watch. We enjoyed sipping our Southern libations and heckled a friend who was trying out her speech for her upcoming volunteerism as a tour guide. With the exception of getting walked in on in the unique yet tiny, no-door-latch-having bathroom, it was a lot of fun.

At almost midnight, when the party began to disperse, a few of us decided to go in search of some late night vittles. Someone said the midnight buffet was about to start at Harrah's, so we made our way thus. But there was apparently some sort of event going on at the casino, which means no parking for us. So we followed the other car to a little restaurant on the corner of Dauphin and Touro called La Peniche. Curtis and I, deciding that the name sounded awfully stuffy, agreed ahead of time that we would certainly not be paying $25 for a crepe. Luckily, this place turned out to be the perfect end to a night out. Low prices and good food are always a happy couple in my book. Everyone got something totally different. One girl got chicken-fried chicken and scrambled eggs, and I got biscuits and white gravy with a small side salad. While the biscuits were a bit hard, it was very good. For five people to eat their fill, and still have food on (a few of) their plates, it came to about $70. With parties of 5 or more, the gratuity is added in automatically (and they don't split checks, so don't ask), but we left our change for him anyway. If you ever find yourself hankering for an omelet and a po-boy at 2 am, and are brave enough to leave the Quarter (did I mention I saw two hookers make the block as I ate my biscuits?), then by all means give this place a try!

One of the many perks of having a friend share a wall is that when you got out together, along with her boyfriend usually being the designated driver, you don't have to feel like you're imposing when it's time to go home. You simply walk up your side of the steps and go inside.

Simply Lovely

2010-03-12T00:44:00.003-06:00

Today wasn't a big day. The weather was surprisingly warm, a slight breeze away from being perfect, and it seemed the perfect day for a walk. Dustin seems to be showing signs of coming down with what I had (knock on wood! Throw some salt! Something! This can't be allowed to happen!), so I decided that my walk would take me to Whole Foods in order to get him some of my "hippie" stuff, as well as some healthy food to cook for supper.

I love taking walks in my neighborhood. Trying not to seem like a weird, nosy stalker person, I love to look at all the details of the houses I pass. They're each so unique, in style, in color, in upkeep. The courtyards are a wonderland of hidden possibilities. Almost every house has one. Some are on the side of the house, some you can see clearly through the tall iron fence. Some you can barely make out through the shrubbery, or not at all. I love to see pools. There isn't much room, so the pools have to be creative, and most of the time you'd never believe there was enough room for one. I saw two today, one that was about the size of the pools you can buy for $40 at Wal-Mart, except that it was below ground and tiled. Another was quite interesting- it ran beside the house, down it's length, and where the side door was, there was a bridge with steps going down the side, so that it was essentially a bridge down the side of the pool to the back patio. How unexpected! I also saw a few strays eating a pile of cat food on what must have been a little old lady's stoop, and a triple seated jogging stroller on a porch (you could see boxes of crayons staked in the front window). It's the little things that make otherwise boring activities enjoyable. One of these days someone is going to see me staring at their house as I slowly walk by and call the cops.

Once at Whole Foods, I picked up the goods to make some all-organic soft tacos, some elderberry extract to boost Dustin's immune system and some Ocillococcinum for his symptoms. And a blended latte. I carried it all home in my new reusable bag (why can I not remember to bring the ones I have???). The walk home was slightly less fun, lugging a huge bag of groceries and trying to sip my coffee, but I liked it. There are these trees here- I must find out what they are! They have big, soft flowers whose petals are white on one side and magenta on the other, and they have a strong, sweet scent almost like a magnolia. The tree and leaves look different from a magnolia tree, and I've never seen these beauties before living here. I passed several on my way home and just can't get enough of them. I have to plant one in our courtyard this Spring when we get back there and spruce it up.

I've been meaning to make walking in the mornings a firmly observed part of my day. The energy boost I got form my little excursion was amazing, and my interest has been renewed. Who knows what I'll find next time I leave my doorstep on foot. (And hey, next time, it might be a bit more interesting than pools and strollers! Ya just never know.)

Family Outings And Unique Finds

2010-03-10T14:28:00.012-06:00

As I'm sure you've noticed, any given post written here is seldom about a single place or event. There'll be a few days- or a little longer- with nada, then suddenly five paragraphs detailing a trip all over town throughout the course of an entire day. That's just what we do, I guess. It comes from before we lived in Beaumont ( or "in town") and would save all of our outings for one long, busy, fun-filled day as a family. Every two weeks on payday, we'd do it all- lunch at our favorite chicken wing eatery, the same order in the same booth every other Thursday; then we'd go to the mall or run where ever we needed to go to pick things up; a quick trip to Spec's to refill the wine cooler and then off to the grocery store before heading back home to unload groceries and cook supper, usually followed by a rented movie. I know that sounds terribly routine and mundane, though there's something comforting about having that one regimented day per week to look forward to. I miss those much anticipated regular outings, but we're starting to get into a rhythm here. There's much more fun to choose from, and we're learning to incorporate it!

Now that I've given you a tiny glimpse into how we roll, let me share where we've rolled it (you know you love my dork-ness)! We started by heading down to the Quarter, since most of the tourists had left post-Mardi Gras. Greg's was having a The Tourists Are Gone, Let's Celebrate! sale, so we wanted to see what they had this month. We found a gorgeous antique armoire that we picked up for just a little over $200, as well as vintage milk glass cosmetics pots I'm going to turn into candles (at some point...). Being the most successful lagniappe [lan-yap] magnet I've ever seen, Shelby was given a tiny glass bottle and a pin that says "Shoney's is #1!" that she picked it out of the trinket box they usually have at the counter, for free. I swear, by the time that girl is 16, she'll have been given a free car and a full ride scholarship (let's hope that last one really does happen!). Along with an extremely heavy, three dimensional metal fleur de lis, little did I know that we were also making another purchase. There was a headless, handless statue of a Roman or Egyptian slave we had seen the last time we made a trip to Greg's. It was genuine marble, carved by an American sculptor in Italy back in the mid 1800's. It had been salvaged from actress Becky Allen's home after her death. I'd made several comments about how much I loved it, and to my great surprise, when I got back from Texas last week, it was standing in my living room! Dustin bought it for my birthday this coming Friday and had it delivered just hours after I left. And at 400+ pounds, I'm glad I wasn't here to watch those poor men deliver it. We're having some local sculpture aficionados from one of the auction houses do an informal appraisal, and things are actually getting quite interesting! Whether it's worth a fortune or barely what we paid for it, I love it just the same and love that Dustin surprised me with it.

After yet another rewarding trip to the antique store, we walked around Decatur a bit. We had coffee and their amazing flourless chocolate cake at Envie, then explored a few of the other kooky antique/thrift shops in that part of the Quarter. One such place had an interesting array of vintage military uniforms from all over the world, old Mardi Gras outfits, hats and a bunch of creepy, naked child-clown dolls.

Once we were done browsing, we got the car and drove to Dauphine where I wanted to buy some books for my grandparents. I'd been to Dauphine Books once last year before we moved. I love it. Over crowded with stacks of books everywhere and a lazy cat roaming around. When I told the woman what I was looking for (who actually remembered me from almost 10 months ago)- books about Uptown and the history of the area- she handed me an old aluminum flashlight and directed me to a thin, dark space between bookshelves to find my treasure. It sounds annoying to have to use a flashlight to find a book, but it added some excitement and adventure to the experience, and with the unique collection of books they have, it's why I'll keep going back. I decided on a small book with photos and histories of the iconic establishments in town, as well as a purple cookbook with about 50 or so New Orleans recipes that came to a little over $20.

Afterwards, I headed back to the car where the rest of the family waited patiently and we went to Samurai for sushi. It was great, as always, but be careful where you park. We didn't see any problem with parking near the House of Blues as there were several other cars. But when we came out, they were all gone, the HOB barricades had come out and we'd gotten our very first City of New Orleans parking ticket.

We drove around Uptown a while, just enjoying the scenery when our dear friend Frank, a paramedic with Dustin, called to say he'd be getting off work soon and would like to meet us at New York Pizza for a drink. En route, we got to see another common fixture in our community- a stumbling drunk. Stopped at a red light, we saw a man holding a beer can and walking his bike down the sidewalk, right next to the car. He paused, looked around, and then in slow motion half fell, half laid down on his bike. He just kind of held that pose for a minute, then started shaking his foot and talking to himself. I asked Dustin if we should call anyone, but there were already people taking notice (and cruel though it may seem to some, it's a fairly common occurrence) so we continued on our merry way. Frank was late, and he told us it was because he'd responded to the call about the drunk we'd seen. The man was unhurt, refused medical care and asked to be pointed in the direction of home. Having heard the joyous news of another bum left unscathed by their degenerate lifestyle, we had a few beers and some pizza to cap off a perfectly New Orleans day.

Gettin' Our Mardi Gras Groove On

2010-03-04T20:33:00.009-06:00

As mentioned in the previous post, the celebrations leading up to Fat Tuesday completely consumed us. I'm glad that it's over, but boy! Was it ever fun! (Unless I needed to be somewhere or get somewhere, then it sucked.)

The traffic was so thick most days, you wished you had a chainsaw to cut it with, and it was just like that when my mom arrived. Because there was just no way we were going to find a parking space anywhere close to Uptown, we just took off driving (slowly). We ended up on Canal street, and since we wanted some authentic seafood, I used my phone to locate some local flavor. We chose Mandina's, a nice little family place there on Canal. They were crazy busy, but the wait wasn't really that long. We were seated in about 15 minutes and met our waiter- a tall, large man with a booming voice, which was good, since the merry-making of the diners was deafening (this was just a two days before the Super Bowl, remember). We ordered fried shrimp for Shelby, and shared the shrimp remoulade and the seafood platter. We took away two boxes of food. Seriously. They brought us a plate of freashly toasted, buttery Frenchbread and our Reisling to start, then we had our remoulade. It was so delicious. You have to try it. The seafood platter was overloaded with catfish, shrimp, a ton of oysters and a mountain of fries. Their tartar sauce is also very good. A fine dinner to get us ready for the festivites that were to follow the next day.

This was our first-ever Mardis Gras, and our first ever parade was the Krewe of Pontchartrain on St. Charles. With Mom in town, and I wanted to show her around our neighborhood, so we had lunch (and mucho margaritas!) at Nacho Mama's. We were able to park only a block away, and it worked out perfectly that we could stay parked there and walk down to St. Charles to view the parade. So, that's what we did.

We had the perfect spot under an ancient oak tree, the branches of which protruded out of the ground in such a way that we could sit on them as we ate our blue cotton candy- the first of what would be two bags, most of which Shelby inhaled all by herself- and drank our coffee from McDonald's across the street. There were Port-a-Potties in the parking lot where you would show your receipt to get to use them. So I bought my drink, came over, and was told that since I was wearing my Saint's jersey, I didn't need a receipt. But I was thirsty, so it worked out. They even had Purell on hand! Certainly not the worst Johnny on the spot experience I've had. We sat for a while enjoying our treat, watching the people walking around, the men hawking candy apples, fried peanuts and Spongbob hats, and laughed at the tiny boy across the way on the neutral ground that kept busting out with intense dance moves. Once the parade started, for the first time, the Mardi Gras spirit within me came alive. Determined not to beg for beads- I'm too cool for that, after all- I soon found myself yelling "Woo!" and reaching out, just like everyone else. For Shelby, of course. I wanted to get her some stuff. That's it. After my mom complained of not being able to catch anything, a doubloon hit her (not to hard) right in the face, and we all had a good laugh. Sometimes you get what you want! The floats were especially interesting, as each had a word puzzle accompanying it. After the parade, we collected all our booty, took a few pictures for the grandparents and started off. Shelby wanted to add some of her broken strands to the ones already hanging in the tree, and a seasoned passerby gave ger some advice (the trick is to wad the beads up in your hand) and helped her land a few. It's fun to drive by the tree now and know that our beads are up there. (Not really sure how the City feels about it, though...)

Because our day wasn't nearly done, we went to the Monkey Playroom and ran wild. Being a Saturday, it was much more crowded than I'm used to (or like) so I didn't play as much. If you have a small child, though, and are looking for a fun way to burn some calories, I definitely suggest this place. It's super slow on week days and you can get right in there and play like you're six again. It's so much fun you won't even notice you're getting some exercise until you heave over on the rope bridge because your body has suddenly reminded you that you are most certainly not six again. Before we left we watched some fairytale-themed floats go down Religious street to line up for their respective parade. That was one of the fun things about this festive time- you never knew where Mardi Gras-ness was going to just randomly pop up!

Afterwards, we drove to Sucre. After all the bead gathering and monkeying around, we needed refreshment, so Shelby and my mom had gelato, while I had a "chef's trio" pudding cup and one of their huge cups of coffee. The mango gelato Shelby got was soooo good. Just like fresh, frozen mangoes that had been mashed up and served with a tiny spoon. I really look forward to enjoying some this Summer. Mom's hazelnut was chocolaty and yummy, while my very grown-up pudding cup was heaven. Three layers of cream, one mocha, one chocolate and one vanilla, were divine. We all shared each other's sweets and, against all I stand for in good eats, were unable to finish and had to leave some behind. Next time, though, next time.

After all the food and fun, we headed back to the house, where mom and I played New Orleansopoly until the early hours. I'm not really sure exactly who really won, but I declared myself the winner at some point and we were both so beat no one argued. It's an awesome game, but just like regular Monopoly, it's oodles of fun until it's not fun anymore and you're tired of playing.

Mardi Gras Madness

2010-02-15T19:21:00.005-06:00

Cool art at Envie

Mardi Gras has truly taken over both our beloved city and our lives. I am so terribly behind on updating the blog! There are several shiny new posts still swimming in my head, and (once the laundry is caught up around here) I'll get it all blogged out.

In the mean time, check out some of the photos from the last several days and enjoy the tease!

~Anna

The Only Math I Like

2010-02-08T20:25:00.000-06:00

This math problem is a two-parter: What do you get at The Bulldog when you order a beer on Wednesday nights? To keep the glass it came in! And what do you get if you return 20 of those glasses? A free t-shirt and 1,000 good karma points for helping the ASPCA! That, my friends, is math I'm willing to study.

If you follow the official New In Nola Facebook page (as you very well should!) then you knew about our planned outing to The Bulldog on Magazine. A few folks actually showed up! Dustin and I got there first, and after a little while of hovering near the people who looked most likely to vacate a seat we were able to snag a couple right at the bar. Once the others arrived we had a gay old time, just sitting there drinking and talking. Paige, a fine member of our party, and I shared some southwest egg rolls that were fab-u-lous. They came with raspberry chipotle dip, which I love (especially over cream cheese and served with crackers). I was the designated driver that night, so after two beers I stuck to Coke (no free glasses- boo). Dustin took one for the team, though, and we ended up with 9 glasses when it was all said and done.

I like to repot to those of you readers that are of the female persuasion what the bathroom situation is like wherever I may roam. It's important to know whether the facilities are suitable for our delicate natures. And besides, who wants to unknowingly walk into a barn? I can gladly report that The Bulldog possesses the best ladies' room I have ever encountered in a bar atmosphere. It was clean, aesthetically pleasing and had some pretty cool stuff in it. They have a Dyson hand dryer that you lower your hands into and it shoots the water off with air. They also have a pull on the bottom of the door so you can open it with your foot rather than recontaminate your hands or waste a sheet of paper towel (like I did before I noticed it). Three thumbs up in the powder room department.

Once the party pared down to four of us and the little hand was on the 12, we decided it would be fun to find a tattoo parlour and a few of us (who are not me) get some fresh ink. But alas, we couldn't find any that were operating. It makes sense, though. Back in Texas, the bars close at 2 am and the tattoo shops close whenever. Here, the booze flows 24/7 and the ink stops early. While it put a bit of a damper on the high spirits of the evening, I can appreciate the thought behind it. So we all just went home and went to bed.

Now I have a shiny new set of drinking glasses, most with different variations of Bulldog logos and a very coveted pink fleur di lis, and a mission: I want to collect enough to get a free shirt (though if you had to buy 20 beers first, is it really free?). Once the trade is made they donate to the Humane Society, which I dig. I'm sure we'll be seen there again.

The Neighborly Things We Do

2010-02-06T18:41:00.001-06:00

I've never lived in "attatched" housing before (other than two months of dorm living that first semester of college), so sharing a wall in our shotgun-style home is new, and a bit weird, to me. What makes me feel better about it is that the person on the other side of that wall is wicked cool.

After securing the sitter I walked three feet to Laura's door and visited with her, her man Curtis and their equally awesome friend Emily (Midwifery nuts unite!). Post introductions we had Curtis, playing the roll of Hoke to our collective Miss Daisy, drive us girls to Cooter Brown's for oysters, hot wings, broccoli bites, those chili fries I've heard so much about and Abita Mardi Gras. While the oysters here have a bit more shell in them than some, they're still delicious, and the rest wasn't shabby, either. Classic collegiate fare.

Once our glasses were dry we loaded up again and decided to stop by Ms. Mae's. As great as I'm sure a $1 drink offered in a dimly lit, seedy looking establishment sounds, resist. Stick with the stuff that comes in bottles that they open especially for you. Can't go wrong there. (I'm still shuddering over that thing floating in my plastic cup that looked like it might have once been a lime wedge...)

Emily had to get up early for wedding errands the next morning, so we dropped her off and went to Buddha Belly for the awesomely bad karaoke and ice cold PBR in a can. Nothing can beat listening to people who think they can sing belt it out, and watching people who know they can't sing but rock it out anyway, while sipping the official beer of rockabilly. Throw in a drunken, lengthy conversation with the surprising friendly biker-looking dude that's wearing a live snake as a necklace and I call that a successful night out! Laura and I have decided to go back after the Mardi Gras hub-bub is over and flex our golden pipes. After a little liquid inspiration, of course.

Fixant Une Envie De Sucre

2010-01-31T19:19:00.005-06:00

Or, Fixing a Sugar Craving. I was going to go with Getting A Sugar Fix, it just wasn't as pretty in French. But no matter how you say it, there's one place you can definitely get it: Sucre, on Magazine Street.

After trying the new menu at Nacho Mama's on for size, we needed something sweet to calm our flaming tongues. I had passed by Sucre earlier in the week and wanted to give it a try. And they stay open late, which worked since it was almost nine. We parked across the street, and after ogling the antiques next door (totally marked on the need-to-visit list) we entered the glistening hall of sugar. This is no ordinary, neighborhood sweet shop. Along with good coffee and creamy gelato, they have cute little gourmet chocolates, macaroons of every hue and absolutely gorgeous confections, which I'm not even sure what you would call. Maybe art, because they were beautiful. Shelby had some chocolate gelato, Dustin had a pumpkin spice creation and I got a citrus mango concoction called Finesse. Each dessert was the perfect size, and not overly sweet. With Dustin's huge cup of coffee and all the fixings, they brought our selections plated beautifully on a large white plate with chocolate and strawberry drizzle. I got a picture but, um, it wasn't until we'd already jumped on the plate like starving cats. That stuff was good. Fluffy and tart and creamy. And Dustin's had the essence of pumpkin pie, but in a totally contemporary rendition. We also bought one of their small, shimmering king cakes to take home. Rather than the traditional purple, green and yellow sugar they are usually finished with, Sucre's are airbrushed with opalescent food color, then dusted with edible glitter. To finish the truly royal presentation, a tiny gold baby is included (Dustin was dismayed that they didn't pre-hide it, so he had me do it when he wasn't looking). While we truly did give moderation a try, once we got it home, the cake didn't last long.

My mom is coming into town this weekend! A perfect excuse to go out and discover some more good eats. We'll probably stop by Sucre as well, I suppose. In the interest of making sure my guest has a good time, you know. Oh, the things we do for family.

To The Zoo

2010-01-27T22:02:00.004-06:00

I've said it once before, and I'm sure I'll say it many times to come, but the Audubon Pass = Awesome. It's so cool to be able to just wake up some random morning and go "Hmm. What shall I do today? I think I'll go to the zoo!" It also helps that the zoo is less than a mile from our house. With little planning and no special circumstances whatsoever, we took off to the Audubon Zoo.

Dustin and I had gone when we'd visited NOLA for two weeks last March. We had taken the streetcar from the French Quarter, but had underestimated the walk from the park entrance at St. Charles to the front gate of the zoo. I'm still not sure how far it is, but I am quite certain I was not wearing the appropriate footgear.

This go 'round, I was prepared, Nike's and all. The zoo was much less crowded this time (we had unwittingly gone during some sort of Fest or another before). I love the walk down the main promenade- the huge fountian with a bathing mother elephant and her offpsring, surrounded by spitting hippos. The urge to add a bottle of Palmolive is almost too much. We of course made the rounds: elephants, tigers, lions, bears, monkeys, etc. They finally opened the dinosaur exhibit, so we were very ecited to check it out. I'm afraid, though, that I had really talked Shelby into the idea that the dinosaurs were in fact alive, something that made her go from giddiness at the thought of seeing them to sheer panic once we made it through the door. Oops. After paying a couple of bucks for us all to get in, she spent most of the time in her daddy's arms, hands over her eyes, frequently squirming and screaming. The exhibit really was prety cool, though. The dinosaurs screech and move and blink and spit. It was built in a building that once housed birds, so the cages were fixed to look as though they were made for dinosaurs, some of which had gotten out (very Jurassic Park). There's an outside portion of the exhibit as well, complete with a mama triceratops and her baby. You can touch the dinosaurs (I assume, since the signs urge you to be gentle rather than keep your hands to yourself) and everytime we triedto touch the little one, it's mother would yell at us. Very neat stuff. We were also able to see the seal feeding, which was fun, but very crowded. It wouldn't have been as bad if the moms had heeded the stroller conduct guidlines and parked them in the designated area, rather than using them to take up space around them so no strangers would be within arm's reach (or, ya know, within viewing range of the show). We didn't wait around to finish the show, so we went on walking, and after seeing plenty of interesting animals, we made it to my favorite part: the Swamp. It's a recreated bayou, complete with old boat house, black bear, racoons, old rusty jalopy and alligators. Lots of 'em. They also have a little cafe, banquet room and porch elevated above the reptiles so you can eat a po-boy or dinosaur shaped chicken nuggets while watching the gators soak up some sun. After we had a little lunch, we continued our walk by the nutria (are we the only ones that call them nuture rats?) and the otters, and past the large aquariums filled with all manner of native animal, fish and crustacean (the gift shop where the baby alligators are was closed). I love this area, all of the tanks are decked out as though they were under a porch, inside a crawfish trap or some other place one might find the inhabitants locally. There's even a life-sized statue of the Swamp Monster lurching around a corner. The reast of the zoo- while beautiful and educational, is unremarkable. We fed the ducks and turtles, walked through the Amazon and madeour way back to the Haigen Daz stand. By this time they were closing, so we distracted Shelby as we skirted the carousel. Another day, dear. We ended our trip with a visit to the gift shop, where we bought a bouncey ball for Shelby and New Orleans-Opoly for us. It's pretty neat, and we've got a running game going right now (no matter what -Opoly it is, an afternoon just isn't enough).

Down Like Cooter Brown

2010-01-20T19:57:00.001-06:00

With the exception of having three fried oysters on my seafood plate when we went to Joey K's not long ago, until Sunday, I had yet to go out and have an oyster since moving to the Crescent City. A raw one I mean. Am I or am I not the only one here who thinks that's an absolute travesty? Show of hands.

So, when an awesome couple from Dustin's work asked us if we wanted to go bite some bivalves together, the answer was a resounding Yes! We had planned on going to a fancier oyster bar, but they were closed. Dustin and I were already en route, and when we found out we'd be meeting them at Cooter Brown's, I felt a bit overdressed. I mean, heels at a place named after the drunk from the Dukes of Hazard didn't exactly have me stoked (not as used to wearing them as much as I once was, I gotta pick my nights, ya know?). But the place turned out to be awesome. Having been a hang out and drunk-food haven for the college crowd for 20 years has definetly seasoned it well. And it's pretty dark in there, good for when you've been out throwing 'em back all night and your lipstick is smudged on your racoon-like face. They have a very impressive beer list, so if you choose to cut out the middle man and do your drinking and have your fourth meal all in the same place, you're good to go. We had a great time drinking Abita Mardis Gras (I am seriously going to cry when they stop making it after the season is over) and slurping down some ice cold shuckers. Don't order 4 dozen oysters if you're in a hurry, though, because it's not a fast order. But we didn't care, and enjoyed the atmosphere, the company, and the crazy Jets fan whom I thought was going to have a stroke (everything was great, except for the awesomely bad joke the guys played on me; I'm not telling, but you guys are going to h-e-double hockey sticks for real, just so you know! ;) ). I will offer a warning though for future patrons: Their horseradish is seriously not kidding and it will assault your sinuses like a fireball of sterno and fury. No matter how little we mixed with our ketchup, we couldn't get the ratio right, so finally decided to take teeny little pinches with our mini forks to add to the mouthfulls. Have a head cold? Go to Cooter's. For two pitchers of Mardis Gras, 2 Irish Car Bombs for the boys and 48 raw oysters, it came to $75. Having waited this long for oysters, I didn't even care.

After we left there, we weren't ready to throw in the towel just yet. So we went down to the Avenue. It was a quiet night, a bit rare from my experience, so in addition to the huge gin and tonics Al hooked us up with, we tasted a few of the local beers we hadn't yet tried. The Sweet Potato ale wasn't bad, but I've seen people order it and have to wait a while as the bartender has to wait for the head to go down to resume pulling. I'm personally not sure if it's worth all the effort. The Southern Pecan, however, was delicious. I don't like southern/buttered pecan flavored anything, but that stuff was good. We also tried something strawberry flavored (Dustin loved it, but if I want that much strawberry taste, I'll get a smoothie) and something with a white horse on it that started with a C. Hey.... After that much tasting, you might not remember either. I can't remember the tab, either, but I do remember it wasn't much for the drinks, the tastes, and the pint we each ordered afterwards.

After all that, I kinda wanted to go back to Cooter Brown's and have some cheese fries....

Sharks And Sushi And Booze! Woo-Hoo!

2010-01-07T22:24:00.002-06:00

I would like to start this post with a big fat kudos to my wonderful hubby for buying the Audubon Family Membership a few days ago. Absolutely the best $130 we ever spent. I look forward to mild, sunny days spent making faces at chimps and rainy days perusing the jellyfish reproduction tank.

The day got off to a rough start- at 8 am while on the phone with my mother, I randomly decided to check the website of one of the schools we're applying to for Shelby to start next Fall. I had been convinced the deadline was the 16th, so hadn't been worried. But no. It was today. By 4 pm. I got off the phone and thanked all that is holy that the MIL got us a printer/ scanner/ yada yada for Christmas. I got all the documents copied and the form printed and filled out, took a shower, washed my mop, applied make-up and put together a non-homeless person-looking outfit in just over an hour. I deserved a cookie. I tore across Uptown to hand deliver the goods and disaster was put off for another day. The whole Kindergarten application process is insane here. I mean, meet-and-greets in November? Deadlines in December? Admission testing? For 4 year-olds?? I didn't jump through this many hoops trying to get into college. Insanity at it's pinnacle. But I'm positive our future little Mensa member has nothing to worry about. As long as we accrue all of our parents' points on time.

After the madness of the morning, and the triumphant end to my frantic-ness, I redeemed my afore mentioned cookie in the form of a cafe au lait and a blueberry muffin from Cafe Luna. I got Dustin a cafe Americana and a cinnamon chip muffin. We split the muffins three ways between the three of us and relaxed a bit before continuing our day.

And this day included surprising Shelby with a trip to the Audubon Aquarium! To say she had a pretty good time would be an obvious understatement. We saw everything they had to offer, avoiding the wet and unbelievably cold weather outside. Sharks and frogs and Nemo and otters, as well as a tropical bird that was really pissed off people where in the Amazon habitat. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to goose Dustin near the python case and get the reaction I did when he and I visited in March. I was surprised the kiddo didn't seem very interested in the penguins but freaked out over the egret tracks in the floor of the Mississippi river area. I was less surprised she didn't want to touch the stingrays or sharks, though she did make me touch them so she could watch and ask me about it. They said it was the last time the shark would be out for people to get close to and touch, so I'm glad we were there for it. I know that particular baby shark is used to being handled, and he's probably always that docile, but I always feel like those "touchables" at aquariums are just waiting for me to reach into the water before they decide to find out for the first time what people tastes like.

After taking in all that the aquarium had to offer, and taking what I believe to be some of the best photos ever taken with a camera phone, thank you very much, we decided to continue the theme and grab some sushi. Seeing all those majestic sea creatures in artificial habitats gave me a hankerin' for some fish. But instead of our old standby, Samurai (which was only a block or two away) we decided to try a place on St. Charles. We were looking for Sushi Brothers, but their parking lot happens to be across the street from them, right next door to a different sushi restaurant. We really hated to park in someone else's lot, but hated even more the thought of walking across four lanes of traffic in the blinding frozen rain. Sorry, Sushi Brothers. Maybe on a warmer day. I am glad we gave Hoshun a try, though. I loved the atmosphere inside, very Asian-chic, although every now and then there would be just of a touch of the oddly Victorian. And I love oddly Victorian. They have an awesome looking wine bar, and have totally been put on the Romantic Date Night List. The food was divine. I had Blue Moon beer on a whim, and it was quite tasty. Dustin, of course, had Nola. Shelby and I split the miso soup, a much larger portion than expected (with fried wontons!), and ordered shrimp tempura for the table, which came with three panko shrimp, and tempura veggies including a slice of sweet potato, zucchini, red bell pepper, mushroom and a huge head of broccoli. I love me some tempura, but this happened to be under cooked and flour-y tasting. Dustin likes the raw flour taste, so he thought it was great. Had it been cooked longer, I'm sure I'd agree. Dustin had the spicy salmon, the spicy tuna and a crawfish roll, I had a salmon & avocado and crunchy roll, and Shelby had her very first personal California roll (she usually gets one crab stick), which she finished all on her own (six pieces of sushi is a lot for a little girl! I was impressed). I'm sure it helped that they gave her her very own kids-chop-stick-connector-helper-thing. Which I brought home. The sticky rice was a bit loose, though, which I learned when I kerplunked my first piece into the communal soy sauce, but it tasted good, so I can't really complain. It came to $40 or so, which was good for 4 beers and so much food. Hoshun= two thumbs up.

We finished off the evening by grocery shopping at the Rouses down the street and getting what we neded to restock our bar after the holidays. When we came home, Dustin used his new bartender app on his MyTouch to create a drink called California Cocaine. Intersting title, tasty drink. Though a word of caution- one is plenty. Yummy cocktails and discount previously viewed movies from Blockbuster made for an awesome end to the day.

I couldn't find a recipe for California Cocaine, but this one is close. Rather than grenadine, use one shot of Blue Curacao and make sure the rum is Malibu. It's much tastier than anything you'd do with a rolled up Benjamin.

No Take-Out For The Lazy

2010-01-06T21:02:00.007-06:00

Last night we did a whole bunch of nothing. And in our attempt to keep it that way, we decided to order pizza. But driving to pick it up would be, well, doing something. Our two favorites- Theo's and Slice- don't deliver. So in our quest for inactivity, we had to find a pizza place serving primo pie and employing drivers. Dustin had to be at work in 90 minutes or so (yes, that put an end to our lazing about, after all, who will support my blog if there's no paycheck? Sacrifices, I tell ya), so we had to be quick about it.

We decided upon Fresco Cafe & Pizzeria. They're located in Uptown and offer delivery in our special little area. They also have coupons! It just so happened to be Tuesday, and they just so happened to have a Tuesday Special. It was obviously fate. Two large 2-topping pizzas for $17.99. I ordered artichoke and mushroom, while Dustin got the pepperoni and red pepper. The toppings are really chunky, and the crust was really awesome. Thin-ish, crispy on the edges and chewy. It's a good crust. I do favor Slice's method of slicing the toppings much smaller, though. But I enjoyed Fresco's, and when we're feeling similarly sluggish, I'm sure we'll order from there again. With a cold Abita (none for Dustin, it might impair his life-saving capabilities, you know) it really hit the spot.

It made a splendid breakfast this morning (sans beer...).

Napoleon Couldn't Make It, Please Pass The Cheese

2010-01-04T19:02:00.007-06:00

After running errands all over the city, we decided to drive around the lower section of the Quarter in search of oysters (as we figured Acme Oyster House and Maspero's would probably be busy as usual). We stumbled upon the Napoleon House (which, if you'll recall, we were unable to find some weeks back). I was thrilled. Especially since we were able to park right across the street, which never happens. Ever. The inside is delightfully dark and old, as it very well should be, having been around since the 1700's. The original owner, Nicholas Girod, fancied it up and offered it to Napoleon as a place of refuge. He was killed before he could make it, but that's no reason to be down. It makes a great cafe. They have an old mirrored bar in the first room, where they serve drinks and coffees (cappuccino, etc). There are three dinning areas, and a courtyard (which was blocked by covers due to the cold). There was a beautiful staircase in the back on the way to the bathroom. I'd have loved to have gone up and checked out what was on the second story. Maybe next time. I can always say I was looking for the ladies room.

This place has a great little selection of appetizers, not much you'd find in a usual lunch spot. We had the cheese board to start. If my mouse-like cheese tasting abilities haven't forsaken me, it was mild cheddar, swiss, gouda, havarti with dill, pepper jack and a semi-soft, red-rind cheese I couldn't quite put my finger on (hey, who said mice were the foremost authority on cheese, anyway?...). All in little tasting portions, with a basket of what appeared to be randomly chosen toasts and a tiny loaf of french bread. It was all very cute. I thought at first glance it was too little, but it really was just right for us three. Dustin ordered the half muffaletta, which he enjoyed; I ordered the small insalata mista jardiniere, a nice little salad with yummy balsamic-dijon dressing; Shelby and I also shared a Greco-style panini focaccia- a eggplant, roasted red bell peppers and goat cheese, squeezed in a sandwich press until nice and crusty. The bread wasn't anything spectacular, but the filling was great. I was quite proud of Shelby for enjoying it, chevre, peppers and all. The salad came with a rye roll and the sandwich with a side of these great little mild pickled peppers. All the taste without the searing heat, I'm in! They're apperantly famous for their Pimm's Cup, but Dustin had to work later and I didn't want to be cruel. Maybe next time.

The prices were great, which you know I'm all about. Dustin and I plan to return one night for a date, sampling all the yummy appetizer offerings, sharing a bottle of wine (they have bottles starting at $15 and half bottles starting at $10) and trying some of the pastries and desserts they offer.

Good prices plus delish food plus great, old atmosphere, I highly recommend giving this place a try.

While they aren't museum quality, I think I've mastered taking pictures with my phone and getting them to the Internet. Follow the NewInNola Facebook page for pictures I couldn't fit here!

Under The Blue Moon and Gumbo Baby

2010-01-01T18:22:00.006-06:00

Happy New Year! Don't you wish you had a dollar for every time someone has said that to you in the last 24 hours? Last night, with the kiddoe in Texas and Dustin at work, I found myself free and able to ring in the new year New Orleans style. Our friendly neighbor, Laura, invited me to tag along with her and a few friends.

Before starting my wild night, I ran to Slice on Magazine (their new second location) and picked up a Gorgonzola and prosciutto pizza with caramelized onions and roasted red peppers. It was fabulous, I didn't even mind paying $28 dollars for it.

Once Dustin was on his way, I started getting ready for the evening. After a stop at Walgreens for Redbull, she and I headed to the Quarter. We parked in the Marigny (mare-in-yee, but it's mostly just pronounced mare-ny) to avoid all the mayhem in the Quarter, where it would have been nearly impossible to find a parking space, anyway. Some friends of hers parked there as well, and we headed to Check Point Charlie's to use the Ladies room. It seemed like a cool place to have a drink and listen to live, bluesy music. They told me the clientele is sometimes a bit shady, but it looked to me like good people watching. After wading our way through the crowded sidewalks of Decatur we switched to Chartres (charters) Street and came to The Chart Room where we met with more friends. It's a great place to have cheap drinks a little way away from the hulabaloo on Bourbon and the ladies room is relatively clean, even if the walls look like they were taken from an old barn and are covered in all manner of interesting water closet graffiti. It has a lot of character, as so many of the bars around here do, and a good jukebox (and that was Roy Orbison, bar stool-music-arguing-man). It could have been because they were so busy, but the bartender stiffed me a 5. Other than that is was a lot of fun. Three of us girls even went in on a bottle of champagne. When in Rome, right? After deciding we just absolutely had to have NYE tiaras, we walked to Decatur and bought some (at $10 a piece), then returned to the Chart House to enjoy our new head wear.

When we'd had a few cocktails (and disagreed about whether the item being dropped from the roof of the Jax Brewery at midnight was a baby or a bowl of gumbo- we compromised and henceforth referred to the object as the gumbo baby) we left for a rooftop party being held in the Central Business District. We walked to Canal and took a cab. After punching in the code we took the elevator up to his apartment, another ladies room trip, and then up to the rooftop. I felt quite cosmopolitan indeed. The views were amazing, simply amazing! There were plenty of trendy people mingling about to complete the picture. I can't say how long we were there, but we stayed until midnight (how I managed to miss the fireworks at the river, I can only imagine! I was considerably bummed). Then we walked down the street to Lucy's where we stayed for a good while. It was completely packed but the energy was great. Lots of dancing and drinks to go around.

After bidding farewell to the rest of the group, Laura and I started what seemed like our 27 mile trek back to the car. I wanted to take a cab, wearing boots the entire evening, but she said we could do it. She was quite determined and I blame her for my foot discomfort today. (Love ya, hun!) We stopped in at Cafe Du Monde for beignets, milk and cafe au lait. I dropped a few dollars beside my chair, didn't realize I was sitting on the edge, and mortifyingly proceeded to fall to the ground. Seriously, that's why I fell, although my equilibrium may have been otherwise compromised.

I've never been so glad to get back to a car in my entire life. Despite the walk I had a wonderful time, met some cool people and had fun. Maybe there's something to that whole Blue Moon thing.

2009-12-31T16:46:00.004-06:00

Yesterday before the in-laws returned to Texas, we took them to do a little wandering on Magazine street. We took them by the Occassional Housewife and, of course, ended up buying a few things ourselves- an old copy of The Dreamer inscribed "Albert S. Hurley, Yale 1929" (I collect pre-1955 vintage books, I'm obsessed!) and a butterfly-shaped hamper for Shelby. We also stopped into an art gallery and antique store called Berta's and Mina's Antiquities. Inside was a plethora of huge, folk-artsy paintings in New Orleans style. Lots of dancing and music, and a lot of religious scenes like nativities and Madonna & Child portraits, many with comments or titles painted around the edges. Created on doors, shutters and all kinds of other seemingly found canvases, it made for quite the colorful collection. I didn't really notice much furniture or many antiques, but we were starving so didn't make it to the back room of the shop. There were some other pieces by other people near the door, as well as some prints, and Dustin spotted a framed print of a cat he liked for his mother. After she went outside he inquired about the price: $4,000. For a print. Of a cat with a chair. I get that art is super-duper expensive, and a lot is well worth it. But that wasn't a $4,000 cat. I'm just sayin'.

It was raining, so we hurried back to the car, past St. Henry's and their cute little nativity scene made of 2x4's. Momee wanted a po-boy, so we took her over to Guy's. Two po-boys was morethan enough to feed all five of us. The shrimp was grand as always. Last time we had Guy's, Dustin had gone to pick it up and brought it home, so it was the first time I had been inside. Space is limited, to say the least, and you order at the counter, next to the giant chess piece (what is it, the one that looks like a horse?). Some of the menu is posted on the chalk board, as well as the Saint's current win/loss ratio (which has had a minor slip in the last two weeks, unfortunatly, but hey, all streaks come to an end at some point... they're still in the play-offs, though! Who Dat!). And did I mention that on the sides section of the menu, they also have fried pork chops listed? So they have poboys, potatoes, and pork chops. Sounds good to me.

Antique Triumphantly!

2009-12-31T11:40:00.004-06:00

My mother-in-law and her mom, Momee (Moh-mee), came into town to visit us and bring Shelby back to Texas (she's quite the hot commodity since moving out of arm's reach). It was fun because Momee hadn't been to New Orleans since the 70's when one of her sons was playing ball against LSU. She's actually from here, right outside the city, so it was fun to take her and show her around a bit. As we rode around she told us it was here in a bar that she saw her very first TV set. When she was 17, her family was visiting an aunt in the city and, being good Catholics, her mother took her to a nearby bar to fetch a bottle of wine. There it was, an ultra modern, black and white television set, right there behind the bar. The future had arrived.

After driving from Houston to Port Arthur, then Port Arthur to New Orleans, we thought what they needed most was more time in the car, so we took them riding around, and made our way to the Quarter. Not the best idea. And not because they ran screaming at the prospect of spending another second in my MIL's PT Cruiser, but because of all the out-of-towner madness going on in the streets. None of us realized the Sugar Bowl was approaching and that one of the ways people prepare for it is by having 20 year old girls get drunk at 10 am and stagger into the middle of traffic, then smiling and laughing like you totally won't run them over. I know this scenario- with the girls replaced by other tourists- sounds familiar, but I've never had it happen on Decatur before. Once we got past the college football crazies, we went the the French Market. Neither of our guests had ever been and we thought they'd enjoy looking around. And Shelby needed a new $1 Chinese paper fan (we splurged and went with the $2 fabric fan this time, since it probably wouldn't break before we got back to the car). We underestimated how freakishly cold it was, so we made it quick and headed to Greg's on the other side of Decatur.

I totally <3 this store. It's got the coolest antique furniture and ridiculous prices. There's also a lot of art, chandeliers and other random things. They completely turn over their entire inventory every month, so if you see something you can't live without, you better snatch it up. Being the ultra cool antique insiders that we are (and being in the e-mail list) we knew they were unloading a new shipment from Europe that very day. We scored the most awesome Queen Anne sewing bench straight from France for $50. The lid is reversible, with one side a smooth parquet and the other a plush burgundy cushion. It makes the perfect piano bench for our old upright Baldwin. Bonus: when Shelby starts practicing to become the next world's greatest pianist of our time, she can put her sheet music in the seat for safe (and clutter free) keeping. I'm still going to get one of those Mexican sugar molds they have, as soon as I find a place for it. They also just got a bunch of art from Mexico this past week, so if you want some, you better get to it, because it will be gone 15 minutes after you read this (so finish reading first, then hurry on over there!).

After our triumphant antiquing, we came home and had some of the chicken and Manda sausage gumbo I slaved over all day. (I'll admit, as long as you don't tell my mom- I used a jarred roux. Just to try it out. It's Kary's brand, made in Ville Platte, LA. I like it, but I must admit I prefer my own. Or my mama's, of course.)

I wanted to call this entry "Is That Roux Or Poop?" but I thought that might put people off. When I was making the gumbo, I had roux on the back of my hand and didn't realize. I started doing other things around the house, and Shelby pointed it out ot me. I smiled and said, "Hmm, is that roux, or poop?" She kind of laughed and said, "Um, I think it's just roux probably, Mom." She didn't get the Baby Mama reference, but I got quite a laugh out of it.

Bustin' Out at the House of Blues

2009-12-20T16:18:00.007-06:00

I can't tell you how anticipated Friday night was. For over a month, I'd had tickets to Bustout Burlesque at the House of Blues- an anniversary present- hiding under the laundry detergent in the wash room, counting down the days to the 18th. After f-i-n-a-l-l-y finding a wonderful sitter for Shelby (I called some churches after the agencies were all booked up and one recommended a woman that they have teaching there), we headed out for a pre-event drink at, where else, the Avenue, our favorite little bar. I handed Dustin the tickets in a sweet little anny card across the smokey table and watched his eyes light up. Bingo.

After a gin and tonic on St. Charles, we proceeded down to the French Quarter an hour early to find some parking, no small feat on a Friday night. Luckily, we were able to find a spot in a lot about 3 blocks away. I don't often have an occasion to wear heels these days, so the less walking, the better. We waited in the serpentine line for about 10 minutes before I got a call from Rick, the manager of the burlesque troupe. I'd been driving him nuts for the last month to get reserved seating (in actuality, I only called a few times, but that was a lot for me, as I hate to impose), it being a special occasion and all. He actually came out and got us, leading us to the front of the line and through the doors. Can I just say how bad ass it felt to do that? I promise I didn't give anyone any snotty looks. Then he took us to the seating area and let us choose one of the limited tables. We decided on a bar top behind the floor seating, which turned out to be the perfect perch to enjoy the show. We thanked the most awesome manager in the world, ordered drinks and settled in to see the long-awaited performance.

It really was great. I loved the troupe's band, the Bustout Burlesque Jazz Band. The Emcee, Dante, was a funny little guy in a top hat and vintage pastel tailed coat. I'm quite glad we decided against the table right in front of the stage, as he called the girl sitting there up to the stage to be his straight man (or woman, as it were). The first performer was Kitty Twist, a Southern Belle who decided to show off her little southern tush. Very sweet. Then was the fabulous Praline DuPree. She was hands down our favorite. Her facial expressions were the best (though with a body like that, I doubt the male members of the audience noticed). She was dressed as a girl on a jungle safari. Who forgot to wear pants. Her work with the whip would have certainly had Dr. Jones intrigued. Then the lovely Athena sang Santa Baby, followed by more schtick from Dante. There was even a special appearance by Wild Cherry, a "real live" dancer from back in the day. I was really excited to see her up there, as I've seen her included in documentaries on TV and read about her on the Internet. And, as it turns out, Dustin's grandparents saw here back in her prime on Bourbon Street. It was a nice surprise. But don't worry, she stayed fully clothed the whole time, even though she showed she's still got the attitude. There was a special performance by guest star Michelle L'Amour, and she was wonderful. Her milky white skin and pageboy-cut dark hair made for a wonderful contrast. She did a routine with the big feathered fans (my favorite burlesque prop of all time) in a nude, sequined pastie-and-panty combination and performed beautifully. I believe the next girl was Roxie LaRouge, but to be honest, I wasn't paying attention to her name. Let's just say, she was much more top heavy than the other girls. A bit thicker, too, but certainly hot. It was really awesome to see a slightly meatier girl get up there and shake her pasties. More singing from Athena, then the last act, Foxy Flambeaux. Dressed as the original Barbie, she definitely looked the part. Though she seemed a bit less enthused to be up there (maybe due to already having preformed earlier in the evening) hers was still a lovely act. The finale was a chorus line-type production by all the ladies dressed in what Mrs. Clause probably wore on her wedding night. Lots of fun, I must say.

All in all, it was a great show. I highly recommend going if you have a taste for jazzy big band music and beautiful women taking off their clothes (except the pasties, of course!).

After the show, I scored an autographed photo of Cherry and we headed to Bourbon street. It's nice to walk down the street looking nice every once in a while. We grabbed a beer from Huge Ass Beers, classy drinks for our classy night, then headed home. Don't worry, there were no laws broken, although we did consider trying to trick the lot gate into letting us out for free. Which we didn't do. Because it would be wrong. And stupid.

It was our first burlesque show (but certainly not the last), the first night we'd gotten to really go out on the town and enjoy ourselves in forever, and the very first time we've ever hired a sitter. We've never had a better anniversary date. I can't wait to see what we come up with next year.

Hunting for Treasure on Magazine Street

2009-12-18T19:27:00.001-06:00

Dustin needed a haircut and got a recommendation for a place on Magazine Street, so Shelby and I decided to walk around while he was getting a snip. I've wanted to go into the Occasional Housewife ever since we drove by it the first time. I love the retro housewife in their logo that takes up most of the window. She's quite sassy. They specialize in household organization, offer consulting services and have a large selection of fun and functional things to help make your life easier (or at least your desk a little more interesting). There was some welding or grinding going on in the back room, I saw sparks flying before one of the sales ladies closed the door. I don't know what was going on back there, but I think I like it. They also have an adjoining storefront filled with things they've 'decluttered' out of clients homes. Score! They may not have wanted that old ceramic peacock or Kitchenaid microwave cookbook from 1984, but someone does. And that someone is me. While I didn't get either of those little gems, I did get a nice demitasse cup and saucer and a tiny vintage spoon, to make my faux cafe' au lait, as well as a candy thermometer and a big speckled gumbo pot for Dustin. It only cost $5 for the lot. While the spanking new organizational tools are more pricey, the other-woman's-trash is super cheap, which makes it that much more fun.

After our errands, and walking by one of the many mobile movie sets out and about right now (no one was there, they weren't going to resume shooting until that night- I don't know what movie they were shooting, but I am going to see Ryan Reynolds while he's here...), we went for supper at Joey K's. My favorite food host, Guy Fieri, ate there on Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives once, though I don't remember the episode. The seat-yourself place is covered in those colorful hand-painted "Be Nice or Leave" signs with different sayings. The waitstaff was friendly and the atmosphere good, nice and relaxed. Shelby and I shared the seafood platter (shrimp, lots of catfish, oysters and fries) and Dustin got the shrimp platter & a beer. French bread is available to those who ask. It was very good. I usually don't like catfish due to the dark slimy belly section, but there was none of that on our plate, which I loved. It was a good deal, we both got stuffed for $15. I can't remember how much Dustin's was, but it was less than mine and Shelby's. Very worth it. I can't wait to go back and give the Fried artichoke hearts and Shrimp Magazine. They sounded splendid.

Photos coming, as soon as I learn how to upload them from my fancy new phone...

Just Out & About

2009-12-11T18:58:00.004-06:00

Last night on a whim, we decided to go to the mall. Even in Beaumont, with the mall less than 10 minutes away from our house, we hardly ever went. But with all the shopping cheer out there, we decided to give it a look. Last week I went to a huge mall (complete with three-story Macy's and Dillards- I know, Shelby made me ride the escelators several times), Lakeside Shopping Center, with our next door neighbor. But after driving around some, I couldn't find it again. (How we missed it, I'll never know.) We ended up going to the smaller Clearview Mall which has a monterous Target. It's two stories, with an escelator and seperate little escalators for the baskets. It was very cool. Other than the Super Targe', there were several standard shops and a nice AMC movie theatre. While I didn't get to the stores I was hoping to visit, we did load up on soap at Bath & Body Works and find out where to catch the Princess and the Frog when it comes out.

After shopping for a while, it was time to grab some grub and go to bed. We stopped at China Orchid and Dustin ran in so us girls didn't have to get out in the frigid air. We'vce ordered take out from there once before, and the food was great. I usually get sweet and sour chicken anywhere we go, and it's what I've gotten both times, each time with white meat. The first time it was awesome- a huge chicken breast, fried and sliced on a bed of vegetable chunks with plenty of shrimp fried rice and an eggroll. Last night, even though I ordered white meat, they gave me dark. An easy mistake, but dark meat comes with more fat and gristle and that makes me gag, so needless to say, I wasn't impressed. The dinners cost more but don't come with eggrolls, so it was more expensive, too. Dustin's General Tso's was great, just like last time. The girl who took Dustin's order and his cash was rude, but other than the chicken mishap, while a major issue for me, the food wasn't bad. To be honest, though, if we hadn't had a previous good experience, I probably wouldn't go back. Nothing personal. There are just plenty of Koi in the sea.

Simple is Good

2009-12-08T12:38:00.003-06:00

Yesterday Dustin spent the day running errands solo. When he was finished he had only two hours before he had to be at work, so in the interest of speedy eats he brought home two shrimp po-boys from Guy's Po-boys. It was a good choice.

I've never eaten anything from Guy's, but now I'm glad I have. The menu is simple: po-boys and potato salad or fries. They only do a little, but they do it very well. It took a little longer than he thought to get his order, but that's just because he watched them get fresh shrimp from the cooler and fry them up right then, as they do with every order. The sandwiches were huge! Over a foot. There were plenty of crunchy shrimp in 'em, too. Dustin had them dressed, although when you get it dressed at Guy's that means Crystal hotsauce, so mine just had lettuce, tomato, pickles and mayo (since shelby and I share). I was a little bummed, as Crystal is the only hot sauce (or really, the only source of heat) I like, and I do like it so. And we were out at the house. But the sandwich was no less super. The po-boys are $10 a piece, and while they don't offer my favorite, oyster- they're worth it.

Just another little local treasure discovered.

What Is Something That's Not Your Mother's?

2009-12-04T19:31:00.004-06:00

Nacho Mama's, boom!

Alright, alright. That was lame. But you know what's totally not lame? The food at Nacho Mama's on Magazine Street. Last night Shelby and I went there to grab a bite. We got a table off to the side of the bar (she wanted to sit at the bar, I promised her in 17 years we would). The sweet little waitress gave Shelby some cool triangular crayons and a big color sheet, so dinner was off to a good start. We ordered chips (served in a little galvanized bucket) and quacamole, then Mama's taco plate for me and a beef taco for Shelby. Sooooo good. When ordering Mama's tacos, you choose the outside (hard or soft corn, flour or wheat tortilla) and the inside (beef, chicken, steak, shrimp, etc with cheese). It comes wrapped in foil on a plate full of goodies: black olives, jalapenos, pico de gallo, lettuce, rice and either black or refried beans. Yum, yum, yum. Shelby just had a plain beef taco (the way she likes it) and some of my beans and rice. The ground beef is that special, good Mexican restaurant beef that just has black pepper, salt and love in it. You know what I'm talking about. We had water to drink and bootleg lemonade (you know, where you get lemon in your water and use the sugar on the table to make lemonade, rather than pay$1.50 for it). The Polar Express happened to be on the TV closest to our table, so we enjoyed watching that, with me occassionally reading the subtitles to Shelby, while we dined. With tip it came to $19. A very stisfactory price for a great meal. Without guacamole, it would have been about $14 with tax and tip, which we may do next time, as we had a lot of food left over. It made a great breakfast this morning.

Dustin and I went there last week (I just forgot to write about it) and had a similarly fine experience. The margarita's were on special, so Dustin had several, while I drank my weight in Coke (it was the "morning after" for me, I'm never drinking again, BTW). We sat in a corner table/booth and watched all the people with dogs walk by. At the table outside the window, sat a young white guy in a business suit with a Grizzly Adams beard and a huge head of blonde dread locks. There were a few stripes of green, and a pair of sunglasses were lodged near the back. I wondered if he knew they were in there. He was having lunch with a guy in a bike (as in bicycle) outfit, another business man and a guy in normal jeans-and-chucks attire. I love random New Orleans people on the street. But back to the food. We got the three dips- guacamole, queso blanco and salsa- with chips to start. Good stuff. Dustin got the jerk chicken baked burrito which was super grande (and super tasty he said), and I got the taco salad with steak. It was really good. The steak was good but too spicy for me, so I picked it out and gave it to Dustin. Of course, we had plenty to pack into a to-go box (again, tasty breakfast for me!). I think it came to about $40 or so. I'm pretty sure it was because of the 28 margaritas Dustin had. But I was very well pleased with our meal.

If for no other reason, eat there so when people ask "Where'd you go for lunch?" you can say "Nacho Mama's!"

That would be much funnier if you could convey inflection on a computer screen.

Tarrying in Treme

2009-12-03T21:17:00.003-06:00

Today we ran some errands of EMS importance (namely, picking up Dustin's regulation weekend polo for work). We girls were starving so we headed down Canal and to Decatur to find Napoleon House, a restaurant I was very excited to try after reading about on Urban Spoon. But, being me, I couldn't remember the address and our GPS, Francesca, is no mind reader. So, we tried another place Dustin has wanted to visit for some time- Willie Mae's Scotch House.

We'd looked for it before to no avail. This time around we found it. It's in a neighborhood in the Treme (treMAY) area of New Orleans, not terribly far from I-10. On the inside it's the classic little hole in the wall, white-washed walls and random wall hangings, with a limited menu and a devout local following. The fried chicken is the specialty of the house, and has been voted Best Fried Chicken by several entities, both local and nationwide.

Now, I don't want to step on any toes. Far be it from me to discredit a time-honored New Orleans tradition, especially one founded by a cute little old lady that opened her doors immediately after Katrina and served sandwiches to passers-by. But. I was not impressed. The chicken was not awful. The crust was, I'd say, unique, and a bit spicy. But it was kind of.... I'm not sure. I do know it was greasy. Very. So if you like that kind of chicken, by all means patronize Willie Mae's. For three pieces of chicken (of the kitchen's choosing) and one side it's $10 (plus a $1 fee to share a plate, if you're so inclined). I got fries and Dustin got red beans and rice. He said it was very good. He also got a plate with a breast and two wings, I a thigh, wing and drumstick. For $20.81, I feel it wasn't that great (even though the girl didn't charge us the $1 split plate fee). After picking off all the crust- my favorite part, very sad about that- there wasn't much chicken left. Shelby and I were still hungry when we left, so we went to Creole Creamery to fill in the gap (I got the black & gold crunch again, but tried the lavender honey and am so getting that next time).

Also, if you find yourself at Willie Mae's and are planning on getting your grub on, be sure to bring cash. It's all they take. Good to know. Dustin had to run and find an ATM as they swept and put up chairs with us sitting there feeling slightly awkward (they close at 3pm). But the servers were nice, so they didn't say anything about it.

Next time, I hope we can find Napoleon's.

To view people talking about their experiences- good and bad- at Willie Mae's, click here.

And of course, this is not the chicken I had for lunch (at least I don't think so...). Luckily, our friends put my camera in the mail this week, and I'll be able to post actual photos of our adventures taken by me, not random, somewhat-related images from Photobucket, very soon.

Thanksgiving at Tujague's

2009-11-29T21:34:00.003-06:00

Thursday, after a day of rapid cleaning in preparation for my mother-in-law's arrival, my in-laws arrived in New Orleans. They brought us some more things we left at my mom's. And Shelby. Because we were doing our own Thanksgiving the next day with lots of our NOLA EMS friends at the house, we decided to take Dustin's mom and her boyfriend for a drive down St. Charles and for something to eat. While New Orleans has a plethora of places to choose from when hunger strikes, many of them weren't open. Or were bars, and since we had our 4-year-old in tow, that was out, too. So we drove down to the Quarter, where something good is always cookin'. After driving down Decatur, we decided upon Tujague's (Too-jack's, so we're told).

We'd never been before, and I was excited. We hurriedly walked through the bar (want to feel awkward? Lead your small child through a crowded, smokey bar at about 8 o'clock at night...) and to the dinning areas. After a few minutes they seated us in the Begue room downstairs. It was a nice intimate room with only about two or three other tables. Being Thanksgiving, they told us of their special Prix Fixe menu for the evening. It sounded terribly good. They brought us some bread (three whole loaves of French bread) and butter, and filled our water glasses. Our first course was shrimp remoulade. Spicy, but very nice. Boiled shrimp topped with a remoulade and some leafy greens. The salad could have been drained a bit more, though. This was followed by sweet potato-crab bisque which was soooo creamy and wonderful. Since it was insanely cold outside, it hit the spot. Then they took our bowls away and brought us a small piece of brisket with Creole horseradish sauce. Pi-zow! The sauce was fab, but I guess on the third bite I got too much of it and it shot up my sinuses like a grease fire. I'm just glad I didn't start choking at the table. Flames not-withstanding, it was great. We thought we were about done, since we were starting to get full. Maybe another small plate like the ones before, then dessert. Oh no. They brought out small individual platters filled with roasted turkey breast, sweet yams, dressing, gravy, home made cranberry sauce and what I guess was a marinated/ pickled cinnamon apple slice. Do I need to even go into the details of how all that tasted? Lets just say, it didn't suck. At all. By then we were begging, Please, no more! But then it was time for dessert: a tiny scoop of banana bread pudding with caramel sauce and coffee, a perfect ending to our beautiful meal. We were completely stuffed. It's a good thing Dustin and I didn't have time to eat during the day.

I'm glad we enjoyed it so much, because I for one was a bit shocked at the bill. I suppose I shouldn't have been- it was an upscale, iconic, 150 year-old restaurant with a fixed special menu, on a holiday no less. For the four of us adults to eat, it was $162 and some change. We split the bill down the middle and froze on our way to the car, totally stuffed, a little surprised, and very ready to go to bed.

Us going there made me keep thinking about the scene in A Christmas Story when the family goes out to an empty Chinese restaurant for Christmas dinner and the servers sing to them. Even if there was no singing, it wasn't a Chinese restaurant and it was the holiday immediately preceding Christmas.

The only complaint I really have is that they didn't offer Shelby anything. They never acknowledged her (as far as food or drink) or asked if we wanted something for her, nor did they ask if we'd be sharing our food with her, which we did, of course (she really never eats much when we're out anyway, unless it's boneless BBQ chicken wings). There were other children a bit older than her in the other rooms, and a baby crying somewhere, so I know that kids were permitted. Oh well, other than running out of water near the dessert course and the carafes not being refilled, and it taking forever to get our bill, I have nothing negative to say. A lovely time was had by all.

Subversive Cross-Stitching, And Other Barstool Conversations

2009-11-24T14:16:00.011-06:00

The baby stayed with the MIL when we left Texas, so Dustin and I have 4 fantastic days sans-child to do things and catch up with each other. After driving in Sunday night we stopped by the Avenue and hung out with some friends from work. Our new buddies are the best and we had a great time chatting over assorted beers (and Franks' Diet Coke). Even though we'd had Thanksgiving early in the day, we wanted a little nosh and ordered something from the kitchen, J'Anitas. The home made chips and fresh guacamole are fabulous. There was even a little animal cracker hiking up my avocado mountain. People started peeling away quite early, about 9 or so. But apparently that's how a lot of them do it, with having to be at work so early, their internal clock is just set that way.

After leaving there we decided to go down to our favorite place Molly's on Decatur. I'm still very upset our girl Renee no longer works there. But the new girl Crystal was very nice. We even got to see The Cat. He's this big old gray cat that lives in the bar and comes out at random times to sit on his favorite bar top or by the door. You can tell by the way he carries himself that it is in fact his bar, and he allows us to be there. Thank you, Cat.

After gin & tonic for Dustin and amber bock for me, we decided to walk down Bourbon, just for nostalgic purposes. I'd never been to Boondock Saints on St. Peter so we headed that way. I like the movie- which they play over and over on one of the TVs- and the bar is even better. The ladies' room isn't bad, just small, like the bathroom in your first apartment where you can go to the bathroom and brush your teeth at the same time. I don't know how much the drinks were, but I had probably 4 draft beers and Dustin had his gin as well as Jameson, and the tab was only about $30 with tip. The Teri Pollo-look-alike bar girl was quite charming and we struck up an hour-long conversation with a local named Scarlett, who lives near us, and her Scottish boyfriend. Got some good tips for our trip to Ireland in March. We also talked about tattoos, our small town roots and that subversive cross-stitching. She had made a piece that says "Whiskey is Good" that hangs above the bar. After telling her of this, our next door neighbor Laura and I are thinking about getting together, drinking and stitching one night. I'd love to see the end result.

When we finally left there, we just walked down Bourbon, turned around and walked to the other end. I had to go, so since it was nearest, we went into the Bourbon Pub. It's a gay bar (except for the stray tourist) with lots of colorful lights and Madonna on the big screen. The one other time I've been there, I watched the Emmy's on DVR and the cute little bartender danced and spun while he poured my drink. It was fun. The Ladies' room, however, was less impressive. It was a tiny galley-type room, with no door. Well, some bathrooms don't have one, but this one was in kind of a public place. But then the stalls didn't have any, either! The stalls were also so short, that your knees stick out. When you gotta go, you gotta go, and I didn't see any women (well, none that were born that way), so I just made it quick. I've never hurried so much in my life. Mark that one off the bathroom list. At least it was clean.

Just for kicks, we walked across the street to another rainbow room, The Oz. This one is a bit more...... colorful. Hot-guy-in-yellow-Speedo-dancing-on-bar colorful. But we stayed to the back of the bar, and except for the cash-only policy and the way overpriced beer, it looked like a fun place to dance with the girls and not have men bothering you. Dustin finished his beer in record time and we went on our merry way.

To top off our long night of debauchery, we stopped in at Vieux Carre pizza: the best pizza. Ever. Take that NYC and Chicago. This place is good. The French Quarter pizza is magnificent. But we just got the extra large pepperoni (breakfast tomorrow!). We only had our debit cards, so we had to go hunt down an ATM that a) had money in it and b) didn't charge ten dollars to take out cash.

After we procured the goods, we headed home. It was a long night, but a fun one. To say the least, we enjoyed ourselves. This is what we used to do on vacation. Eventually, though, you get tired of going out to party and turn your attention to other things. Like shopping. But it was fun to stroll down memory lane, and that lane happens to be called Bourbon Street.

Hangin' with Franky & Johnny

2009-11-19T18:48:00.005-06:00

Have I ever mentioned that payday is my favorite day of the week? We almost always go out for lunch on payday to flaunt our wealth and indulge ourselves (ok, maybe one of those is an exaggeration). Today after having a lazy day at home- still getting used to Dustin being on nights, it's not bad, after he sleeps in we all have brunch and go about our day- we decided to walk down to Franky & Johnny's. It's only a block away, and even with me chickening out trying to cross the street and Dustin and Shelby having to wait for me to find a good traffic opening, it took like three minutes to get there. Maybe five with the Frogger moment. But the point is, it was terribly close to the house.

It's an old yellow two story house with a sign out front, a sandwich board and several neon beer signs. Once our eyes adjusted in the dark, I could tell why it's a neighborhood favorite. I've only ever seen maybe one episode of Cheers, but this place certainly has that feel. A cigarette machine by the door (seriously), a long old-as-dirt bar and a claw-drop machine that was older than me I'm sure (and some of the toys inside were, too). You pass the bar to the hostess podium with several signs urging you to wait to be seated, and an old man comes out and tells you to sit anywhere. The more we walked, the longer the place seemed to get. There's a room past the main dinning room that looks like it would be a lot of fun for a party. There's all kinds of cool stuff on the walls- local art, Zaggat awards, old beer advertising stuff, Joe Namath's jersey, a picture of New Orleans Most Famous Bars. The specials are on a chalk board on the wall, and Dustin ordered the special- BBQ sandwich, jambalaya, corn and salad- from it. Shelby got a children's shrimp plate (enough for an adult) and I got a shrimp poboy and fries (sold separately). I love a good poboy. With a little Crystal hot sauce sprinkled on top, superb. With water to drink it came to $31 and some change, plus tip. And we had leftover shrimp and fries. I love leftovers. Shelby and I are going to back one day for lunch and to get some oysters and a piece of chocolate pie.

I give the place a thumbs up. The food was very good, even if not OMG! good, and I loved the atmosphere. I'm a sucker for atmosphere. We were the only diners at the time we were there (it was a bit early), but I bet it's a lot of fun packed with Saints fans on game day (when they have raw oysters and beer specials).

Tomorrow we're going back to Texas for family functions this weekend, but looking forward to coming back and enjoying our new city some more. Enjoy your weekend, folks!

I'll admit it, the above picture is not my own. I forgot my camera and had to scour Photobucket for a picture that resembled my poboy. I promise it won't happen again. Often.

The Saints Went Marching In- And Won!

2009-11-15T19:39:00.005-06:00

Though this blog is mainly about getting out there and experiencing New Orleans in all it's splendor, sometimes you just feel like staying home. And watching some football!

Today we had our very first (and I don't mean first-for-New-Orleans, I mean ever) football get-together at our house. It was great. A few friends from Dustin's work came by and we watched the Saints go head-to-head with the St. Louis Rams. Black & Gold reigned supreme! It was an exciting game (especially for me, I don't watch a lot of football anymore so I had to pay good attention to keep up). We won 28-23. Yea!

No matter how fervent, fans cannot subsist on game alone. So we had green onion bacon dip, chips, pretzels, Lil' Smokies, Ginger Ale & beer. Food of the gods, naturally. During halftime, Dustin's buddy Frank was sweet enough to draw some chalk characters on the sidewalk with Shelby. Very cute. After the game they made a chalk outline of another friend on our neighbor's sidewalk. Also cute, but a bit creepy.

And speaking of winning streaks, the Saints are now 9-0: the best winning streak the team has ever had! It would truly be super if the first year we lived here, our city's team went to the Super Bowl. Personally, I believe our presence has had a little somethin' somethin' to do with it. But, I suppose there could be other reasons, too.

More Photo-rific Fun!

2009-11-13T20:11:00.004-06:00

I'm slowly figuring out how to share more than just a few photos with each post. After all, I am a photo addict, and take way too many pictures whether the situation calls for it or not. And I wanted to share the magic with you.

At the end of each upcoming post, you'll be able to click a link and see what fun we had. You won't miss a thing. Aren't you relieved?

Now, if all goes as according to plan, click here to see more photos from our outing at Cafe Luna and afternoon stroll down our street.

Coffee at the Moon

2009-11-12T10:47:00.009-06:00

Yesterday after running some stuff to Dustin at the EMS HQ, Shelby and I went for a stroll. We have a beautiful street. I'm not sure how long it is, but it's at least a few miles. The homes to either side have lots of character, and range from the modest to the majestic. Nearest us the huge oak trees line the avenue and meet overhead to shade the road in many spots. I absolutely love it.

We just took off walking, enjoying the scenery, the cars going by, the unique and beautiful homes and their courtyards & gardens. Several had spectacular roses out front. We passed by a house not far from ours where the bottom tenant must be an artist of some kind. I was surprised that the air outside smelled heavily of some kind of perfume, something similar to my mom's. We weren't peeping, but as we passed I could see canvases and paint and all manner of creative clutter inside, and someone had drawn a large picture on the sidewalk with crayon, although I doubt it was a child. Very neat. About five blocks down we came to a corner with cafes, shops and an art gallery. We decided to pop into the Cafe Luna for a drink. A Victorian home-turned-coffee shop, this quaint little place is just adorable. Big trees in the yard, tall covered porch, apothecary jars full of goodies and the mantle being used to hold the flavored syrups- I'm a fan. Shelby got chocolate milk and I got a small cafe au lait. The $4.25 wasn't too bad, and she did make the chocolate milk right there when we ordered... Maybe I'm just a tightwad. The rest of the prices seemed Starbucks-ish, but I guess that's just what fancy coffee costs now. There was a bulletin board full of ads and announcements, and the shelf holding the free add-ins and lids also housed a ton of local literature and papers about art galleries, bands and events. We sat on the porch enjoying our beverages and watching the 6th grade lovebirds cuddle at one of the yard tables (which was slightly more nostalgic and cute than gag-o-rific PDA) in the afternoon sun.

When we'd finished we made our way across the street and began the walk home. Not much was different on the return, although the road workers (not really sure what they were doing to begin with) had gone home. As we walked past one house a little old lady stepped out of her door and asked if Shelby was cold. I replied no, she's hot natured (it wasn't really all that chilly, anyway). "Oh, well I'm cold for her! I suppose it's the grandma in me," was her response and she told me how she'd been waiting for the plumber all day, but feared the construction had scared him off. We chatted a few minutes more before getting on our way. When we made it home, we'd been gone a little over an hour even though it seemed like it had only been a few minutes. Shelby chalked some more on the front walkway and then we went inside to make supper.

It was a truly wonderful day and I hope we have many more like it! As I mentioned, there are several businesses on that corner, and further down the street. In order to give us something to look forward to on our walks, Shelby and I are going to visit only one a day (unless we need caffeine). Moderation is the key. Spread it out to prolong the novelty. I can't wait to see what we discover next.

Red Beans & Rice Ice Cream, Anyone?

2009-11-11T10:43:00.010-06:00

On our first official full day as a family in NOLA, we went for lunch at our favorite sushi place, Sekisui Samurai, in the French Quarter. We didn't think about it being Sunday until we were bombarded by a sea of black and gold as we made our way by the Super Dome. The Saints were playing and fans were out in fine style. We even saw some fluffy little pooches dressed in their Sunday (football) best riding in what looked like a tiny black and gold streetcar. It was mayhem, but aside from the tourists who insisted on walking in the street in front of us (Bourbon isn't closed to traffic until night time, hello!), we loved all the craziness. At Samurai's (what we call it since we can't pronounce the first word properly) we got the usual two and three roll lunch special, respectively, and shared our non-spicy, cooked rolls with Shelby. She loves sushi and when she gets her own, likes their snow roll- a mixture of crab meat and who knows what else. But it's very tasty. Dustin got the usual Philadelphia, spicy tuna and crawfish rolls. I had the California and the tuna & avocado. The tuna wasn't my favorite color to see on raw yellow fin, but that's what I get for ordering it on a weekend, right? It was still fresh enough to smell right, so it's all good. The lunch special comes with salad and soup, both yummy, and we got tempura broccoli & sweet potato as well. After indulging in our favorite raw fare, we passed by the extreme tailgaters and got another show on our way back to Uptown.

I was very excited to try out a place we've been meaning to find for a while- the Creole Creamery. Ya know, in the name of research. Shelby had no objections, of course. I like the fun, sort of vintage-y atmosphere. They're known for having all kinds of funky flavors, like lavender honey, black pepper & sweet corn, and the afore mentioned red beans & rice. The flavors, made on site, rotate occasionally and on this day it was gorgonzola and walnut. It was tempting, but I was too chicken to ask for a taste. Shelby got blue cotton candy (the first bright color she saw), Dustin got bananas foster- one of his favorite desserts- and a cup of coffee, and in honor of the Saint's 7-0 record (now 8-0) I got the black & gold crunch. It was fantastic. I forget what all was in it, but I know there were Oreos, chocolate chips and chicory ice cream. We all got one scoop in a cone and barely finished. Trust me, one is enough, the scoops are huge. They also have plenty of special treats, like parfaits, ice cream sodas, sorbets and sundaes. There's also the famous Tchoupitoulas (Chop-a-tool-a's)*- made with eight scoops of your choosing and eight toppings, whipped cream and cherries. It looks good on TV, but I'm sure it's quite intimidating in person. If you want to give it a try, there's the reward of being on their wall of fame if you finish it without help. Good luck with that! Even though it was a bit chilly out for ice cream, we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.

I hope all our adventures are as tasty as Sunday's. With all the great restaurants in town- some mere blocks away from where I sit in my living room at this very moment- I doubt finding good eats will be a problem.

*Because I was, and still am, embarrassed to attempt pronouncing some of the words so common locally, I'm going to do my best at offering phonetic pronunciations for you good people when I can. Hope it helps!

New Orleans, New Life

2009-11-08T19:56:00.009-06:00

New Orleans, we have arrived. Aren't you excited? I know I am. The packing was extensive; the trip was arduous; the unpacking seems insurmountable. But it's all part of the journey. And the pay-off will be worth it.

I will never again see a moving truck packed so tightly, and I will never know how we fit everything we had in a three bedroom, two bath house, plus lawn furniture and a BBQ pit, inside. Dustin's old fraternity brother is quite the packing pro. Maneuvering three vehicles in a convoy with my cell phone not working was no small feat, either. I also can't believe that with only the help of my tiny mother, we unpacked almost the entire thing. Thank goodness one of Dustin's new supervisors was cool enough to finish up. We only had one casualty during the move- one of our Paris prints was badly torn. It was only a cheap black and white poster we had yet to frame, and none of our canvas art was harmed, so it wasn't a huge loss. I had to drive back to Texas the very next day for our Geaux Local open house at the Barking Dog. It was a great event, but I was dog tired (pun sort of intended). After finishing up some business and picking up our daughter I drove in Saturday, and swore I wouldn't be back. At least not until Thanksgiving. Now it's all over but the unpacking, and man, what unpacking there is left to do. My Dear Hubby was sweet enough to set up the bedroom, living room and den furniture while I was gone. All that I have to do is unpack each of the 2,000 boxes. Though, as I've said before and am sure I'll say again, it's well worth the work.

When I drove Shelby and I here Saturday, I took a wrong turn and ended up in the Central Business District. I was quite proud that I didn't get all stressed out, and even prouder that I knew the area enough to find my way. I rolled down the windows, and no sooner had I inhaled that sweet New Orleans smell- of fried food, roux, coffee and things not identified- than Shelby said "Mama, I like the way it smells. I think I like it here." I couldn't agree more. We had a lovely drive through the business district, a poorer neighborhood- where someone had turned their garage into an operating bar, complete with music and neon lights- and down St. Charles street. Being the weekend, there was a ton of activity and two of the grand buildings had weddings either going on or about to start. We got to see a bride in a beautiful dress posing for portraits on one of the lawns, which Shelby really enjoyed. It was almost serene with the breeze blowing, hustle and bustle of street cars, joggers and party-goers, and the ancient trees overhanging the avenue. A perfect welcome home from our new home town.

If you'll allow me to sound sickeningly sentimental, I'll say that this is really going to be the adventure of a lifetime. I can just smell it. And I'm looking forward to sharing this journey with you, I hope you'll enjoy it, too.

Peace out, homies!

The Time Has Come!

2009-11-02T21:42:00.002-06:00

The time has come, the Walrus said, to talk of other things- of U-Hauls, gas and Speedy Pass, of boxes and of bling.

Well. Maybe bling has nothing to do with it. But I like the word. Whatever sort of Wonderland rhyme is attempted, the time has truly come! Tomorrow we'll be picking up the U-Haul (big drama- they are idiots- don't even ask) and a few friends of Dustin's are coming to load the truck. We'll sleep one last night on our bed sans-frame (we'll have loaded the TV's and taken back the cable boxes... I guess we'll just have to sit around and look at each other) and then head out bright and early Wednesday morning!

Yesterday was the first time I actually got a little scared. Like "Oh my gosh.... what are we doing!" freaked out. But it soon passed. I know it will be much better once we get all settled in. I'm focusing on the good things- Dustin working less. Living in a less stressful, more laid back atmosphere. Picnics. I plan on doing lots of picnics. At the river, at the lake, at the park. Picnics everywhere.

So this will be my last post as a Texan. The next time you hear of me, I'll be in New Orleans! Until then, wishing Abita wishes and beignet dreams!

Mwa-ha-ha!

2009-10-31T13:50:00.003-05:00

Happy Halloween, folks! Hope everyone is having a smashing good time today, or at least will be tonight. In lieu of the fact that everything is packed, I'm going to be a cat. Painting my face and pulling my newly-shorn hair into two "ears" and wearing a black shirt is all I'm doing this year. Quite unique, as you can tell. I'm going to Port Arthur to our family church for a little fall carnival/ trunk-or-treat thing they're throwing and having some fun with Shelby for our last Texas Halloween.

Today is Dustin's last day of work. He'll be off for a week during the move and then he'll start his training with the City of New Orleans. Just a few more days until the big M- craziness! I can't believe it (and wish I had a dollar for every time I've said it!).

I can't stay long, I'm going to go spend some time with Dustin at his station before donning my kitty attire and going to Mid-County. It's so weird that neither of us will ever see the inside of one of Beaumont's med stations again! They leave much to be desired, but I'm sure we'll miss them, the same way you kind of miss a really awful dog you've had forever that suddenly runs away or other.

Have a safe and fun All Hallow's Eve. Check your candy, don't walk in the street after dark, yada yada. Gotta say these things. I can't help it. It's the mom in me.

Yea & Boo

2009-10-24T18:42:00.004-05:00

Yea for our moving sale! We aren't rolling in the moola Scrooge McDuck-style, but we did make a good little chunk of change. More than we had before we sold things we didn't really need. So yea!

Boo to being sick. Or feeling as though you may become sick very, very soon. My eyeballs feel hot and my nose feels pressureized. Ick. This is exactly what I need 10 days before we load all our worldly posessions into a U-Haul and move to another state. Spectacular.

But we've gotten so much done- have lightened our load and scraped together some extra cash, so things will be fine. I'm realitively in good health the majority of the time, so I should feel better soon. All I have to do is take it easy and get some fluids and rest.

I just wish the only juice we have wasn't some sort of strawberry-orange-banana stuff Dustin bought. Bananas don't have juice. It just ain't right.

Shh.....

2009-10-22T16:11:00.004-05:00

.... Don't tell, but I'm shamelessly using updating the blog as an excuse to not actually do any packing. I went to Mom Chat at the Barking Dog put on each month by the Whole Mothering Center despite the torrential rain we woke up to this morning, as it will be one of the last times I get to see playgroup people before we leave. Ten more days! I can't believe it. Next week is the playgroup's Halloween party, and in honor of my departure, we're bringing Creole food to share. It gives me the warm fuzzies to know that my leaving will be integrated with one of everyone's favorite holiday get-togethers. I'm thinking fish creole for my dish. I think that's what the dish I'm thinking of is called. It's like jambalaya, but more tomato-y and with chunks of fish rather than sausage (I'm not so much a fan of sausage, especially integrated into a dish... I hope this doesn't interfere with my assimilation into my new culture....).

And (kind of) speaking of Halloween parties, I'm so excited that we're going to not one but two parties this year! One of which is tomorrow night. Each of the medical cliques (EMS companies, different ER's, etc) each has their own party, naturally, and we'll be going to the party with the ER staff of St. Elizabeth's tomorrow night, and then Beaumont EMS's next week. Skibby! I didn't think we'd be doing anything this year. We didn't really last year, because we were in a similar moving situation. We just went out and had a few drinks (a few each at a few different places- I wore new slingbacks, and ended up falling numerous times and woke up with a twisted ankle and a sprained ankle... two separate ankle injuries... Hopefully this year will be better). Because I was so taken by surprise, I have nothing planned. I think I'm going to throw together a pirate outfit. That and the vampire, they always come through in a pinch. The last time I dressed up, two years ago, I was a pirate (I made Shelby and I matching costumes), but this one will be more gypsy-esque. I have a cool layered wrap skirt I wear a lot (my "hippie" skirt) and a corset to throw into the mix. I specifically didn't pack my high brown boots for the occasion. Dustin was like "Why do you need a pair of flip-flops, a pair of tennis shoes and a pair of boots to get you through the next two weeks?" Um, fashion. Hello. With the fishnets I haven't worn yet, and my mom's expensive, elaborate pirate hat, I'm gonna look goooood.

All in all, I'm very excited. It's nice to have something to look forward to that doesn't involve packing, planning or worrying. Dustin says he'll start dressing up once we're in NOLA since more people do around there and there are actually places to go dressed up. The first time we went was for Halloween, and it was a blast.

I totally plan to get schnockered tomorrow night, BTW. Let's see what kind of deals I can make at my garage sale bright and early Saturday morning after partying with the nurses all night! The nurses are crazy. It's gonna be awesome.

Things, They Are A'Changin'

2009-10-15T20:45:00.002-05:00

Wow. It is so crazy to look around our house and see bare walls and empty shelves. It's also hard to believe that it's been less than a year since the house looked like this as we were moving in. When we bought this house, we researched carefully, picked paint and flooring lovingly, and fully intended to live in this house for many, many years to come. But, if you want to make God laugh, tell him you plans, right? I love this house, and I'm gonna miss it. We'll be moving out on November 4, one year ago to the day that we moved in. It was Election Day, so if you don't like the State of the Union, don't blame me, I didn't get a say (I was all pumped to vote for the first time, but I missed the early elections and couldn't leave the movers to their own devices to go cast my ballot. Oops).

Everything is such a wreck right now. More so than usual. I don't understand how we can have so much packed, and yet still have enough crap out to have a mess all over the place. It makes me feel itchy. And defeated. Where is all the hard work? I've worked on Shelby's room for two days, and the floor is covered in crap. Granted, it's rugs and blankets and clothes that need to be put in the hamper, and a few books and toys I'm letting her keep out until the move. Everything is out of her toy boxes, off of her walls and the top of her closet is bare. Nothing left but the dollhouses, the Cherry Blossom Market (which needs to be dismantled) and a huge bag of books that has yet to be sorted for keeping, much less packed. And of course clothes, lots of clothes. There's a similar situation in our bedroom, nothing but clothes left.

I realize, as I read over this, that it is incredibly boring. But I suppose that's half the reason of moving- to make life more interesting, and to have more to talk about than what happened on Toot & Puddle today.

If you're so inclined, stay with me. Hopefully you'll witness the evolution. From cartoon od-ing SAHM to hip city dweller. With pictures.

It's gonna be great. Stay tuned!

Texas Towel Holders and Woo-Woos

2009-10-11T13:20:00.009-05:00

The inevitable move is creeping up on me. Not very well, as I'm aware of it's approach, but every now and then I forget for a moment, and then it jumps out and goes "Surprise!" before settling back in. For instance, a few moments ago I was watching Mythbusters and a commercial came on for a movie called The Men Who Stare at Goats- which sounds terribly amusing- that comes out on November 6th. I immediately thought "I want to see that!" and then remembered that on November 6th, we will have moved to NOLA, and that I don't know where the movie theatre is, and it made me sad.

It's the little things that get you.

But I've been thinking for a few days that compiling a list of the things I'm not going to miss about Texas might help me embrace the future a bit more.

Ridiculous Rednecks- Funny that this makes the list, as I was quite the sh*t-kicker in my high school days, even driving an enormous truck (my beloved rusty-white '81 one ton, four door, four wheel drive pick-up with a giant gas tank in the bed that I had to measure gas levels with a yard stick to see if I need to refuel) dubbed the Redneck Limo. But since leaving the woods, I've moved on. I still have a soft spot for my blue collar days, and the friends I left behind, but the ones who take it just that liiiiitle bit too far, I will not be missing.
Woo-Woos- Maybe they have them in the Crescent City as well, but in the Piney Woods area, they're quite prevalent. Yes, firefighters & paramedics are the absolute shizzle (I married one of the latter, didn't I?), and yes, volunteer firefighters and EMTs are honor-worthy citizens, but if you're a volunteer who donates their time in a rural area with one small flame situation a month or only the occasional minor head injury, you do not get to go around saying "I'm a firefighter/paramedic!", get a tattoo of the crest or caduceus on your bicep and have 12 decals- and red flood lights- on your truck. You just don't. And you irritate me.
Texas Flag Bathroom Accessories- I think of all the flags in the union, ours is the coolest. And not just because it was once a national flag (of the Republic of Texas). I think it's pretty. But. I don't care for the aisle at Wal-Mart with all the ceramic and plastic Texas flag soap holders, soap dispensers (does anyone need both???), tooth brush holders, shower curtains, shower curtain hangers, bath mats, toilet seat covers, toilet brush covers, night lights, etc, etc. And the bathrooms that are decked out in all the flagness.... gag-ola.
The Ignorant Bias Against Anything New- There are idiots everywhere, but I truly hate the back-woods prejudice about citified or "Northern" or new age or whatever they call things that are unlike what they've known for 100 years. You know- recycling, yoga, the Green movement.... all those groovy things that are starting to become popular. Fear of the unkown and a need to cling to what your grandpa did are understandable, but when they're hurting the ability for good, then adjust! I'm no hippie, or activist (although I do refer to myself as slightly crunchy), but I've evolved. Get with the program, or at least don't spit tobacco juice at it! Like with the woo-woos, I'm sure our destination has it's fair share of the dibilitatingly old fashioned, but I don't think it will be all up in my face. Especially in the City, which seems to have a good amount of bohemians and natural advocates.

That's all I can think up right now. I'll post more as they come to me. And I'm sorry if I've offended anyone, as that was not my intention. I feel like a turn coat, dissing my beloved home state like that, but maybe it will help with the transition, ya know? I think she understands.

Almost Houma

2009-10-03T01:15:00.003-05:00

So.... We've decided to pack our bags for our favorite city. Since the first time we made our way to the French Quarter on Halloween of 2006, we've been madly in love with New Orleans. So much so that we made the trip more than 15 times. Only this time, we won't be coming back. Well, not after just a few days at the Place d'Armes, anyway. We've decided to make the Big Easy our home. It won't be the first time I've lived outside the Great State of Texas, but it will be the first time I've lived so far away from my mama. Not an easy thing to do (or break to said mother), but if nothing else, I expect it will be a grand adventure. If nothing else, it will be a new one.

What could drag me away from the Lone Star State? More pay for half the hours. Not for me, but for my dear hubby, a paramedic who's taken a position with the City of New Orleans. What will I be doing? Other than the same old gig of housewife and stay-at-home mom, I'm not quite sure yet. Write this blog, I suppose. I thought it would be a good way to keep my mind occupied being disconnected from friends, family and all things familiar. But it will be good- a change of scenery is always nice, and NOLA is in no way lacking distraction. I intend to experience all I can; visit every shop, restaurant and hang-out within walking distance and beyond; and chronicle it all here for you, my adoring fans. Or at least, the bored and literate. I'm not picky.

But we have yet to make the move. We anticipate the beginning of next month to switch our mailing address. But I wanted to go ahead and establish this blog, an investment in my sanity's future. And I also get paranoid, thinking that as soon as an idea pops into my head, I have to jump on it, lest some mind reader somewhere steal it. Wanted to make sure my New in Nola name wasn't taken. Neurotic, maybe. But I got it, didn't I? :)

So stay tuned. Once we make our way to the banks of the Mississippi (is that not the longest word ever?), I intend to update regularly with goings-on in my new little world. And you don't want to miss out on the fun.

....... Also, I'd like to say that we are not moving to Houma, but to the Uptown area of NOLA (one of my stipulations of being ripped from Southeast Texas), misleading though it may be. But it sounded like "Almost Home", and Houma is relatively near New Orleans as I understand it. It's some sort of language thing... a pun maybe? Yes? No? Frazzled as I am, I believe a little slack is in order. Thank you, you're too kind. :)