The Nana Second

New Orleans is coming back! That is, if you can judge by the number of restaurants that have opened in the last couple of months. I was last here in February and the “pickings” were slim, but after checking out a few New Orleans websites, and www.neworleansrestaurants.com, it appears that New Orleanians have gotten back their appetites. And…it’s a wonderful thing!

Owen and I had a great shrimp poboy, “dressed” please, yesterday from the little deli across the street. There is no matching the french bread baked in this city. I have never tasted any better any where in the world - including France. Dave and Sheila…I think you’ll agree with me on this! We had a few loaves between fabulous red wine when vacationing there a few years ago - to o many! We bought french bread to make our own poboys for lunch today - just ham and cheese, but I could have eaten it with just butter spread on it - delicious.

Owen is here working on his dad’s building - putting it back together after Katrina had its way with it. He is finishing up the electrical work he started months ago. It just takes so long to get anything done. And then, of course, it is a process…waiting on someone else to finish the sheetrocking, cabinetry installation, flooring and painting before finishing up with the outlets, light fixtures and fans. I know the people whose houses have suffered damage have to be frustrated with all the delays. It’s been 10 months since Katrina hit this city and there are still signs of the damage everywhere - some places harder hit than others, of course. I cannot imagine having to deal with living here and rebuilding, but New Orleanians have an incredible spirit about them - a “never say die” attitude that has kept them “afloat” during this rebuilding process. To see the FEMA trailers still lined up inside a fenced in “compound” of sorts in Chalmette was shocking. However, I am happy to report that things look a whole lot better than they did when I was here last and a whole lot better than I expected.

But…wasn’t I talking about food, which is something this city still understands better than any other? I had to stop this post because I had to leave Monday evening to go our friends, the O’Bannons for a visit. I insisted that she not cook because I really just wanted time to visit since we have not seen them for quite a while. Ernest “cooked” by going to Dimartino’s to pick up some muffallettas. Mina added some delicious potato salad and creole tomatoes with fresh mozzarella cheese and basil from her herb garden. Fabulous! The combined flavors and textures in a “muffie” is something that is unmatched. This wasn’t Central Grocery’s muffaletta, but it was every bit as good and with a nice glass of wine - ummmmmm good!

My intention was to try a few different restaurants while in town. Unfortunately, that hasn’t worked out very well. The one I wanted to go to last night with the Joneses was closed for some odd reason. So we went to Caffe Fresca for a light meal. The menu is still limited and I was hoping that they had their fried oyster fettucine, but was informed that that is usually the special on Thursdays. Oh well - another day. The service was great, food really good and company wonderful! Bill, Nancy,
Owen and I got to do some catching up on the last six months since we have seen them. And we got first hand their “Katrina story”. They are still in the renovation process and will be for a little while longer. They did not have flooding, but suffered wind damage to their roof and therefore water damage inside. As a realtor friend of ours told us in a conversation today, the storm has been renamed - it’s now St. Katrina. People are renovating and upgrading where they never would have had it not been for St. Katrina! And…they have the money with which to do it.
Still on the food subject…I thought that I would get to try out Brigtsen’s tonight, but Shirley has informed me that she cooked red beans and rice. Not that I am being ungrateful for someone cooking for me, but I can have that any day, any week! I decided to have a late lunch and forego the beans tonight. One less meal won’t hurt me - that’s for sure! She did redeem herself - somewhat - when she also announced that she was cooking gumbo for tomorrow night. Now that can get my interest, because she makes some of the best gumbo I have ever had - shrimp, oysters, crab - just delicious. So, I suppose I will have to save my appetite for other seafood for another trip.
O.K….I have rattled on about next to nothing. I’ll save my breath for another day.

More later…

I really love living here in the country and appreciate it even more when I’m outside with all of nature – these big beautiful oak, pecan, sycamore and numerous other trees, along with the birds, squirrels and other creatures (we’ll get to that later).  The grass is getting greener mainly because we have been watering nonstop for the last week.  I think it would be dead by now had Owen not been so vigilant about it.  Coreopsis, Rudbeckkia and Coneflower are blooming everywhere, the bluebonnets, for which this part of Texas is so famous, have long succumbed to the heat.  This year, Dave and Sheila were here at the height of Bluebonnet season.  So…we had to go out and capture the beauty.  Here’s a picture of the four of us in a small field in Chappell Hill.We had a great time while they were here – just too short a visit.  We might have to plan this as our semi-annual get together.  It really is a beautiful time of year to visit this area.

I got out in the yard yesterday (yes, yard – not garden) to mow a little grass. Seven hours later, I dragged my tired, achy, dirty body in for a much-needed shower and a little rest.  I love mowing, but it was 102 degrees!! yesterday afternoon.  I am thankful for the many shaded areas in our yard.  Owen had been out the day before planting a few things and working on the ever-evolving sprinkler system.  One day we may have the whole place on the system.  That’s when we’ll need another well just to pump water to the yard.  We have two wells already, which is the only reason we can get most of this place watered sufficiently. But I digress…(now, isn’t that just Southern?) Our hay has been recently cut, raked and baled and even removed.  They must be desperate for hay, because it usually sits there for a couple of months!  I mowed around the trees where they can’t cut.  I mowed under and around the pecan trees that are out in the field.  If I see what I think I’m seeing, looks like next year will be a bumper crop for pecans.  The trees are loaded with “baby” pecans and there are lots of them.  I didn’t bother to take pictures yesterday, but you’ll have to trust me that there are really lots of them.  The oranges, satsumas, lemons and limes are growing nicely.  Now, if we can just keep them alive through the summer.  They like the heat, but they need lots of water also.  Funny that I have killed two apple trees and my plum and peach trees have just quit blooming, but I can grow oranges like crazy!  We should have good luck with peach trees in this area.  I’m going to give it a try again this year.  I’ll let you know how I do.

Well, the armadillos have been tearing up the yard again.  They know they can find whatever it is they like to dine on in ground that is soft and moist.  They find lots of that in the gardens around the house and also in the yard when it has just been watered.  I just happened to leave the front yard for last yesterday - reason being that I knew it would be completely shaded by afternoon.  I was happily riding along and thinking that I couldn’t wait to get off the mower, have a nice cool drink and get my dirty self into a shower when I spotted three, yes that’s 3 baby armadillos.  They were probably about 6 – 8 inches long and just adorable.  Problem is, I have lots of experience with armadillos and I know for certain that they will grow up to be huge.  I jumped off the mower and ran into the house calling for Owen.  I figured we would find a hole in the yard somewhere where they had been hiding out.  Earlier in the day and way out on the back of our property, I had seen the hull of an adult armadillo.  Poor thing – the buzzards had already gotten to him!  That couldn’t been this threesome’s mommy!  They were doing quite well fending for themselves as they honed their skills of digging in the soil with their baby armadillo snouts.  Owen captured them and took them to a far away place – I don’t know where, but I’m certain that’s not the end of them.  They are cute little creatures, but the only thing I know that can tear up a garden any quicker is a wild hog.  I’ll save that story for another day.

That’s all on gardening for the day.  I have to go out and check on my tomatoes, which the neighbor’s peacocks have been feasting on.  Wish I had a picture of that!  I caught him “red-handed” a few days ago as he was pecking away at Matt’s Wild Tomatoes.

If you have a garden – rush out now before it gets too hot and take in all of that beauty!

I mentioned in my last post that we had enjoyed a trip to Oklahoma to see a niece graduate from high school and to see the latest and greatest addition to the family, a new great niece.  We stayed with sister, Bobbie and her husband, Ron while there and they are just wonderful hosts.  It’s just always nice to hang out with them and do whatever comes to mind.  They are so flexible about time, etc. 

Kim, another niece, lives nearby – not too near, as Mother says that everything around there is always 30 minutes away.  She had us over for a fabulous steak dinner a couple of nights before we left.  Kim works so hard, but is never too busy to show hospitality to family and friends.  She has the most adorable house and has completely renovated it during 18 or so years they have lived there.  Here, she is standing in her kitchen.  She has dreamed up more projects than you can imagine.  She dreams them up, runs it by her husband for his approval (at least, I think this is the order…), tells Don, her father-in-law, what she intends to do and goes at it.  Don is well aware of his role in the project – LABOR!  She never considers that she might not be able to do it for she knows that she will persevere until it is accomplished.  She is AMAZING!  They have cut ceilings out to put in a picture frame ceiling, poured concrete floors and finished them, added on full rooms, faux painted walls – you name it.  And it doesn’t stop with the house…she does all of her own landscaping.  In fact, I have encouraged her to go into business doing this.  She is THAT good!  Her backyard is something off the DIY show. 

Her latest brainstorm, which is nearly complete, is a deck and outdoor kitchen.  I wish I had taken a picture of it.  However, we got a little sidetracked that night with 17 for dinner, baby Savannah to “coo” over, visiting with everyone and intermittently watching American Idol’s finale  And that’s just what we were doing when Mother decided to step outside onto the new deck…which has a step down…which she didn’t see…stepping into “air” (her words), fell and hit her head on the new, perfectly placed stepping stone, embedded in pea gravel, that borders the deck!  I would say that I wish I had taken a picture, but it would not be necessary because the vision of her falling will forever vividly run in my head. She was immediately surrounded by those sitting outside and the rest of us were running around in the kitchen finding bags and ice and Kim was running back and forth getting towels and cloths for the gash on her forehead. Kendal, having recently trained with EMS butterflied the gash together and tried to keep everyone calm. Mother never lost consciousness, nor did she have a concussion. When asked by the ER doctor if she had lost consciousness, she replied, “No, but my three daughters did!”  LOL  We were fully conscious, but in a bit of a shock.  The only thing she broke was a fingernail and would not rest until I found a file in her purse to take care of it!  She was so angry with herself for falling, but I can tell you that any other 90 year old would have broken something and/or have been “rattled” after the kind of fall she took.  She did walk away with some battle scars –it took many inside stitches and 9 on the outside to put “Humpty” together again – closing a 2–inch gash –  but she is as good as new! Here she is getting her hair  washed in Ron’s barber chair and then talking on the phone to one of her “flock”. She says she felt like a little pampered poodle.  We were happy to pamper! – knowing that we could have had a much worse situation. 

After that little episode, the rest of the trip was uneventful and things are right back to normal.  Thankful, so thankful! – YES, thankful for a mother who is incredibly strong in body, mind and spirit.  Let’s just hope that a few of us inherit most of her genes or at least her taste for cottage cheese and beer!  I forgot to mention that when asked by one of the hospital personnel what her secret to health was, that’s just what she told him!!

I haven’t checked, but I do know that it’s been a long time since I have posted anything.  As I said to someone recently, I feel like my life has been swirling since Katrina – and I was not directly affected.  Yes, I have been back to New Orleans several times and helped with some cleanup at Owen’s dad’s place, but nothing major.  Owen, on the other hand, has been back numerous, extended periods of time working on the electrical repair and upgrade.  Of course, while he is gone, I pick up the slack around the house. 

But Katrina is just a reference point to what has been going on with me for the last nine months.  I have discovered over the years that being from a large family – 7 siblings – keeps you busy most of the time.  There are many who do not understand this, but when you are close – not in miles, but in heart – it takes some effort to keep those relationships. And then, there are important friends thrown in for good measure.  There have been several trips taken to Ruston to see my mother, one of which was unplanned – i.e. evacuating for Rita when my father-in-law was here because he was on dialysis and we just felt he needed to be in a place where care was available.  We took a trip to Oklahoma to take Mother to see her newest great granddaughter, Savannah, and also to see her youngest granddaughter graduate from high school.  This was a surprise trip.  You should have seen the look on Danielle’s face when she saw us in the bleachers at graduation. Here she is with her dad and Mother.  It was priceless and we all agreed that her reaction alone was worth the trip.  Danielle is so sweet and we are very proud of her achievements in school and look forward to seeing her successes in the future.  And, of course, Savannah is a doll.  We all had to have several turns holding her.  She is such a good baby – now, can’t wait to watch her grow.

We have attended four weddings already this year – two daughters of good friends, a great nephew  and the most important – and we think most beautiful…our son and daughter-in-law.  Yes, he looked so happy and handsome and she looked just gorgeous.  Family came to enjoy this weekend with us…and Owen and I  as well as Richele and Natalie and a couple of cousins…had so much fun.  Carrie and Brad put together a most memorable event.  We are so happy that they “tied the knot” and in such a unique and memorable fashion. 

There are other things that have been going on these last 9 months, but above are the most important events.  The blog will have to wait a while for me to catch up.

Have a wonderful day!