Four dollar tomato . . .

Showing photos of a few of those wonderful Live Oaks that grace Louisiana everywhere.

Had to go food shopping yesterday, first time since we've come home from A's and it wasn't pretty. Spent close to $200 just on necessities but the best was my beautiful, red, luscious looking tomato! We've been on a sandwich eating binge and since lettuce doesn't like me any more I always like a nice slice of tomato on top of the meat along with some Cain's mayonnaise. I will relish the slices from this tomato which cost over $4.00! If you work at minimum wage it cost about half an hour of work time. Gees Louise, when I started working at .50 an hour I would have had to work a full day to buy one big fat tomato at today's prices. Not sure what this all means except prices are outrageous and I, obviously, am not a good shopper!

Had a really good Friday evening and Saturday morning with Kiddo. We spent most of the time out of doors just walking in the woods to see Yoda and at the playground strutting our stuff for a little girl who was also enjoying time with her grandparents. What a pleasure. We went to Zip's for breakfast this morning. When we left home it was 45 degrees, overcast raw and gray. Zip's four corners was sunny, temperate, clear and beautiful. Returned home and we're back in the doldrums. Crazy New England. The trees are not at all special or bright and beautiful this year. A little bit of yellow, no reds to speak of, pretty drab. Since I am a "needs sunshine person" I hope the day progresses to bright and at least tepid! Will be going to a play in Putnam with younger brother and his wife this afternoon. All in all it will be a good day.

Quote: I once gave a lady two-and-twenty receipts against melancholy; one was a bright fire; another, to remember all the pleasant things said to her; another, to keep a box of sugarplums on the chimney-piece and a kettle simmering on the hob. I thought this mere trifling at the moment, but have in after life discovered how true it is that these little pleasures often banish melancholy better than higher and more exalted objects; and that no means ought to be thought too trifling which can oppose it either in ourselves or in others. __Sydney Smith

Enough . . . already . . .

Well, in less than a month we have had to buy a new car, a new porch roof, a new computer and a printer/scanner. That's it. I can't stand any more breakdowns! We are up and running. That's the good part. I just need to get the right USB cable and then run the software for the printer. Phew. It's a good thing Puppy's Pop has so much patience as he set up the whole mess! That's all I can write for now. Once again I'm all pooped out!

Quote: Music is a prophecy of what life is to be; the rainbow of promise translated out of seeing into hearing. __Mrs. L. M. Child

What a mess . . .

It has taken me all morning to connect to this blog. We're having all sorts of tech problems today! I'm bringing the desk top computer to Staples because it crashed and may have to be relegated to the pyre. It took hours before the WiFi radio which just came back from repair work in California started to work properly and now the iPad and Safari would not let me connect to Qu'que chose. I'm almost despondent! Hope it doesn't take Staples too long to fix the emachine if it's even worth fixing. I may buy another PC and just have them download the old files if possible. I'm pooped already! On my way to Groton by way of the Norwich Staples since that's where I received good support 5 years ago!

Last glorious southern day for now . . .

While Puppy's Pop and Son were at the flying contest yesterday Southern Daughter and I were shopping at the Louisiana Mall in Baton Rouge. We just roamed around and didn't buy too much, a wallet for her and some T- shirts for moi. The best part was lunch at Joe's Crab Shack where I had coconut shrimp, a Margarita and a crazy chocolate desert. The men were already home when we returned. Puppy's Pop came in second in his class, Advanced. He's doing good. Also won a plane kit, some hats and a new handle for the new plane! He wracked up. We lucked out today because A.was able to come home early so we went to The Magnolia Café for lunch in St. Francisville. It reminded me of something you would expect to see in Casa Grande, Arizona, rustic, authentic and old! Food was great. I had my ubiquitous Margarita with the special of the day, white beans and rice which came with a lagniappe of cornbread and salad. I think I shall have to start using more beans and rice in my home cooking; delicious, healthy and not too hard to make! Sounds like a plan! Time to go sit in the gazebo to relax and read.

And did I mention . . .

Sitting on the gallery swinging away while the heavens burst and the rain streams down while overhead the lightening strikes are so bright they hurt your eyes? And did I mention the sun so glaringly bright I must wear a hat when out of doors; the Maltipoo puppy, Lily and faithful Shih Tzu, Shelbie vying for attention; finally discovering the acorns from ancient live oaks to bring home and attempt to grow at least one gnarled beautiful live oak indoors; dinner at Sammy's with my most loved Southerners; catfish and sweet potato fries; playing cribbage and laughing late into the night; enjoying oral stories and written letters about southern daughter's varied family; total tranquility in this corner of southern hospitality this dry, sunny, clear Saturday morning? Life is what you want it to be. Life is good, sweet, ephemeral. Cueillez des aujourd'ui les roses de la vie! Ronsard.

What a day . . .

Have already gone for my walk at Doyle's Bayou Park while Puppy's Pop was flying. His friend Gil stopped in and confirmed my suspicions. This is the best time of year in Southern Louisiana: deep blue cloudless big sky, very bright sun high in the sky, dry and graciously comfortable. And the retirement is easy! We passed by an elegant new home with a hundred year old Live Oak covered with streamers of toilet paper! It is not a prank! The local high school team, the Broncos, is playing this weekend and it is homecoming. That's one of the ways they celebrate! Looks quite odd but it is all in fun.

Our sojourn to New Iberia yesterday was wonderful. We drove over and through the Achafalaya Swamp, the largest swamp in the USA. The engineering of the road above the swamp is incredible. I ooh and ahh all the way. We visited Jefferson House on Jackson Island. I will start my picture show after we return to Connecticut if our photos come out okay. The docent was a lovely young woman and we were the only two people on the tour. The best part of old southern homes is the huge windows across from each other which you can walk through to go sit on the gallery to enjoy the breezes wafting through the gigantic, gnarled live oaks. We walked the gardens through tall stands of bamboo down to Lake Peigneur where we had lunch. Yep, I finally snagged a muffuletta and a margarita to aid the digestive process. I wanted to buy a book about the 1980 calamity that befell Lake Peigneur and the Live Oak Gardens but it is just being published. As best I can describe the accident Lake Peigneur was a fresh water lake about eleven feet deep. Jefferson House on Jackson Island is on top of a salt dome. Diamond Crystal had a huge salt mine in the immediate area. Texaco was drilling test wells for oil which is often found near salt domes. Texaco mistakenly drilled into the salt mine where fifty five miners were working. The drilled hole caused Lake Peigneur to be swallowed into the mine. All of the men were able to escape as the water started to flood the mine. At least eleven boats and barges were swallowed and a channel to the gulf started to run north to fill up the place where Lake Peigneur had been. The accident also swallowed up the new retirement home the owner of Jefferson House had built. Only the chimney remains sticking up in the lake. He lost 65 acres of Jackson Island that had been covered in old live oaks and pecan trees along with a large hot house where he was nurturing rare species of plants. No one lost their life but Lake Peigneur is now a very deep salt water lake and the ecology has changed dramatically.

After lunch we went on into New Iberia to visit Shadows-on-the-Teche an 1834 home that has been restored with the furnishings that are original to the original owners of the home. They made their fortune in sugar cane. Life in New Iberia seems to be wrapped in sugar cane. The fields are truly everywhere. The harvesting has begun but we did not smell the burning of the chaff in the fields because it is too early in the season.

Lucked out . . .

Decided to spend a relaxing day at home and we lucked out big time. Son got back from North Carolina this morning and didn't have to be at work until 2:00 this afternoon. Puppy's Pop needed to go to the Hobby Shop in Baton Rouge which brings us very close to Frank's Restaurant and Smokehouse. I drove to Frank's with son and came back home with Puppy's Pop! The best of all possible worlds! Had to bring back about half of my lunch but it was great: red beans and sausage on rice, crunchy sweet potatoes, fresh collard greens, biscuits, cornbread and fresh, unsweetened ice tea. Not sure how I can possibly eat supper tonight but I will cook up the deboned chicken we bought at Chris' Specialty Meats in Zachary so that Southern Daughter and the guys can have a good meal. Grampa and I will set out tomorrow for our excursion after some pecan waffles at the Waffle House. Now it is time to sit on the porch and read. I've already taken Lily and Shelbie out for their walks.