A New Nature Trail

When I was in my 20's New Orleans' Mardi Gras season involved partying and driving home with a buzz after the parades. 30 years later I'm not so much into that scene. In fact, my 'adrenaline scene' nowadays is nature photography. This is one of the many things that my husband and I enjoy doing together. Our hunger for new places to explore was satiated on this past Friday when we ventured into the Camp Salmen Nature Park a few miles from our house in Slidell.

The park opened in September of 2010 and is still in the building process. It will be a jewel when it is complete.



Camp Salmen was a Boy Scout retreat in the 1940's; before that it was the site of a trading post in the Bayou Liberty region which was probably built in the early 1800s. Later it was the site of a major ferry across Bayou Liberty which operated from the early 1800s
all the way into the early 1900s.

The day was one of those perfect days that Southeastern Louisiana residents love: low humidity, breezy and sunny. I'll let the next group of pictures do the talking for me.

click on pictures for larger version


















The park has a huge area that begs nature lovers to bring a blanket and have a picnic lunch. For those with kids that like to explore there is an enormous amount of land to discover. There is a wide variety of wildlife to observe, but you have to be patient and quiet to find it. I recommend this area for lovers old and young to visit to enjoy each others' company in a beautiful setting.




I also recommend this area for young families who tend to watch their kids and teach them about the beauty of nature. This is not the place to let your kids run wild and scream and leave trash behind. This is a place to be at awe with Mother Nature and respect it.

Scuzzbucket of the Week

Harvey Almorn Updyke Jr, redneck extrodinaire.

Harvey A. Updyke Jr., 62, of Dadeville, Ala., was arrested in connection with the poisoning of iconic oak trees at Toomer's Corner near Auburn University.The trees, which are 130 years old, are Auburn icons. They are not expected to survive the application of a powerful herbicide called Spike 80DF. Police tracked Updyke after he called a sports talk radio show and claimed to have poisoned the trees. Updyke is also said to have placed a call to a turf management professor at Auburn University.




Auburn discovered the poisoning after taking soil samples on January 28, a day after a man called a syndicated radio show based in Birmingham saying he had used the herbicide on the trees.

During that radio show, Harvey boasted to host Paul Finebaum as follows:

"The weekend after the Iron Bowl, I went to Auburn, Ala., because I live 30 miles away, and I poisoned the Toomer's trees,", saying he was at the Iron Bowl.

Calling himself "Al from Dadeville," he said he used Spike 80DF, also known as tebuthiuron, and the trees "definitely will die." The caller signed off with, "Roll Damn Tide."

From an espn sports blog: If there's any real justice in the SEC, Updyke will spend his time in prison watching replays of last season's Iron Bowl, in which his beloved Crimson Tide blew a 24-0 lead in a 28-27 loss to Auburn. Or, even worse, he'll be required to watch an endless marathon of the Mike DuBose era.

Harvey has kids named Bear and Crimson…of course he does.

Bond was set at $50,000. If convicted, Updyke could face one to 10 years in prison.

Film Industry in Hollywood South=Niche Housing Demand

By Jenny Peterson, New Orleans CityBusiness
Updates by Louisiana Entertainment staff

New Orleans’ robust film industry means high demand for short-term rental properties in and around the New Orleans area, and realtors and property owners are jumping on the market.

There are 50 private homes listed on the New Orleans Film Commission’s website as temporary housing for cast and crew. Numerous location scouts and realtors are also listed on the site, offering their services for those in the industry.

The market is so in demand that Robyn Flanery with Restoration Realty has made finding properties for the film industry her full-time job.

“The most lucrative (part) is the cast and crew housing. They want a house with all utilities paid and furnished,” Flanery said. “It’s kind of a niche market because a lot of the things out there for the film industry are not listed on the (Multiple Listing Service).”

It’s takes some creativity to be successful, Flanery said, especially with helping find set locations.

More homeowners have shown interest in listing their properties as well. Flanery said there recently was a seminar for property owners in the English Turn subdivision to learn how to list their homes.

Realtors’ commissions vary for each listing.

“I’ve gotten 60 percent of first month rent, some deals I get 15 percent of each month’s rent. It totally depends. Sometimes I get a flat fee as a consultant,” she said. “I may rent your house for $12,000 a month or $3,000 a month.”

The New Orleans Film Commission accepts submissions and photos from property owners and lists available properties on its website. That includes housing for cast and crew as well as film locations.

Flanery said property owners should factor in the cost for utilities when considering how much to rent their properties for and said to make sure they are working with a production that’s registered with the city’s film commission.

While there are plenty of houses available, there is a high demand for more commercial space in the Garden District and Bywater areaa for post-production offices, Flanery said.

“That’s where they want to have their production offices,” she said. “If we continue to have decent weather and no more issues, I can see this being a really sustainable industry.”

Update: Owners and realtors desiring to make available their properties as potential filming locations can also list them on the Louisiana Entertainment website here.

 

Jazz Fest 2011

Look what I bought this morning before work



From the art4now website a nice write up of Jimmy Buffett and poster artist and local radio god, Garland Robinette.

I can hardly wait for it to arrive!

Bacchus 2011

Andy Garcia will be the king of the Krewe of Bacchus


He always reminded me of a young Pacino.

Modern Cupids

Click for an updated take on the old fashioned cupid

Celebration in Egypt

more videos here

Coach Payton's new home

It is gorgeous! Wish I had $5.8M to buy a house!

More on Coach Payton's plans here.

Exhale......

Cliff posts about twenty things that he hates here. We can all relate to this list.

Another Return from the storm

More than five years after being inundated with over than 5 feet of storm surge which compromised the exterior on five of its six floors, The Towers Building in Slidell is reopening this week.


The Towers Building post Katrina


The Towers Building - 2011

The parish bought the building, called The Towers, in December 1991 from Pelican Homestead and Savings for $250,000 to use as the state's public health unit, with eventual plans to make the building its main office space in eastern St. Tammany.

The long-vacant building, which the bank had repossessed, needed significant structural repairs, and the parish had to remove asbestos throughout, before it could occupy the first offices in March 1993.

The Towers Building is the parish's all-in-one location for residents who live in eastern St. Tammany. Returning to the renovated building are the following agencies:

- Registrar of Voters
- Department of Veterans Affairs
- St. Tammany Parish District Attorney's Office
- St. Tammany Parish Department of Permits & Regulatory
- St.Tammany Parish Community Action Agency
- St.Tammany Parish Assessor and the parish's
- St.Tammany ParishArchive Management office
- St.Tammany Parish Clerk of Court

My Favorite SB Ad

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