Olde Towne Arts Center

Recently opened in Slidell at the site of the former Slidell Cleaners is the Olde Towne Arts Center, or OTAC. Conceived Post Katrina OTAC is home to a growing network of artists that includes art classes in various media, visual arts workshops, poetry workshops, and numerous other artistic endeavors.

CP3 Christmas

New Orleans' Hornets point guard Chris Paul is shown here dedicating the first of three basketball courts in New Orleans.

here's a little audio snippet about the dedication from WWNO Radio.

No stranger to philanthropy, Chris Paul continually helps the needy through his CP3 Foundation. Chris Paul and his family created the CP3 Foundation in partnership with The Winston-Salem Foundation to support a variety of charitable causes. Since its inception in 2006, the CP3 Foundation has raised more than $250,000 to benefit programs throughout Winston-Salem and New Orleans.

"CP3" nickname comes from family tradition. Tcombination of his initials and jersey number is strictly a coincidence. His father (Charles Paul) and older brother (C.J. Paul) are nicknamed CP1 and CP2, respectively. Paul also notes that all three men's initials are CEP.

Last minute gift idea

Still looking for ideas for a Christmas gift? Got a person on your list who likes to cook or eat?



I just picked up a copy of Cooking Up A Storm - Recipes Lost to Katrina at the Camellia City Farmers' Market and it's a treasure trove of old New Orleans recipes. Compiled by TP food editor and cookbook author Judy Walker and my favorite Louisiana cook Marcelle Bienvenu, this book is chock full of recipes that appeared in the Times Picayune.

WWNO does a short story on the cookbook at this link.

Judy Walker details the painstaking work that was involved in formulating this book here.

You can puchase the book here at the TP bookstore. Amazon is currently out of stock.

It's available at Octavia books or Borders in Metairie.

Still in pain 3 years later

From the "Jewel Thinks" blog, this story of desperation three plus years after Katrina.

A Cliff Quote

From his latest "Sitting on my porch..." post, Cliff made me laugh out loud with this thought


Speaking of Wal Mart…since everyone is losing money and jobs except for them, shouldn’t we put them in charge of the economic crisis? The only drawback to this would be everywhere you went there would be someone at the door to check your receipt.

2009 New Orleans Jazz Fest Lineup

here's the list from the Times Pic


The 40th annual Jazz Fest is April 24-26 & April 30-May 3.

The big acts this year include Wynton Marsalis, the Dave Matthews Band, James Taylor, Aretha Franklin, Sugarland, Tony Bennett, The Neville Brothers and Bonnie Raitt.

The first weekend roster includes Wynton Marsalis, Dave Matthews Band, James Taylor, Joe Cocker, Earth Wind & Fire, Wilco, Spoon, Erykah Badu, Irma Thomas, Orishas, Third World, Robert Cray, Etta James & the Roots Band, Mavis Staples, Drive-By Truckers feat. Booker T. Jones, Johnny Winter, Pete Seeger, Hugh Masekela, Better Than Ezra, Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings, Galactic, Roy Haynes, Pete Fountain, Avett Brothers, Kinky, Roy Rogers, Del McCoury Band, Terence Blanchard, Marc Broussard, DJ Jubilee with 5th Ward Weebie and Ms. Tee, Buckwheat Zydeco's 30th Anniversary feat. The Hitchhikers, Tab Benoit, Locos por Juana, Trombone Shorty, Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra, Yacub Addy and Odadaa of Ghana, Rebirth Brass Band Reunion with Kermit Ruffins, Ivan Neville & Dumpstaphunk, Big Sam's Funky Nation, Terrance Simien & the Zydeco Experience, Amanda Shaw & the Cute Guys, Donald Harrison, The Anointed Jackson Sisters, Tribute to Mahalia Jackson featuring Irma Thomas, Mavis Staples, and Pamela Landrum, Chris Smither, Henry Butler, Papa Grows Funk, Robert Mirabal, Harlem Blues & Jazz Band, Rockin' Dopsie, Jr. & the Zydeco Twisters, Sonny Landreth, Benjy Davis Project, The Vettes, Mem Shannon & the Membership, Stephanie Jordan, Warren Storm, Willie Tee and Cypress feat. Tommy McLain and T K Hulin, Astral Project, Ladysmith Redlions of South Africa, Don Vappie & the Creole Jazz Serenaders, Amammereso Agofomma of Ghana, The Dixie Cups, Chubby Carrier & the Bayou Swamp Band, Germaine Bazzle, John Mooney & Bluesiana, Marlon Jordan, Tabby Thomas, Spencer Bohren, Savoy Music Center of Eunice Saturday Cajun Jam, Dew Drop Inn Revisited hosted by Deacon John feat. Wanda Rouzan, Eddie Bo, Allen Toussaint, Robert Parker, and Al "Carnival Time" Johnson, Paul Sanchez & the Rolling Road Show, Wayne Toups & Zydecajun, Leroy Jones presents the Fairview Brass Band Reunion Tribute to Danny Barker, Bruce Daigrepont, Vivaz!, Pfister Sisters' 30th Anniversary, Gringo do Choro, Dr. Michael White & the Original Liberty Jazz Band, Thais Clark, Big Chief Monk Boudreaux & the Golden Eagles Mardi Gras Indians, Henry Gray & the Cats, Joe Krown, Walter "Wolfman" Washington & Russell Batiste, Jr., Lil' Buck Sinegal Blues Band, EOE, Ebony Hillbillies, Crescent City Allstars feat. James Andrews, Hot 8 Brass Band, Schatzy, Jake Smith, 19th Street Red Blues Band, Brasilliance!, Mighty Chariots of Fire, Sharde Thomas & the Rising Star Fife & Drum Band, Chris Owens, Topsy Chapman, New Bumpers' Revival Jazz Band of France, Zulu Male Ensemble, Jo "Cool" Davis, Leah Chase, Herlin Riley, Roderick Paulin, Mahogany Brass Band, Ingrid Lucia, MyNameisJonMichael, Texas Johnny Brown & the Quality Blues Band, Rockie Charles & the Stax of Love, AsheSon, Jim McCormick, Lil' Malcolm & the House Rockers, Dwayne Dopsie & the Zydeco Hellraisers, Thomas "Big Hat" Fields & his Foot Stompin' Zydeco Band, Guitar Slim, Jr., Storyville Stompers Brass Band, Willis Prudhomme & Zydeco Express, Lost Bayou Ramblers, Waterseed, Creole Wild West Mardi Gras Indians, DJ Hektik & the New Orleans Society of Dance with Freedia and Nobi, Tipsy Chicks, Jonno Frishberg & Bayou DeVille, Christian Serpas & Ghost Town, Kumbuka African Drum and Dance Collective, NewBirth Brass Band, High Ground Drifters Bluegrass Band, New Orleans Night Crawlers Brass Band, Hadley Castille & the Sharecropper Band, Carrollton Hunters and Cherokee Hunters Mardi Gras Indians, Big Steppers, Furious Five, and Untouchables SAPCs, Patrice Fisher & Arpa feat. special guests from Brazil, Clive Wilson's New Orleans Serenaders feat. Butch Thompson, Young Tuxedo Brass Band, Betty Winn & One A-Chord, McDonogh #35 High School Gospel Choir, Sophisticated Ladies feat. Barbara Shorts, Leslie Smith, Cindy Scott, and Judy Spellman, Golden Comanche and Seminoles Mardi Gras Indians, N.O.C.C.A. Jazz Ensemble, Real Untouchables Brass Band, Olympia Aid, New Look & First Division SAPCs, New Orleans Jazz Vipers, Tommy Sancton, Society Brass Band, Connie Jones, St. Joseph the Worker Music Ministry, UNO Jazz Combo, June Gardner & the Fellas, New Orleans Spiritualettes, Smitty Dee's Brass Band, Kid Simmons' Local International Allstars, Semolian Warriors, Comanche Hunters, and Golden Star Hunters Mardi Gras Indians, Louisiana Repertory Jazz Ensemble, Tyronne Foster & the Arc Singers, Loyola University Jazz Ensemble, Franklin Avenue B.C. Mass Choir, Small Souljas Brass Band, Val & the Love Alive Fellowship Choir, Single Ladies, Family Ties, Big Nine, and Keep N It Real SAPCs, Second Mount Carmel Gospel Choir, Xavier University Jazz Ensemble, Heritage School of Music Band, Gospel Soul Children, Nine Times Men, Single Men, Dumaine Gang, Divine Ladies, and Lady Jetsetters SAPCs, Red, White & Blue and Wild Mohican Mardi Gras Indians, Reverend Charles Jackson & the Jackson Travelers, Nineveh B.C. Mass Choir, Kid Simmon's Local International Allstars, Voices of St. Peter Claver, David & Roselyn, Grayhawk, Washboard Leo, Red Hot Brass Band, Kayla Woodson & Louisiana Lightnin' and more.


The second weekend features Aretha Franklin, Artist TBA, Sugarland, Ben Harper, Tony Bennett, Kings of Leon, The Neville Brothers, Bonnie Raitt, Common, Emmylou Harris, Dr. John, Buddy Guy, Los Lobos, The O'Jays, Toots & the Maytals, Allen Toussaint, John Mayall, Solomon Burke, Doc Watson, Maze featuring Frankie Beverly, The Whispers, Jakob Dylan, Chuck Brown, Meter Men: Zig, George, and Leo, Kurt Elling, Rance Allen, Cowboy Mouth, Guy Clark, Radiators Aaron Neville, Lil' Ed & the Blues Imperials, Tab Benoit & the Wetland Allstars, Marcia Ball, Ellis Marsalis, Kermit Ruffins & the Barbecue Swingers, Dirty Dozen Brass Band, Poncho Sanchez Latin Jazz Band, Jon Cleary & the Absolute Monster Gentlemen, Frankie Ford, BeauSoleil avec Michael Doucet, Mississippi Mass Choir, Walter "Wolfman" Washington & the Roadmasters, Anders Osborne, the subdudes, Esperanza Spalding, Patty Griffin, Deacon John, Chris Thomas King, Kind of Blue @ 50 Tribute to Miles Davis feat. Jimmy Cobb, Wallace Roney, Larry Willis, and Buster Williams, John Scofield & the Piety Street Band, George Wein & the Newport Allstars feat. Randy Brecker, VaShawn Mitchell & Friends, Nicholas Payton, Linda Tillery & the Cultural Heritage Choir, Irvin Mayfield & the New Orleans Jazz Orchestra, Bonerama, Preservation Hall Jazz Band, The Genius of Sidney Bechet: A Tribute feat. Bob Wilber, Dr. Michael White, and Brian "Breeze" Cayolle, Delfeayo Marsalis Quintet, Geno Delafose & French Rockin' Boogie, Nathan & the Zydeco Cha Chas, Theresa Andersson, Cedric Burnside & Lightnin' Malcolm, Bobby Lounge feat. Sarah Quintana, Chieck Hamala Diabate of Mali, The Iguanas, Treme Brass Band, Lars Edegran & the New Orleans Ragtime Orchestra, Lionel Ferbos & the Palm Court Jazz Band, Fredy Omar con su Banda, Rosie Ledet & the Zydeco Playboys, Big Chief Bo Dollis & the Wild Magnolias, Soul Rebels, Steve Riley & the Mamou Playboys, Luther Kent & Trickbag, Banu Gibson's Hot Jazz with Bucky Pizzarelli, Mark Braud, Sunpie & the Louisiana Sunspots, Marva Wright & the BMWs, Kenny Bill Stinson & the Ark-LA-Mystics, Gregg Stafford's Jazz Hounds' Tribute to Danny Barker feat. Juanita Brooks, Eric Lindell, C.J. Chenier & the Red Hot Louisiana Band, Rumba Buena, Roddie Romero & the Hub City Allstars, Charmaine Neville Band, Eddie Bo, Ori Danse Club of Benin, Crocodile Gumboot Dancers of South Africa, Rotary Downs, George French & the New Orleans Storyville Jazz Band, Walter Payton & File Gumbo, Dash Rip Rock, John Boutte, Sonny Bourg & the Bayou Blues Band, Johnny Sketch & the Dirty Notes, Sherman Robertson, Honey Island Swamp Band, The Revealers, I'Voire Spectacle feat. Seguenon Kone, Alex McMurray, 101 Runners, Midnite Disturbers, Paulin Brothers Brass Band, Big Chief Peppy & the Golden Arrows Mardi Gras Indians, D.L. Menard & the Louisiana Aces, James Rivers Movement, Otra, Tony Green's Gypsy Jazz, New Orleans Klezmer Allstars, John Rankin, Betsy McGovern & the Poor Clares, Kenny Neal, Lil' Brian & the Travelers, Jeremy Davenport, Keith Frank & the Soileau Zydeco Band, Jamal Batiste & the Jam-Allstars, Ensemble Fatien feat. Seguenon Kone, Dr. Michael White, and Jason Marsalis, Sharon Martin, St. Louis Slim, Bryan Lee & the Blues Power Band, TBC Brass Band, Lady Rollers, Original C.T.C., and Nine Times Ladies SAPCs, Feufollet, War Chief Juan & Young Fire and White Cloud Hunters Mardi Gras Indians, New Orleans Bingo! Show, David Egan, Kidd Jordan-Al Fielder & the IAQ, Drew Landry Band, Driskill Mountain Boys, Jumpin' Johnny Sansone, Washboard Chaz, Bamboula 2000, Danza, Marisa y Mariachi Agave, J. Monque'D Blues Band, Cedric Watson, Twangorama, Higher Heights, Tim Laughlin, Elysian Fieldz, Percussion Inc., Pinettes Brass Band, Scene Boosters, Old N Nu Fellas, Secondline Jammers, and Ladies of Unity SAPCs, Little Freddie King Blues Band, Glen David Andrews, Po' Henry & Tookie, Sherman Washington & the Zion Harmonizers, Culu Children's Traditional African Dance Ensemble, Paky Saavedra's Bandido, New Orleans Mardi Gras Indian Rhythm Section, Bob French & the Original Tuxedo Jazz Band, Shamarr Allen, Free Agents Brass Band, Jambalaya Cajun Band, Benny Grunch & the Bunch, Javier Tobar & Elegant Gypsy, Creole Zydeco Farmers, Bonsoir Catin, Corey Ledet, Gina Brown, Reggie Hall & the Twilighters feat. Lady Bee, Forgotten Souls Brass Band, Young Magnolias, Golden Sioux, and Black Feathers Mardi Gras Indians, New Leviathan Oriental Foxtrot Orchestra, Westbank Steppers, Valley of Silent Men, and Pigeon Town Steppers SAPCs, Doreen's Jazz New Orleans, Truth Universal & Jimi Clever, Shades of Praise Gospel Singers, Brother Tyrone, Lazarus, Berard Family Band, New Orleans Jazz Ramblers, Courtney Bryan Trio, Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz, DJ Captain Charles, Blodie's Jazz Jam, New Orleans Helsinki Project, Original Last Straws, Chris Clifton, Panorama Jazz Band, Mario Abney, John Lee & the Heralds of Christ, Original Dixieland Jazz Band, Hot Club of New Orleans, The Moonshiners, Clarinet Woodshed feat. Evan Christopher and Gregory Agid, SUBR Jazz Ensemble, Michael Ward, DJ Soul Sister, The Johnson Extension, Black Eagles, Geronimo Hunters, Wild Tchoupitoulas, and Wild Apaches Mardi Gras Indians, Watson Memorial Teaching Ministries, Tulane University Jazz Ensemble, First Emmanuel Baptist Church Choir, Louis Ford & his New Orleans Flairs, Fi Yi Yi & the Mandingo Warriors, Red Hawk, and Black Seminoles Mardi Gras Indians, Leviticus Gospel Choir, Dillard University Jazz Ensemble, Bester Singers and the Dynamic Smooth Family Gospel Singers, Bon Temps Roulez, New Generation, and Undefeated Divas SAPCs, The Electrifying Crownseekers, Pinstripe Brass Band, Ebenezer Baptist Church Mass Choir, Trouble Nation and Ninth Ward Hunters Mardi Gras Indians, Famous Rocks of Harmony, Highsteppers Brass Band, McMain High School Gospel Choir, Voices of Distinction, Gal Holiday, Lyle Henderson & Emmanuel, Coolie Family Gospel Singers, Original Big 7 and Original 4 SAPCs, Tornado Brass Band, Eddie "Chops" Paris, Golden Blade, Wild Red Flame, and Mohawk Hunters Mardi Gras Indians, Morning Star B.C. Mass Choir, New Wave Brass Band, Julio y Cesar Band, First Emmanuel Church Gospel Choir, Greater Antioch Full Gospel B.C. Mass Choir, Roderick Paulin, N'Kafu African Dance Ensemble, Original Prince of Wales and the Original Lady Buckjumpers SAPCs, Johnette Downing, Young Guardians of the Flame, Eric McAllister, N'Fungola Sibo West African Dance Company, Mt. Hermon B.C. Mass Choir and more.

Will History Repeat Itself?

I'm wondering if former "scuzzbuckets of the week" Chicago Bears fans will be out in force tonight?



I hope our Saints fans are ready if they are. And I hope our Saints fans show more class than these dumbbells. That wouldn't be too hard, would it?

Snow!!!!

Photos submitted to the Times Pic and WWL Radio

Corruption: It's not just for Louisiana anymore

From the New York Times:
An official says that Gov. Rod Blagojevich has been arrested on charges related to the selection of the replacement for the Senate seat being vacated by Barack Obama.

I like Schroeder's reaction to this. Quite creative.

Early Christmas for Brock Elementary

Katrina damaged Brock Elementary in Slidell is once again alive with the sounds of kids and teachers.



The school principal, still remembers saying goodbye to her students the Friday afternoon before the storm, telling them she would see them the following Monday. On that Saturday, she and maintenance crew members did what they could to make the building storm-ready.

Within a few days, Katrina's storm surge poured about 6 feet of water into the school.


As the first public school in Slidell, Brock Elementary School was the oldest school in the parish still in use as a school when Hurricane Katrina devastated it.

I've been watching the progress of the rebuilding of this school. I snapped a

few pictures of it in February of this year. It's good to see that Brock Elementary will continue to be a place where kids can learn and grow for a long time to come.

Thanks to those who initiated this rebuilding: the Mayor of New Hyde Park, NY and the Principal of The Road School in the same town and all of those who worked to bring Brock back to life.

Besh at Rouses

Chef John Besh is making some of products available to the public exclusively through Rouse's Supermarkets.



From the St. Tammany News

A new line of vinaigrettes and sauces from Slidell native son and Food Network star, John Besh were introduced recently at the Thibodaux-based grocery store chain.

Owner of four highly acclaimed local restaurants, Besh introduced the products for at-home chefs wanting to reproduce the intense flavors used in his kitchens. The vinaigrettes draw inspiration from the region’s roots, with names like Pepper Jelly, Louisiana Sugar Cane Vinaigrette, Wild Flower Honey and Creole Mustard, as well as Spicy Young Garlic and Parmesan Caesar.



Also on the menu is Sour Mashed Steak Sauce, made with caramelized shallots, onions and garlic, along with a touch of vinegar, tomato and red pepper. Donnie McDowell, manager of the Gause Boulevard store in Slidell, said all of the products are selling very well.


Good idea for some stocking stuffers for my foodie daughter. Oh, and me too.

"Old" Twin Spans' future

Last April a proposal was submitted to use a 2,000 foot portion of the Katrina-damaged I10 Twin Spans to create an artificial reef and a fishing pier.


These satellite pictures show the location of the proposed fishing pier and artificial reefs alongside the new Twin Span bridge. (Courtesy Image)

From the St. Tammany News:
“The idea was received favorably by DOTD, so they’ve accepted our proposal to move forward,” said St. Tammany Parish spokesman Tom Beale. “Since completion of the new bridge is so far off, it gives us time to work on a design and to solidify which ideas and implementation tactics will work best.”



DOTD spokesman Brendan Rush said his department has approved the sale of 2,000 to 2,500 linear feet of the existing bridge to the parish, at a price of $17,100. The old bridge will continue to be used for traffic as construction of the new spans progresses.

A second proposal, submitted at the same time, supported the reuse of a portion of the existing bridge that must be torn down to make way for the new construction. The concrete from that section would be reused to build two artificial fishing reefs between the U.S. Highway 11 bridge and the new Twin Span. Beale could not confirm if that portion of the plan had been approved.

“It may be that once the fishing pier is under way, they’ll revisit the idea of the artificial reefs,” he said. “The projects go hand-in-hand, so we’d like to move forward on both of them.”

Something positive for a change

Found on the NYT website, this article tells of a meeting nearly three years ago between Nancy Epstein, the chief executive of Artistic Tile, in Secaucus New Jersey and Nancy Biberman, the president of the Women’s Housing and Economic Development Corporation, a nonprofit group known as Whedco.

From the article

Epstein offered to donate 120 tons of older and discontinued ceramic, concrete and porcelain tiles to Ms. Biberman for her 128 apartments. Unlike many commercial developers, Ms. Biberman did not need large quantities of similar tiles and could use Artistic’s variety of small lots.

After Whedco placed tiles in bathrooms, kitchens and common areas this summer, 60 tons — worth about $250,000 — remained unused. Much of it sat outside Artistic’s warehouse on pallets, some in open boxes that exposed ceramic moldings, finished crowns and tiles costing up to $30 each. Another load sat so long in a trailer nearby that its legs had sunk into the asphalt.

Serendipity ensued in the form of Paul Eisemann, who refurbishes brownstones in Brooklyn and who volunteers in New Orleans, where he teaches home-building skills. With the hurricane debris largely cleared and the frames and walls of new homes going up, Mr. Eisemann and community leaders in New Orleans turned to outfitting bathrooms, kitchens and other rooms.

Mr. Eisemann learned from Artistic that more tile — enough to fill at least four tractor-trailers — was sitting in Secaucus.

Mr. Eisemann contacted Mary Croom-Fontenot, executive director of All Congregations Together, an alliance of religious groups in New Orleans that has rebuilt 142 homes with volunteer labor and donations. Her group, along with Lowernine.org, another nonprofit group in New Orleans focused on rebuilding homes, was excited about the prospect of getting high-quality tile.

Rev. Scott Sammler-Michael, minister of the Accotink Unitarian Universalist Church in Burke, Va.,had taken some congregants to New Orleans to help in the rebuilding effort. His group offered $3,000 to pay for one tractor-trailer load of tile to be shipped to Louisiana. Before he could write a check, a New Jersey trucking company that did not want its name publicized agreed to haul the first load without charge. Two trailers picked up the tile in October.

To ready the tiles for shipping, three workers at Artistic’s distribution center spent three days repacking the first 47,600 pounds of tile. The tiles were sorted, crated and shrink-wrapped and filled a couple of dozen pallets. “We want to make sure it goes to a good place,” said Gerard Esmail, the operations manager of Artistic’s warehouse.

Mr. Eisemann and Mr. Cramer are now focused on making sure the remaining two-thirds of the tiles end up in New Orleans.

“It seems like it’s been a really long haul, making hundreds of phone calls and e-mails and putting details together,” Mr. Eisemann said. “But big dreams cost the same amount of money as small ones, so dream big.”



Thousands of thanks to these wonderful, caring people.

Finally....

1,195 days after Katrina:

From the A.P.:

Work begins on a 2-mile-long floodwall across canals that funneled Hurricane Katrina's storm surge into New Orleans and St. Bernard Parish.

The Army Corps of Engineers scheduled groundbreaking today for the $695 million barrier across the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway and the Mississippi River-Gulf Outlet.

It's meant to keep storm surge out of the gulf outlet and the Inner Harbor Navigation Canal, which runs into the Intracoastal Waterway.


graphic from the New York Times

During Katrina, the navigation canal carried storm surge into the 9th Ward, washing houses from their foundations. The gulf outlet is blamed for flooding in St. Bernard Parish and eastern New Orleans.



The corps calls it the largest design-build civil works project in its history.

The gulf outlet will be closed; wide gates will let shipping through the Intracoastal Waterway.

Preservation

Karen Gadbois at Squandered Heritage dot com posts about preservation in the light of "the powers that be" decision to build new LSU/VA hosptial over taking what's already in place and rehabilitating that.




These past months as the drone of process took place many of us knew that the day would come when the decision for the LSU/VA hospital would be made public. We knew the day was coming and we knew the endless processes and procedures that took place would have little to no impact on a decision that was made outside of the realm of public input. We were entertained, we were placated and we were lied to. But in the end those decisions were not ours to make for ourselves. The public realm, the private property and the fate of a neighborhood fell to those who will not show their faces, those who seek to make careers, not communities.

Mark over at Toulouse Street holds the opinion that quite a few in New Orleans share:


the announcement that our Betters have come to a decision on building a new hospital complex downtown. Rather than take the advice of the citizens to rehab the historic Charity complex (and some some loot to boot), or perhaps to take the idle ruin of old Lindy Boggs/Mercy Hospital in my own neighborhood of Mid-City, they will instead demolish an entire neighborhood of hundreds of homes in lower Mid-City to build their bio-science field of dreams.

One ignored side effect of this is that the area where I worked for the last year-and-a-half, the north side of the Central Business District, will remain mostly a ghost town of abandoned commercial buildings. All that is needed to complete the hair-brained scheme to convert downtown into some sort of condominium time-share hell is the other bright idea of our recovery leaders to move the civil district courts into the criminal justice complex down Tulane Avenue (adjacent to the new Hospital World), leaving the city’s commercial center a whistling ghost town.

The decision is wrong. Make your voice count and use the link below to
send a letter to the Governor, the Secretary of Health & Hospitals and the Secretary of Veterans affairs via the National Trust for Historic Places website

From their website

"The National Trust for Historic Preservation views this decision as a serious error, as better alternatives that would save the neighborhood around the hospital are available"


Sign the letter at this website and pass this on. It's important.

Kudos to St. Bernard Project

Liz McCartney, dedicated to helping survivors of Hurricane Katrina rebuild their homes, was named 2008 CNN Hero of the Year.



The St. Bernard Project has rebuilt the homes of more than 120 families for free. St. Bernard Parish was leveled after a 20 foot storm surge roared up the MRGO and flooded and destroyed nearly everything.

McCartney, who will receive $100,000 to continue her work, was selected from among the top 10 CNN Heroes after six weeks of online voting at CNN.com. More than 1 million votes were cast.

Here's the background on Liz and her partner Zack:

Scuzzbucket of the Week

Walter Block, who holds the economics chair at Loyola, delivered a lecture a couple of weeks ago at the namesake college in Baltimore on why women get paid a lot less than men and bump into a "glass ceiling."



His conclusion was that women are less productive.

During question time, someone asked why blacks get paid a lot less than whites.

The explanation was the same.

The way Block sees it, women's intellects cluster around the mean, while men dominate the high and the low ends of the spectrum. Thus, while women are much less likely to wind up in prison, an early grave or sleeping on the streets, they are also much less likely to win a Nobel Prize -- except for "wussy stuff like poetry" -- or rise to the top of a corporation.

The entire article can be read at the link above.

Fort Pike Update

I got an email recently from someone who is working on cleaning up historic Fort Pike.
The Fort reopened 2 and 1/2 years after Katrina but was closed again this past September as a result of the impacts of the 2008 hurricane season.

Hurricanes Gustav and Ike caused just as much damage to the Fort as the 2005 season. It is currently closed due to clean up efforts, but should reopen by the start of 2009 season.

Here are some recent pictures showing what Gustav and Ike did to the Fort.
click on pictures for larger versions






Note the marsh grass washed in from the storms.






Here is a photo of the old Rigolets Bridge



And here's a picture of its demolition





This is the bridge that replaced the old, narrow bridge.



The view from the top is very nice. That coming from someone that's afraid of heights. I'd love to be able to stop at the top and look around someday.

Tagged

Swampwoman over at the Mosquito Coast said she usually trashes emails with tags but is playing this time. And she tagged me. So, in that same spirit I'll play along.

Here are the rules:
1. Link to the person who tagged you.
2. Post the rules on your blog.
3. Write six random things about yourself.
4. Tag six people at the end of your post and link to them.
5. Let each person know they’ve been tagged and leave a comment on their blog.
6. Let the tagger know when your entry is up.



Okay, here are six random things about me:

1.) I'm left handed

2.) Hubby and I share the house with five (count em) felines

3.) I prefer boiled crabs over crawfish

4.) Born a yankee, I've spent more years of my life in S.E. Louisiana than my home state of Massachusetts.

5.) I will never get over my insane fear of cockroaches, dead or alive.

6.) I taught myself html when I quit smoking 10 years ago.

Here are the six bloggers I've tagged:

Wendy at Bayouwoman

Vicky Moos

Slimbolala

Adrienne over at After Katrina

Howie over at Howieluvzus

Greta from Kiss My Gumbo

Camellia City Market

Earlier this year I posted about Slidell's first Farmers' Market opening
after years of the city's residents resorting to travelling elsewhere for fresh produce.



Since its birth in April of this year, the Camellia City Market has grown and is still branching out.

In July of this year the market hosted its first live cooking demonstration
with Slidell native John Besh.



Hubby and I visited the market yesterday in search for wonderful Mediterranean food
from Pinnur Foods.



And we found it!

Lucky for us there was another cooking demonstration starting just as we arrived. The chef this week was Chef Scott Esteve from Abita Springs' Camellia Cafe. He was preparing oyster dressing. It was delicious.

We spoke with the people who run the Farmer's Market and they mentioned that they will have a cooking demonstration by the Redfish Grill in New Orleans. They'll be doing jumbo lumb crab cakes. I'll definitely be there.

On December 13th the market will be offering cookbooks signed by one of my favorite Louisiana cooks Marcelle Bienvenu and Judy Walker from the Times Picayune.



The cookbook being offered is "Cooking Up a Storm: Recipes for Recovery From The Times-Picayune of New Orleans" and has 250 favorite authentic recipes from home cooks, restaurants and chefs, and tells the stories of those who lost the recipes and those who shared them so generously.

So if you're in the Slidell area on a Saturday morning, make the effort to visit the Camellia City Market from 8 am to 1 pm. It's worth the trip.

Rebirth on the coast

The Gulf Coast of Mississippi to a brutal beating from Katrina.

I posted last year about a Mississippi artist who has created some heartwarming art using dead oak trees along Highway 90 in Gulfport/Biloxi as his canvas and a chainsaw as his brush.

We recently took a ride out to the coast to see how things are progressing and found some new works of the chainsaw artist Dayton Scoggin. Called Hurricane Katrina Beautifucation Project he has works placed in Biloxi, Gulfport, and Long Beach centered in the medians and in the Parks.

Here are pictures of what we found.
click on pictures for larger versions








We looked in the grass to find this owl's lost eye, but didn't find it.
:)








this picture warms my heart because you can see growth from what was thougth to be a dead tree at the base of the pelican.

West Bay Diversion

From a Gambit piece in the November 18th issue regarding the West Bay Diversion project


The Corps' attempt to dodge financial responsibility for dredging is another example of its egregious indifference toward Louisiana's — and the nation's — environmental plight. Moreover, the Breaux Act was passed to create, protect and restore Louisiana's coastal wetlands — not improve navigation.

Garret Graves, director of the Governor's Office on Coastal Activities and a nonvoting member of the task force, says the state will pay for the dredging in the short term to keep the West Bay project going. He adds that the Corps should revisit the idea of balancing navigation, flood control and coastal restoration. Like Nungesser, Graves is interested in solutions, and the West Bay diversion is part of the solution to coastal wetland loss. Graves reports that the project produces 3.7 million tons of sediment a year — sediment that builds protective wetlands rather than clogs shipping channels, which the Corps otherwise would have to dredge. According to Harrison of the Environmental Defense Fund, when the Corps dredges a navigational channel, 80 percent of the material is either pumped or dumped into the Gulf of Mexico.

The diversion thus saves money, because it uses sediment productively rather than requiring expensive dredging to expel it from shipping channels and dump it into the Outer Continental Shelf. The Water Resources Development Act of 2007 directed the Corps to implement a program for the beneficial use of dredge material and authorized $100 million for the project. Is there anything more beneficial than using sediment to restore wetlands — while saving the federal treasury money on dredging? "If done properly, [diversion projects] benefit navigation and that is the whole point of an integrated coastal program," Graves says.

Amen


image from Environmental Health Perspectives website

2nd Annual PoBoy Festival

Sunday, November 23, 2008: 12 noon - 6:00pm
Oak Street at South Carrollton

The 2008 New Orleans Po-Boy Preservation Festival will feature two stages with live music, arts and crafts, a silent auction, a children’s section with games and prizes, a "Corner Grocery Photo Experience" photo booth, panel discussions covering the history of the po-boy (starting at 11:00 a.m.) and, of course, the best tasting po-boys in New Orleans.


Food Vendors



Art Vendors



Music Schedule

Big Oil & Our Wetlands

In a video by WWL TV Dennis Woltering talks about the destruction of Louisiana wetlands in LaFouche, Terrebone and Plaquemine parishes by big oil and the Army Corps of Engineers.

The Final Blow

Cliff writes about the loss of his Ninth Ward home and the history it had three years after Katrina.

Schroeder says it all

Schroeder says it one hundred times better than I could ever have regarding the recent flare up between New Orleans Councilperson Stacey Head and Veronica "Whitney Houston wannabe" White.



Here's the video of Nagin discussing how he and Council president Jackie "Brownnose" Clarkson made things better

Here's a niblet of Schroeder's reaction


Ray Nagin is a freaking idiot! The man is a pandering racist himself! Just pull out that race card anytime you’re being scrutinized for ripping off the taxpayers.

Oh, and thank you, Jackie. You have about as much spine as a steaming colostomy bag. This ain’t a social. It’s about the taxpayers of New Orleans getting ripped off and shit on by a feckless, incompetent, stubborn, worthless man who enjoys the privileges of the office of mayor, without any of the responsibility or accountability.



On the subject of Mz White, Big Red Cotton says it all

Eli links to a petition to dismiss Veronica White here

Scuzzbuckets of the Week

The teachers and administrators in St. Tammany Parish who either refused to let students discuss Obama's victory or gave kids some bogus information
From the link above:


Many students said teachers displayed a clear political bias, and praised McCain in class while making disparaging remarks about the president-elect. Brandy Welch, a black eighth-grader at Slidell Junior High, said one of her teachers said that "Obama's not even from this country and that McCain is a war hero."

In some cases, students said they were threatened with punishment if they talked about the election.

"She said that if we did talk about (the election) she'd write us up, " 14 year-old Briana Seals, who is black, said of a teacher at Slidell Junior High School

Rachel Weaver, a senior at Northshore High School in Slidell and a white Obama supporter, said teacher and peer bias made her reluctant to voice her opinions. Some students used racial slurs to refer to the president-elect and her American history teacher simply ignored the election, Weaver said.

Makes me ill and happy that my daughter is no longer a part of this school system.

New BBQ for Slidell

We discovered a fantastic BBQ place in Slidell. Called Taste E Bones, their pulled pork sandwich (served on ciabatta bread) is fantastic.

Click here for their menu

New Orleans East Wetlands

Recently we took a trip down to Highway 90 in New Orleans East.

click photo's for full size versions



I drive some of Highway 90 going to and from work at the spaceship factory. Every day I notice how much damage the wetlands have suffered since Katrina. And the trees. Katrina killed thousands and thousands of trees .

For miles going east, away from New Orleans, this is the sight







This part of the swamps faces Lake Borgne, a lagoon in eastern Louisiana of the Gulf of Mexico. Due to coastal erosion, it is no longer actually a lake but rather an arm of the Gulf of Mexico. Its name comes from the French word borgne, which means "one-eyed".



Before Katrina, the trees in the photos above hid all of the wetlands you see past the dead trees. A good number of these trees were killed by saltwater intrusion created by Katrina's huge storm surge.

While we were snapping photos along Highway 90 near Powers Junction, when we discovered that a leg of Bayou Sauvage Wildlife Refuge was open once again to the public.



Different from the Refuge Boardwalk a mile or so up the road , the Madere has a boatlaunch and a short boardwalk that transports you from the traffic noise from Highway 90 into what seems like the heart of a bayou.





There are so many channels that you can canoe out to to do some serious wildlife watching.











For more info on Bayou Sauvage National Wildlife Refuge Click here