George Harrison and a Night among the Cactus

The Louisiana Diaries: hits the pool in time to hear Billy Preston play 'Go Round in Circles' or some such title and instantly transported to Tuscon circa 1974 to see George Harrison, with Ravi Shankar, Billy Preston, RingoStar, Leon Russell....i was 16...or so...friends David Ray and Anandha Williamson ...on first date..which led to marriage and two wonderful children..Rhianna and Ashton...later split..but oh well..this is life not a fairy tale! Me, enjoyed the show then camped w friends in the Saguaro Natl Forest

Stop Bugging Me!

        The Lousiana Diares: Surrenders, to the exterminator! (Warning: This post may contain graphic descriptions of insects!). Bugs are the name of the game in these parts. Mary -- great hunter of lizards, tree frogs, toads and garden snakes - actually collects the shed skin of ciccadians (gulp). The constant exposure has eliminated any dislike I had of bugs, including spiders. (This occurred last year... during a trip to a friend's cabin in rural Texas where a very large spider had taken up residence atop the front door. We looked it up and it was harmless. The more I looked at it, the less fearful I became -- this approach seems to be akin to the exposure therapy used to help people overcome phobias).

 

       So it is with relief I now do not get excited about any insect. Now, some, including water beetles -- otherwise known as large cockroaches -- do get killed -- squashed that is, if necessary. But them, like some spiders, leave such a mess that it's easier to grab a pile of papertowel and MOVE offending invader outdoors (fortunately, we rarely find water beetles, unless dead in the morning after the cats have played with it all night). 

 

       We have even taken to gently moving crickets that find their way in and the occasional spider. But the countless spider webs I remove off the back walls of the house and the near constant small spider stomping has gotten to me. I have finally called in an exterminator to spray house and to come back on a quarterly basis. I may not be afraid anymore, but time to boot them all out!

Happy Birthday Louisiana!

The Louisiana Diaries: One big bicentennial. As I have learned, it is incorrect to include Louisiana when speaking of 'the South.' It is 'mid-south' as my girls learned in school and has its own heritage and distinct history. According to a story in yesterday's The Daily Advertiser, when 'officials from the United States arrived in the newly acquired Louisiana in 1804 to consider the area for statehood, they found a bewildering landscape vastly different from the New England countryside . . . the federal group found a population made-up almost entirely of French-speakers, a third of whom were free people of color." It wasn't until eight years later, on the eve of the War of 1812 that Louisiana became a state. "Under the Louisiana Purchase, negotiated with the French Emperor Napoleon in 1803, all citizens of France in the territory were to retain the rights and privileges they enjoyed before the purchase. For the free blacks, who migrated heavily to the area from the caribbean, that meant equal rights with whites. In the other 17 states, free blacks often didn't enjoy such rights." Happy statehood Louisiana!

 

The Louisiana Diaries: The Spring Doldrums: The kids are off for the entire week, creating something of an unexpected void. Most of our friends have fled to the beaches of Florida (a mere six hour drive away!) or to DisneyWorld. Travel habits formed from years of living here. Us, we think this IS as good as the beach, our mid-80's weather and soft breezes. Alaskans are easy to please, weather wis...e. We had thought of driving to Houston to see friends there (three hours away); or Dallas (five hours) or even NOLA (two hours). Or heck, Baton Rouge to check out their zoo (one hour). But my brother, John Rich, happily is in Louisiana this week training in Huoma (one hour away) for his new job with Haliburton and a station post in Brazil (he works one month on; one month off; lives in Alaska with beautiful family, wife and three children). So we want to see him and thus are staying put. Meanwhile, clubhouse pool not yet open, so we bought a slip 'n slide and have come up with some easy water fun. That, and finishing up the Easter candy, fills these lazy days . . .

One baby possum!

The Louisiana Diaries: A tale of one kitty and other critters. Today, while looking out over the backyard, I saw something rolling in some leaves. At first, I thought it was some kind of toad. Then I realized it was a small critter of some kind, like a mouse. I ventured out, figuring it would run away. But it didn't. It was a newborn possum, eyes still closed, but covered in fur, struggling to sta...nd. Fearing for it certain death, I scooped it up, brought inside, took picture, then placed in bucket, and wrapped it in small, soft towel. Then I called our vet who said they knew of a woman who rehabilitated abandoned possums. Am waiting her phone number. Meanwhile, looked up on the care of baby possums (who do NOT make good pets) and did the right thing by creating a 'pocket' for it. Awaiting feeding instructions and, of course, the girls to come home from school and go nuts over this cute, tiny creature. I need to go back to the land of ice and snow where the chance of finding an abandoned, say, brown bear, are remote!

A Tale of One Kitty

The Louisiana Diaries: A tale of one kitty and other critters, Part 1. Of late, we have been feeding a wild kitten (about 8-10 months old). Starting far away, we eventually moved the bowl to our back deck and only inches from our back door. Kitty followed the food. Kitty now appears to be living in our yard, hanging out quite often in various areas of our large yard, filled with many bushes and trees and lots of hiding places. So far, kitty is too shy to pet, but occasionally she will hang out on the deck and groom herself and look at us as if to say, "You guys are alright but I'm NOT coming in the house!"

The Louisiana Diaries: Loss of a teen idol

      The Louisiana Diaries

       Loss of a teen idol

       March 1, 2012   

 

 

         The Louisiana Diaries: Still mourns death of Monkee Davy Jones. Probably loss of youth; days gone by and first crushes! When I played a Youtube video of the band for my daughter Mary, her response: "They have too much hair!" Whatever happened to TV teen idol, Bobby Sherman? A dear friend in LA is friends with former Monkee Peter Tork! There goes those seven degrees of separation . . . in the mea...ntime, every bush is blooming here in Louisiana . . . every bush is a shock of brilliant fuschia, pink, white . . . I have never seen such an explosion of color and flowers . . . my house has dozens of said bushes and I had no idea they could be anything but green. Spring is the time to visit! Jazz Fest in NOLA end of April/first week of May (have some good Alaska friends headed that way for Bruce Springsteen! Me, too!). At the same time, Lafayette hosts one of the world's top free festivals -- Festival Internationale -- a four day extravaganza of music from all over the world . . . in other interesting Louisiana tidbits, Louisiana ranks THIRD in movie production, behind California and New York. I'm headed to NOLA to see if I can catch a glimpse of Brad Pitt . . . :) . . .