Big FUN in Cincinnati with Bro and Nieces....(and Great Nieces and Nephews)

Well, gang....it's been a real whirlwind since I touched down on Thursday the 17th-

Been having big fun with my brother, Ric.

Thought that I'd post pictures with stories behind them in the next post....

BTW: Ric ordered snow for my visit, and we've got it... what fun!

Saints are Thirteeneneaux! Christmas Party, Acme, Weekend in Poplarville

Hi gang.....

Had a great week- On Thursday, Carmella did my hair, and then we headed to ACME OYSTER HOUSE http://www.acmeoyster.com/ We bellied up to the raw bar, made friends with a couple shuckers and stuffed ourselves on raw oysters. I probably had a dozen. Carmella had at least 2 dozen. Had a couple beers to wash 'em down with. Good times!!! Did a little shopping at Steinmart (Carmella has become a terrible influence on me!).

On Friday night, the Gatehouse (our apartment complex) had their annual Christmas party. Man, they sure had a spread of food. On our way out, management insisted that we load up styrofoam go-boxes with chicken wings and mini muffalettas.... made for great football snacking!

Headed to Poplarville on Saturday morning. It rained like hell. It's a good thing that we took both cars.... this joint became flooded.... 7 inches of water dropped here. My car would have been under water.

An amusing story.... someone called into a local radio show saying that he had stalled out 1 block from here. (West Napolean and Severn area). As he was trying to push his car onto high ground, a 7 foot long alligator swam nearby!!! Would that freak you out, or what? Only in New Orleans!

Rains ended on Sunday morning, but nothing dried up.... very damp. Our ground is completely saturated. Enjoyed watching the Saints go 13-0. Very exciting game, as they have been the last several weeks.

Woke up this morning with the intentions of leaving my car in MS. Wrong. Dom's truck wouldn't start.... he was just bragging about how dependable the thing is and that he never has problems with it. Go figure!

Had to swing into Tulane for bloodwork, the drug store, and then Lakeside. I had a bug up my ass.... I needed another pair of "Extreme Skinny" jeans. Got a pair of grey ones.... to find that they were buy one, get one 50% Off.... I'd just bought a pair of black ones last week. Grrrrrr!

Sat at the bar at PF Changs http://www.pfchangs.com/index.aspx Enjoyed egg rolls and a monster bowl of Won Ton Soup.

Heading to the attorney's office in Slidell for some paperwork, then off to the Biloxi VA Hospital for our appointment with Dom's VA Oncologist..... Dr. Ginger Rogers. Love it! Love her, too!

Time is FLYING.....

Hi gang-

All is well in Metairie/Poplarville. Been busy, busy, busy.

Sunday was a day full of football. My beloved Saints went 12-0 !!!! Lucky 13 coming up this Sunday.

Ventured into Sli-Dull on Monday. Spent some time with an attorney to open up "succession" of Mrs. M's estate. (probate). Went to the Rivershack on the way home to Metairie. Man, I LOVE that joint! I got a great cheeseburger and Dom had Red Beans and Rice served with a grilled chicken breast and nice little salad.

On Tuesday, Dom stayed busy on the phone with mom matters, I took off with Carmella for the day. That broad is the BEST shopper that I know! We braved Lakeside Shopping Center and had a marathon shopping day. Sweaters, great boots, "extreme skinny" jeans.... she picked out EACH one of my purchases. I probably would have walked out of there with nothing if I was on my own!

We went into PF Changs after shopping. Sat at the bar. Neat, neat place. We each had 2 bottles of beer, split an order of egg rolls and a "bowl" (picture a mixing bowl) of Won Ton Soup. Shrimp, chicken, water chestnuts, fresh spinach and won tons...good stuff! Walked out of there for about thirty bucks. Loved it. Too bad I'm leaving paradise soon. *pouting*

Today, I dropped Dom off at the Tulane Cancer Center. Went to the funeral home to pick up ma's ashes. (she will eventually be buried next to Dom's dad in Cleveland). I swung by an "urban" clothing store called "RAINBOW".... went NUTS.... loved the joint. I was the only white broad in the place. LOL. Walked out with a winter jacket, hot boots and a pair of leggings for 60 bucks.

Headed back to the Cancer Center to find that Dom was still waiting for his infusion..... they needed to check his bloodwork before administering any medicine. For months, he's had a monthly 2 hour drip of "Aredia".... (Think BONIVA, but 1000 times stronger). Today, they switched him to "Zometa", which is the same family of drugs, but only a 15 minute infusion. As it was, he was there for 4 long hours.

Having my hair done tomorrow (Carmella), and then the 2 of us are going out for a bite to eat.

Our apartment complex is having a Christmas Party with catered seafood on Friday. From what I've been told, it's something else. Looking forward to it.

Heading to Poplarville on Sat. morning for a couple of nights.

I'll say goodbye to Dom and this wonderful apartment on Thursday morning, as I'll be flying to Cincinnati to spend Christmas and New Years with my brother. Ahhhh, it's been a helluva neat place to live for 6 months! Feels bittersweet.

Terrebonne Parish Road Trip...or as Beth would say....STUPID COCODRIE

The usual suspects took Airline Hwy to Gramercy and crossed over the river via the Veterans Memorial Bridge.

Headed to Thibodaux via Chackbay and stopped for lattes at a Starbucks.

Stopped at the Mt. Olive Baptist Church in Schriever. Not much to look at. Catholic cemeteries are much more interesting... more BLING!

Continued South through Bayou Cane to Houma. Hopped on Hwy 56 and ran into a little joint in Point aux Chenes.... it was apparent that we weren't in New Orleans anymore... Cajun music playing, wonderful cajun food.... the place smelled heavenly.

Stopped at the St. Elie Catholic Cemetery circa 1846. Was delighted to find a lone CSA (Confederate States of America) gravesite.

Crossed Hwy 58 to Montegut and drove South along Bayou Terrebonne to Dugas Cemetery... circa 1700s.

Back up to 58, headed West to 56. Drove South through Chauvin along Bayou Terrebonne. Drove along Lake Boudreaux and found the highlight of the day- The Elpege Picou Cemetery which was built on an Indian Mound from 1000 AD. Was delighted to see another Civil War grave.

A little history..... I had always assumed that Indian Mounds were burial grounds... and held some type of spiritual meaning. I found it creepy that graves would be put on these mounds. Not so- The Indian Mounds were basically garbage dumps.... oyster shells, old tools, broken pottery, etc. Eventually the elevated area was used to escape high water and also as an enemy look-out. History lesson over.

Continued South all the way to Cocodrie. Cocodrie translates to “crocodile”. There aren't any crocs here.... just alligators.... Henry (who knows EVERYTHING!) sez: “ I'm guessing the early explorers called 'gators "cocodrie" because that's what they were familiar with. They also thought raccoons were cats and to this day in Cajun raccoon is chaoui (chat, oui? Cat, yes? LOL)” BTW: Whatever he doesn't know, he lies about. Man, that dude is smooth!

From there, took a beautiful winding ride across Grassy Bayou Marsh to Dulac. Passed an occasional pirogue, but basically had the road, Hwy 57, to ourselves. Headed North to Dulac, riding along the other side of Lake Boudreaux.

Stopped at the Holy Family Catholic Church in Grand Caillou. I think that Grand Caillou translates to “Big Pebble”. There was a gorgeous tomb here. Handcut in the granite was a depiction of the Last Supper. It was painted in Ceramics and baked on. Beautiful, bright and colorful. Have never seen anything like it.

Back up to Houma taking Hwy 24 to Thibodaux. The joint that we wanted to eat at wasn't open until 5pm, so we ended up back at Spahr's. Good stuff. Good company. Great fun After lunch, we stopped at the Jean Lafitte National Park and Preserve.... got a kick out of the aggressive ducks. Nice spot.

On the way home, we stopped at a bar in Chackbay. They had a lemon tree that was loaded with huge fruit. The owner had told Beth last year that she could take as many as she could carry out of there. Unfortunately, the owner was not in. Beth wouldn't take 'em. Dunno who's more honorable....Beth or Henry. Hope that shit doesn't rub off on me! *Smiling*

Dropped Beth off, then Henry and I took our usual “long cut” home along River Road and the Bonnet Carre Spillway. Had a delightful day!

St Elie Cemetery 1846 and Dugas Cemetery 1700s