Musings from some former inhabitants of the sprawling metropolis that is Prudhomme City

Sunday, September 21, 2008

Cajun Football 2008: Let's Get This Party Started!

by CajunKate

So I waited until today to put up my Cajun home opener post because I thought it was a perfectly fitting way to celebrate the Prudhomme City Chronicle's one year anniversary...blogaversary... whatever. The very first post ever was about Ragin Cajun football. What better way to celebrate than with a Ragin Cajun football post? Well, I'll tell you. With a Ragin Cajun football post that actually involves them winning a game! Here we go:

The Cajuns finally had their first home game Saturday night which means the Krewe de Chew was kicking off the tailgating season, of course. The Cajuns were 0-2 heading into the game against the Kent State Golden Flashes, but we were all pretty optimistic since the Cajuns had given #22 Illinois a run for their money the weekend previous. Also, I knew there would be lots and lots of alcohol and food. That always eases my pain.

Alex and I ended up having to park on the other side of the universe and humping it with two folding chairs and the rolling cooler all the way to the Krewe site. As we neared the tent, we ran into BDaigle's best friend, Elliot, who is the proud papa of the most deliciously cute nine-month-old identical twins. I dare you to look at those two cutie patooties and not want to inhale them!


Elliot with his boys

Jack on the left and Noah on the right

Obviously, Jack was supposed to be MY baby. I mean, look how excited that baby is at the sight of cold beer! I think the stork took a wrong turn.


I also ran around taking other pictures.

Zandy gettin' his grub on

The Grand Chew just chillin'

Kent State athletic directors and Dad

Love it! Want it!
James, sporting a blond wig and resultant mullet

Ben doin' the Roosta Dance with hat, Delcambre Reeboks, and bag of chicken feed. He really took it to a new level this year. Don't know what the Roosta Dance is? Watch the video below:



I guess I was so distracted by drinking, eating, and taking photos that I failed to notice the skies growing darker and darker. I should have known it was bound to rain. The fact that the Cajuns were playing a home football game should have been a major tip off. Once the skies opened up, we were stuck under the tents for a good forty-five minutes, trapped by pouring rain, lightning, and thunder. But we all found ways to cope. I, for example, drank a lot of beer. Others had their own ways of dealing with the inclement weather.

Some went about their business- weather be damned!

Some, like Jim, used it as a chance to check out the fancy new game programs

Some just embraced the downpour and frolicked

Some had the foresight to realize it would rain and brought along the slip and slide!

Toward the end of the rain storm, Mr. Randy asked for a volunteer to stay out at the tents with all the stuff so we wouldn't have to pack it all up before going into the game. I knew I didn't feel like sitting in the game if it was going to be raining, so I convinced Alex that it was our good deed of the week to sit at the tent and play rent-a-cop. The rain had slackened off so before going "on duty" , I dragged Alex around the tailgating area to see who and what had survived.

Perfect mix of patriotism and Cajuns pride

We ran across the Animal House Kappa Alpha tent where the members had decided to set up...

this handy dandy tailgating pool!

The weather just before game time was still icky.

But it wasn't stopping the Cajun faithful from lining up to get in.

Shortly after everyone else had left for the game, a big guy and four pretty young girls (all of them decked out in Cajuns gear) rolled up to the Krewe's site in a golf cart. I had no idea who the guys was and, in an embarrassing mix of my R.S.S.D. (Retard in Socila Situations Disease), overzealous security guard mentality, and complete lack of observational powers, when he walked up to me, I was all up in his grill. Our conversation went like this:
Him: Hi! I was told my girls could come by and get something to eat.
Me: Who told you that?
Him: Uh...(snapping fingers)..Mister..uh...I can't remember his name. An older gentleman.
Me: (glaring suspiciously)
Him: I promise I'm telling the truth. Well, I'm Scot Weiland the women's soccer coach, and...
Me: (suddenly engaging my few remaining brain cells) OH MY GOD! I am sooooooooooooo sorry! Of course, of course, you are! And of course, of course, the girls can eat anything...everything! I am sooooooooooooo sorry!
Him: Oh, that's okay! Girls, why don't you all fix a plate?

Needless to say, I was falling all over myself offering the poor girls food and drinks. Did I mention these girls hustled their rear ends walking the tailgating area in the sun and then rain selling game programs? Coach Weiland left to gather more girls while I trailed behind him apologizing a few more times for being an *sshole. before the first round of girls left, I took their pic.


A few more rounds of girls came through, and Coach Weiland passed by to thank us again. Of course, Alex took the chance to point out things like, "Why did you think he was driving a golf cart? Didn't you notice they were all in Cajuns stuff? You know your Dad invites all the coaches and athletes by the tent to eat!" Yes, yes, Mr. SmartyPants, and where were you and your stunningly calm logic when I needed you?!?

The only problem with sitting out at the tent was that we had no radio, so I kept sneaking over to a nearby truck and eavesdropping. By the end of the first quarter, Alex and I were aware that the Cajuns were down 10-3. Matt and Patrice showed at the end of the first quarter to grab more liquor, and then a bit later Byron came by to do the same. They all ended up staying outside with us, drinking and whooping it up while periodically walking over to catch the score from the truck people's radio. At halftime the Cajuns were up, and early in the third quarter the truck people left, so Alex and I traversed the universe to get our car and pull it up to the Krewe site so we could listen to the game. In the car, on the way back to the site, Jason Chery ran 47 yards to score a touchdown, and I screamed so loudly Alex said I may have ruptured his eardrum. Whoopsie!

After that it was smooth sailing for the Cajuns, and the game was theirs! Final score was Cajuns 44 and Golden Fizzles 27! The rest of the Krewe returned to the site to find our little band of Cajun merry-makers drunk and happy, and then we all got the party started again.


It was a great start the tailgating season and a fantastic home opener for the Cajuns. Next week the Cajuns take on Kansas State Wildcats up in Manhattan, Kansas. Which begs the question- Where was O.J. hiding right before the famous white Bronco chase? On the Kansas State University campus. That's the last place you would find a football player. Har-de-har-har and geaux Cajuns beat the Wildcats!

Tuesday, September 16, 2008

How You Do, Eliza Camille?

by CajunKate


(Note: The title of this post is a little nod to Eliza Camille's Cajun heritage. In Cajun country, "Hey! How you do?" is the equivalent of "Hi! How are you?")

So on Sunday the 'rents and I made our way down to NOLA to take a gander at the Zah-Zah. Finally! and Hallelujah! The trip down was fairly uneventful. This was mostly due to the fact that the Mayor and First Lady had treated me to the breakfast buffet at Shoney's, so I was lolling around in the back seat in food coma.

The Texas bound lanes of I-10 were jam packed with Hurricane Ike traffic: returning evacuees, military convoys, electrical company trucks, tree removal company trucks, flat bed trailers filled with industrial generators, Red Cross vehicles, and Salvation Army vans. You could almost hear the collective sigh of NOLAites and a chorus of "Better you than me!" aimed at Houstonians. The east bound lane was clear sailing with a bit of heavy traffic in Baton Rouge. I should have recognized the lack of traffic jams in BR for the bad omen that it was. More on that later.


We arrived at Eliza's new home at about 2:00 PM. Of course, we came bearing gifts. Onesies? Pacifiers? Diapers? Hell no! We're Cajuns! We brought boudin and cracklins from Best Stop in Scott, and I brought one of my signature cakes and one of Melissa's favorites, a chocolate pistachio cake. (All requested by Melissa, I might add. This is what happens when a NOLA girl meets a Cajun boy, people.)


From across the street, I spied a sign on the door. I couldn't see what it said exactly. But it had large red print, and I could make out the word "NO." Upon closer inspection the entire message red "NO flash photography! (Violators will be forced to change newborn diapers!)" Har-de-har-har, BDaigle! You'd think the boy would be so exhausted he wouldn't have time to make signs to harrass his favorite sister. Little brothers, hmmph! They grow up, but they still find time and ways to get back at you for treating them as your living baby doll. Can I help it that he came along when I was eight and at the height of my baby doll obsession?


And now, the photo essay!

Eliza Camille was sleepin' and swingin'' when we arrived.

I defy you to resist the urge to devour her whole!

I probably lasted about 6.7 seconds before I was all, "Alright! How do I get my babay out of this swing contraption so I can hold her?" I distinctly remember heading toward the door with my delicious new babay while calling out, "Okay! See you guys later!" but, alas, Melissa insisted that I couldn't take Eliza home with me. What is she? Like her mother or something? Oh...darn.

Eventually, I begrudgingly relinquished Eliza to her Ma-Mere. These people and their outrageous demands, I tell ya.

Oh no, Miss Eliza. Those Ma-Mere boobs you seem to be gazing upon so longingly are long, long closed for business, hon.

Somehow Pa-Pere managed to elbow me aside to get in some face time. The nerve!

Oh-duh-lay! Look at my most precious yummy baby on my lap! (I want to kiss the computer screen right now!)

Miss Eliza awake and in her papa's arms

I think she's looking for me. Absolutely, she's looking for her most favoritest aunt EVER! (Yeah, that's right! I said it! Take that, Aunt Michelle and Aunt Kim!)

Yummy babay! Ripe for eating up with kisses!

Not a happy camper! At this point, I remembered...

"Oh, yeah! I don't have kids because they eventually do THIS!"

All good things must come to an end, and so at about 4:30 PM, we headed out. I convinced Dad to let me drive, so he could get in an after-baby nap. On the way home, Tim and Jen began texting me and letting me know that the remnants of Ike were wreaking havoc on the greater Columbus area- terrible wind, downed trees, electricity out. Of course, I texted back a snarky, "HA! Enjoy your Ike, suckers!" (It's all done out of love, people.)

The drive home was going just swimmingly...then we ran into downpours from a cold front. Then we got to Baton Rouge. Then we came to a DEAD stop. ("Ah, yes! Now THIS is the Baton Rouge I know and hate!" I think was my exact thought.) The only good thing about the situation was that we were in the one area of Baton Rouge that I am actually familiar with, and so I was able to navigate us to the alternate route of Highway 190. Our little delay and re-routing added TWO hours to the return trip.

As we bore down on Lafayette, Dad asked if we'd like to stop and eat at Prejean's. This sounded like a fine idea to me, not only because Prejean's is consistently delicious, but because they had what I really, really needed- MERLOT! Yep, my butt had barely grazed the seat before I was yelling out to the waitress, "Hey there, glass of Merlot, please! And keep 'em comin'!" Have I mentioned that driving through Baton Rouge, and more specifically the LSU campus, in a downpour to escape an epic traffic jam made me a wee bit grumpy? A teensy bit pissy? Well, Merlot cures aaaaallllll of that!

Which brings us to the moral of this post- I have so much wisdom to bestow upon Eliza Camille, not the least of which is the POWER of Merlot! Although I might be better off starting with something else...I mean, I'm just thinking aloud here, but babies don't drink, right? Maybe I better let Melissa and Burt take care of that whole "raising a baby" thing after all.

Saturday, September 13, 2008

Ike Blows

by CajunKate

So I thought I'd post some video of the wind here in Lafayette from Hurricane Ike. I shot this in my backyard. You can compare it to the video I took during Hurricane Gustav. If you are wondering what that lattice thing is in the middle of the yard, it's the trellis for Alex's garden, which is in pretty bad shape due to all the bad weather we've had.


Ike Update

by CajunKate

So last night was pretty worrisome until about 10:30 PM. Thankfully, although we've been under a tornado watch, there have been no warnings for our area today. The wind is still kickin' it pretty good right now, but nothing like Gustav. We haven't had much rain at all. Even last night, the storms were traveling so quickly that they didn't have time to dump much rain on us.

Mom and Dad went up to Hattiesburg, Mississippi, because they were afraid they'd lose power, and Gwen don't do September heat with no A.C. But they spoke to their neighbor this morning, and they never lost power in Prudhomme City, so they're planning to head back today.

The weather is supposed to be okay tomorrow; therefore, the plan, barring any changes in the weather forecast, is for us (me, Mom, and Dad) to head over to NOLA tomorrow so I can FINALLY get my Baby Zah-Zah nom-nom fest on! Yay! (Oh, just a warning. TONS of pics if the plan comes to fruition.)

Friday, September 12, 2008

Oh, Ike! How Do I Loathe Thee? Let Me Count the Ways!

by CajunKate

So this whole being on the east side of Hurricane Ike thing is sucking *ss! For the past two hours, the cable box has been automatically switching us to The Weather Channel becuase of tornado warnings. Thank God we don't have those freakin' sirens like they do in the MidWest, or I'd be completely flipped out right now and spending the night hiding in the bathtub under a mattress.

But let's take it one step further and top off the tornado warnings with the fact that Alex's boss called and told him to come into work because the power was out at their building. Oh, hey, yeah! That sounds awesome! Let's send my husband out into the area that was directly addressed by the local meteorologist as being "extremely dangerous" not ten minutes ago. That's greeeeeaaaaat! If not for copious amount of beer, I could very well be a full blown mess right now.

D**n you, Ike!

by CajunKate

So Hurricane Ike is making landfall in Texas, but we get to enjoy tropical storm conditions today. This prompted me to cancel my plans to go down to NOLA to see Zah-Zah (that's my nickname for Eliza). And when I say it was a difficult decision, that's an understatement. Honestly, the only reason I chose not to go is because I didn't want to end up as "that guy." You know, the one who gets blown off of the Atchafalaya Spillway into the swamp and ends up a Darwin Award winner. It just seems to be my lot in life that I have the greatest potential for things to become FUBAR instantaneously. But, man oh man, I wanted to nom-nom on my new baby Zah-Zah . Boo-hoo and woe is me!

I will try to go on Sunday, if the weather cooperates. For a storm that hasn't hit yet and isn't even hitting Louisiana, you sure are f**king up my life, Ike. I hate you!

Wednesday, September 10, 2008

Eliza's First Day Video

by BDaigle

Here is the video of Eliza's first day that I promised in yesterday's post. I had to split the video up into 2 parts because I couldn't edit it down into less than 10 minutes. This is not a documentary by any stretch of the imagination and it doesn't cover the whole day. It just covers from me announcing her birth to her first bath in the nursery. Yet, it still adds up to almost 20 minutes. She spent the rest of the day doing what newborn babies (and Fos' & Daigles) love to do....SLEEP! Now I could watch 24 hr coverage of that, but it gets old after awhile when the kid's not yours. All the video you will see was graciously shot by Aunt Michelle with my camcorder. A very big thank you to Aunt Michelle for being our videographer.

Now a very important announcement.


WARNING! WARNING! WARNING! WARNING!


The videos you are about to see contain live audio from a very excited family with its first grandchild. Their reactions, comments, and accents may induce hysterical laughter, quizzical looks, and total befuddlement. Those viewers who may be especially succeptible to vocalizing their reactions may want to watch with the door closed.


Eliza's First Day Pt. I






Eliza's First Day Pt. II



Tuesday, September 9, 2008

Eliza's Tale

by BDaigle


I am a father. That's right, read that again. A father. ME. I am a new daddy and Melissa is a new mommy. Yesterday morning at 8:45am our first child entered the world and her name is Eliza Camille. This is her story.
We checked into our hospital at 8PM on Sunday night, hoping against hope that our new baby would not have to be induced. Melissa had been dragged around the mall for two hours earlier in the day by her sister Kim in a last ditch attempt to get things moving on their own. Upon arrival at the hospital she was 3cm dilated and about 70% effaced. Things were looking good, but Melissa was still given a mild inducement and we hoped we would not need stronger drugs, because then an epidural was almost guaranteed. At this point Melissa wasn't too thrilled because the baby had to be continuously monitored and that meant having the velcro straps around her waist that she had first encountered at the hospital in Arkansas for the checkup for the ride home from Gustave. To say she loathed those straps is an understatement, but continuous monitoring is the rule when you're induced and the only way to keep the monitors on the belly is with straps. Things dragged from 9pm until about 2am and then Melissa's water broke. Things then began to progress. By 4am, she was about 5-6cm dilated. The contractions were rough, but Melissa was faring well. About this time the nurse hooked up another IV drip and we assumed it was because the first one was running out. About 20 minutes later then contractions started coming much faster and stronger with very little time in between and we thought they had really taken off for the amount she was dilated. After some investigation it was revealed the second IV was stronger inducing drugs that the nurse had hooked up with the fear that Melissa's doctor would feel she was not progressing enough and order an epidural or start thinking C-section. We informed the nurse, this was not cool and Melissa didn't want the stronger drugs and Melissa would let her know if and when Melissa did want them. With the drip stopped, the contractions became much more manageable again for Melissa, but she continued to dilate to 8cm by 7am and 80% effaced. About this time Melissa's doctor showed up and was VERY impressed to say the least. HELL, everyone was impressed. Then about 7:45, Eliza got tired of waiting and let Melissa know it was time to start pushing and then...well...it doesn't get fuzzy or hard to remember, but the simplest way to put it is that my wife is Superwoman. Or as Katy said later, "The woman was made to have a baby!" Melissa pushed out our 7.5 lb, foot & half long, baby girl without an epidural or any other pain killers. That's right...no drugs. Old school. The way they did it back in the day. Or as Melissa says, she could have just had it out in a 'cane field somewhere. I am RIDICULOUSLY proud of her. I am in TOTAL awe of her. And frankly I'm a little scared, because how do you tell the woman who gave birth to your first child, with no pain killer or artificial assistance, no? I mean, really? She was joking about how a Rolex would suffice as a nice gift and I am looking for the lowest interest rate loans I can find. It's just ridiculous if you think about it for too long. Thankfully, I am so sleep deprived I can't think straight for more than two minutes. Remember that when reading this entry. Now, on to Katy's favorite part of a blog, the photo essay!




After Melissa vocally accosted the doctor to find out the sex of our first child because he had forgotten we didn't know it beforehand, we had a baby girl...Eliza Camille. To use one of Melissa's favorite expressions this would be a picture of Eliza "fresh outta the slammer".


I couldn't get over how curious and wide open Eliza's eyes were from the moment she arrived. I know that a lot of newborns eyes are like that and why they are like that but the girl was looking around while only her head had made it out. I'm pretty sure this means I am in for a lifetime of trouble.


Eliza doesn't really like it when you try and recreate, "the slammer."

Awww, cher. Look! Its my girl and my baby girl. Yes, I am that cheesy.

These are the kind of delerious happy smiles you get after 24 hours of no sleep & 7.5 hours of labor. We could have run a marathon or passed out at that moment.

Like her mom who wants to be famous, Eliza stopped for the paparazzi in her limo on the way to the nursery.


The paparazzi...I mean Melissa's immediate family, grandmother, aunt, cousins, and best friend. Oh, did I forget to mention this is the first grandchild for Melissa's parents? Its kind of hard to tell in this picture how excited they are. I hope you people appreciate how I keep it real, because I will be reprimanded later.


I know this is absolutely narcissistic and obnoxious, but damn is our daughter the cutest ever or what?!


Melissa has an Uncle Joey and his family always had a stork they shared when he and his brothers had kids. Melissa always loved that idea. When we got home we had our very own surprise stork in the yard. If you look really hard (or blow the picture up by clicking on it) it looks as if Eliza is looking up at it with an expression that says, "I remember you!!!" (Forgive my trashy-looking yard. I haven't had time to clean up from Gustave yet.)


Now what are the chances of just having your own baby and then coming home to find someone has left another one on your doorstep? God has a cruel sense of humor sometimes I tell ya.



Eliza (now officially a day old) breaks in her new home with a serious nap. All of her naps are serious. Naps are serious business for babies.


Those are the highlights from Eliza's first day. For more pictures from her first day, check out my albums at Flickr & Photobucket:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/24174873@N04/

http://s23.photobucket.com/albums/b397/kkpsiguy/


Tomorrow, I will try to post video from Eliza's first day provided I get some sleep and can remember how to make my camera work with my laptop. Thank you to everyone for the good thoughts, wishes, and heart-felt prayers. We know God has truly blessed us and our families and we are so thankful that he answered our prayers for a safe pregnancy, delivery, birth and healthy baby. More tomorrow...




Monday, September 8, 2008

Eliza Camille Stats

by CajunKate

So I felt really bad about it, but by 9:00 PM tonight I could stand it no longer and texted BDaigle to get the particulars in Miss Eliza. Burt called me right away, and I got the goods. She weighed in at 7 lbs. 6 oz. and measured at 19 3/4 inches. I also got to speak to the "Most Awesome Mommy of Birth Ever" (or as BDaigle put it, "The Baby Whisperer"), and she sounded great. I may go down to NOLA on Friday depending on Ike and how the new 'rents are feeling. If I go, you know I will have pictures galore, but Burt is supposed to email me some before then. He also said that they may be discharged tomorrow.

Welcome to the World, Eliza Camille!

by CajunKate

So it's official! We have a girl! Miss Eliza Camille is here! Burt called me at 9:45 AM. Eliza was nursing and hadn't been down to the nursery to be weighed and measured yet, but I will update with that info as soon as he sends it to me. Also, he is supposed to send pics which I will post as well. And here's the Oh my GOD! Sista, you are my new hero! moment- she did it all without the epidural...in 7 1/2 hours...with her FIRST baby. I am in awe!

Congrats to BDaigle and Sista! I can't wait to eat me up some delicious Eliza cuteness!

Baby Daigle D-Day

by CajunKate

So I just heard from Burt. They checked into the hospital last night, so the doctor could induce this morning BUT Sista's water broke at 2 AM! At 7:00 AM, she is 85% effaced and 7.5 cm dilated. Also, she has not had an epidural and does not think she will. (See, this is where you see the extreme difference between Sista and me. I would have walked into the hospital screaming, "Where's my drugs?!?!") I'll keep ya posted!

Friday, September 5, 2008

Preemptive Strike

by CajunKate

So we have a new storm to keep an eye on, and I am not thrilled about this 5 day forecast from Weather Underground:

 
My letter writing campaign did not work with Gustav, but he was properly intimidated enough to leave Lafayette alone, for the most part, and not take away my electricity.  I'm thinking that if I had started the bullying earlier, he may have avoided us altogether.  To wit:

Dear Ike,
Oh, hell to the no, motherf***er!  Do not even think about it!  You better turn your eye 'fore somebody wreck your eye!

No love for you,
CajunKate

Where You Be After Dat Gustav, Cher?

by CajunKate

So everyone who had been scattered by the winds of Gustav will finally be home as of this afternoon. The 'rents finally got power back at the Daigle Manse in Prudhomme City. The First Lady, proving her overwhelming intelligence once again, refused to come home until her AC was back on. Dat's one smart lady, cher!

As far as I know, the BR Daigles are still without power, but I did not speak with them yesterday. Byron is still without power in Grand Coteau, but he stayed at Mom and Dad's last night. The previous two nights, he was here in Lafayette with me. Other than that, everyone is home and fine with electricity restored.

This is not the end of this post, however. I do have a rant an opinion regarding the NOLA hurricane evacuation, and since this is my blog, I will rant opine away. Already there has been a chorus from quite a few NOLAites complaining about being forced into evacuating when it wasn't really necessary. I've read the theories of people claiming that it was all a big conspiracy to get Ray-Ray Nagin back into America's good graces. Dude, who the f**k cares? If you live in NOLA, you should have evacuated. Period. Better safe than sorry. Yeah, it turned out to be for no reason. Yeah, it's a serious pain in the ass. I get it. But it's better than clinging to a roof and waiting for the Coast Guard to rescue you. No one knew where that storm was headed. And let's face it, if it had been a direct hit on NOLA, there's no doubt in my mind that levees would have given way again, Cat 2 or not. Those things aren't ready for another storm. As much as we would like to delude ourselves into believing that NOLA surviving Hurricane Gustav was some great measure of success, that is some straight up bulls**t. NOLA is only marginally better off levee-wise than three years ago. SO, STFU, New Orleanians who are b***hing. At least you are alive and well to participate in your favorite pastimes- drinking, eating, partying, and b***hing.

That is all.

Food Obsessed Pig Post

by Cajun Kate

So it is a well-established fact that I am a food obsessed pig, thus when I saw this meme on the internet, I knew I had to take part in it. I read some criticism of it on Nick Douglas' tumblr, but he can kiss my a**. I think this is fun. Because I am a food obsessed pig. Here we go.

Andrew Wheeler created a list called the Omnivore’s Hundred, a list of 100 things that he thinks every good omnivore should try at least once in their life. I got this via the Did You Ever Notice tumblr then plugged in my own info. Join in!
1) Copy this list into your blog or journal, including these instructions.
2) Bold any items you’ve eaten.
3) Cross out any items that you would never consider eating.
4) Italicize any item you’ll never eat again.
5) Asterisk any items you’d be interested in trying but have not yet.
6) Underline an item if you don’t know what it is.(I left this out. There were lots of unknowns for me, but I just Googled them.)

1. Venison
2. Nettle tea
3. Huevos rancheros
4. Steak Taretare*
5. Crocodile*
6. Black pudding (I'll just say no to blood sausage!)
7. Cheese fondue
8. Carp
9. Borscht
10. Baba ghanoush
11. Calamari
12. Pho*
13. PB&J sandwich
14. Aloo gobi
15. Hot dog from a street cart
16. Epoisses
17. Black truffle
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
19. Steamed pork buns*
20. Pistachio ice cream
21. Heirloom tomatoes*
22. Fresh wild berries
23. Foie gras
24. Rice and beans (I'll eat rice but NOT beans!)
25. Brawn or Head Cheese (Gross, gross, gross!)
26. Raw Scotch Bonnet pepper (3rd degree burns inside my mouth? Uh, no!)
27. Dulce de leche*
28. Oysters
29. Baklava
30. Bagna cauda
31. Wasabi peas
32. Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl*
33. Salted lassi
34. Sauerkraut
35. Root beer float
36. Cognac with a fat cigar
37. Clotted cream tea
38. Vodka jelly/Jell-O
39. Gumbo
40. Oxtail*
41. Curried goat
42. Whole insects
43. Phaal (Too hot!)
44. Goat’s milk
45. Malt whisky from a bottle worth £60/$120 or more
46. Fugu (Possible poisoning? Pass!)
47. Chicken tikka masala
48. Eel
49. Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut
50. Sea urchin
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi
53. Abalone
54. Paneer
55. McDonald’s Big Mac Meal
56. Spaetzle
57. Dirty gin martini (I loathe gin.)
58. Beer above 8% ABV
59. Poutine*
60. Carob chips
61. S’mores
62. Sweetbreads (NO glands for me!)
63. Kaolin (Dirt? No thanks!)
64. Currywurst
65. Durian
66. Frogs’ legs
67. Beignets, churros, elephant ears or funnel cake
68. Haggis (Vileness!)
69. Fried plantain
70. Chitterlings, or andouillette (Intestinal tract? NO!)
71. Gazpacho*
72. Caviar and blini*
73. Louche absinthe*
74. Gjetost, or brunost
75. Roadkill
76. Baijiu
77. Hostess Fruit Pie
78. Snail
79. Lapsang souchong
80. Bellini
81. Tom yum
82. Eggs Benedict
83. Pocky
84. Tasting menu at a three-Michelin-star restaurant*
85. Kobe beef
86. Hare
87. Goulash
88. Flowers
89. Horse (Black Beauty? NO!)
90. Criollo chocolate*
91. Spam
92. Soft shell crab
93. Rose harissa
94. Catfish
95. Mole poblano*
96. Bagel and lox
97. Lobster Thermidor*
98. Polenta*
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee*
100. Snake

Thursday, September 4, 2008

Apocalypse Now

by CajunKate

So I don't even know how to say this. Brace yourselves, people. Forget 2012! The end is nigh! Hell has frozen over! I...she...cell phone...text message. Brothers and sisters of the internets, the First Lady is text messaging me!!!!!! Run for your lives!

Breaking Baby Daigle News!

by CajunKate

So I should probably let BDaigle blog this, but I am too excited to wait. I just got off of the phone with Sista who informed me that she went to see her doctor in New Orleans today, and she is 2cm dilated! Her doctor told her that if she does not go into labor on her own, he will admit her to the hospital on Sunday night and induce her on Monday morning, which means by Monday afternoon, I will finally have my babay...er, BDaigle and Sista will finally have their babay! Yay! I will keep everyone posted via blog, of course.

Oh, and after the doctor's appointment they went by their house in Lakeview and the power is back on, so they will finally be able to sleep in their own bed for the first time in a week. Good news all around!

Wednesday, September 3, 2008

The Day After the Day After Gustav

by CajunKate

So these are the top five things I learned today:
1. BDaigle, Sista and MY their baby are headed down to Mandeville. They will stay at Sista's parents' home there. They have power....
2. Which is more than I can say for the Baton Rouge Daigles who may be without power for anywhere from one to three weeks. Aimee and Charlie have shipped their children off to Uncle Ted and Aunt Molly's house (where having seven kids around all day long may slowly drive Molly around the bend...just a hunch.)
3. Gustav needs to get the f**k out of here already because...
4. Tornado warnings are scary and also will keep you trapped at your friends' home in Broussard for five hours when really all you wanted to do was have a nice lunch with them.
and finally...
5. The Mayor knows how to send text messages. Yeah, chew on that!

Tuesday, September 2, 2008

The Day After

by CajunKate

So here's the update on what is going on with everyone as of now, one day after the eye of Gustav passed through:

* Mom and Dad remain in Tyler, Texas. Byron has been out to their house. They have only one huge oak down, but no power. Byron hooked the freezer up to a generator.

* Byron's place in Grand Coteau is fine, just some debris in the yard. He has no power, though.

* Ted and Molly's home is fine. They have 2 trees down, but none near the house. They have electricity and are on the way back home from Tyler, Texas, right now. They should arrive sometime late this afternoon.

* Alex and I have no damage and hardly any debris. We never lost power. (Let that be a lesson to all of you about the power of Merlot!)

* Charlie and Aimee and the kids are okay. Baton Rouge got hit really hard, but they only suffered a bit of roof damage. However, they are getting slammed by torrential rain from a spiral that just will not move off of them. It's been training across BR all day non-stop. I think flooding in some areas is becoming a concern.

* Burt and Melissa's home in Lakeview should be fine. Of course, no one has actually seen it yet, but we all know that the levees in NOLA (they are most concerned with the 17th Street Canal since that is the one that gave way and flooded Lakeview during Katrina) have held so far and should hold. Burt and Melissa are still in Conway, Arkansas. They were trying to get a doctor to check Melissa today and let her know when/if she should travel. As we all know, TODAY is her due date. They are unsure as to what they will do and are staying in Conway for now. They may come down to Lafayette and stay with us until NOLA reopens. Melissa has already contacted her old OB/GYN here in Lafayette, and he has agreed to be her doctor.

That's all for now!

Monday, September 1, 2008

Gustav D-Day

by CajunKate

*I'll be adding to this post as long as we have electricity.


So today is the day.

7:30 AM: I had a dream last night that the hurricane had already passed over, and I had slept through it. Then I woke up for real and was all confused and ran to the internet, and there that f**ker Gustav is, still headed right for Lafayette. *Sigh* Here's what it's like in our neighborhood right now in Lafayette:



7:51 AM: Alex's mom calls. (Thank God I was awake!) This is how our conversation began:

Me: Hello?
Her (in a completely panicked voice): Alex?!? (Huh? I sound like man now? Greeeeaaat.)
Me: No, it's Katie.
Her (still panicked): Oh, Katie! Are you guys leaving?
Me: Uh, no...no, we're staying, Mom.
Her: But that thing is headed right for Lafayette!
Me: Yeah, it's okay, We're okay. We're fine. Don't worry.
Her: Don't worry?!? Oh, sure, we won't worry!
Me: No, Mom, listen. It's supposed to be a 2 by the time it gets here. We went through a 2 with Lili and everything was fine. We didn't get any damage that time. I'm sure we will be okay,
Her (calmer): Oh, are you sure?
Me: Yes, I am very sure. We're fine. We're going to be fine.
Her (much, much calmer): Oh...okay. You sound okay. You're so calm.
Me: Well, the Merlot and Xanax cocktail really helps to keep the edge off.

Okay, so I didn't say that last part. Although, it would have been balls-out hilarious to have heard her reaction. And, of course, I don't really have any Xanax for such a cocktail...unfortunately. The rest of the convo was much better once I had soothed her tattered nerves and I focused the conversation on them, their trip up to Northern Alabama, and what they'd heard so far about Slidell.

8:15 AM: They are predicting 90 MPH winds for Lafayette. Whew! Better than expected. I can handle that.

8:30 AM: News says Morgan City is getting "slammed." They've lost power down there. MC is about 2 hours southeast of Lafayette. BOOOOO! That means not much longer with power for us. F**K! I hate being hot!

8:41 AM: Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand here we go!


8: 53 AM: Awwww, man! The f**king cat puked! Really, Gizmo? Like I need THAT right now!

9:06 AM: What it's like right now in my 'hood:




9:31 AM: Just got a text from Queen Emily in Baton Rouge. They're fine; their power has gone out though and the wind is getting worse.

10:15 AM: Took a shower to wash my vile hair but did not shave my legs. No sense in going overboard. The drop in barometric pressure has given me a wicked headache. Here's what's goin' down in the 'hood right now:



11:17 AM: Gusty right now (maybe 30 MPH gusts?) and no rain at all. Greg just called from the other side of Lafayette; they still have power as well, but he began spouting Rob Perillo's dire warnings. I do not listen to Rob; he is a meteorological alarmist. In fact, I got so bored of watching hurricane coverage that I switched over to House Hunters International on HGTV. If that's wrong, then I don't wanna be right.

11:52 AM: Started watching hurricane coverage again. Eye is expected between 2PM and 4 PM. Slightly better time frame than waiting for the cable guy. Made Alex a bacon and cheese sandwich. Not sure what I will do with him when he's on the floor with his massive coronary. Reported gust in Lafayette at 48 MPH. Obviously, we still have power. 8 minutes until noon. Contemplating the fact that noon is usually considered an acceptable time to begin drinking.

12:19 PM: Uploading some video. If you are thinking it doesn't look so bad, that's because it's not...yet. This will not last. Looking at the radar, we are going to be getting really hard core stuff within the next hour, but I will continue to update until we lose power. Supposedly there are sporadic outages around Lafayette already, so when that happens, cheers and let the drinking commence! Won't be nuttin' else to do.


12:40 PM: Here comes round 2.


1:30 PM: Conditions deteriorating rapidly. Power outage seems imminent at this point. Some video (probably the last?):



2:00 PM: Getting pounded now, but somehow we still have power. It's a miracle which I hope has no end!

2:13 PM Gizmo is hiding under the bed. She no likey! 44 MPH winds at airport with gusts of 59MPH.

2:59 PM: More video. This makes me want a drink. Sorry, this makes me want a drink even more than usual. Only 10% of LUS customers are without power. This is good news!




3:02 PM: The eye seems to be directly over us right now. Hopefully, this is the worst of it.

4:00 PM: Taking a while for the eye to completely pass over. Kind of just sitting and twisting on top of us and inching away ever so slowly, conditions are improving steadily. Rain has ended and winds have slowed dramatically. Texts from Baton Rouge show the situation there is not so rosy. Charlie and Aimee's parish is under curfew for the first time ever, and the entire parish is without power. I have sent an invitation to them to come to Lafayette and spend the night in comfort, but I doubt they can get out as travel is still not safe and, technically, we still have half of a hurricane to go.

4:41 PM: I can hardly believe it but the rain has stopped. The wind is still fairly gusty but not too bad. We never lost power. I raise a glass to LUS! Byron just texted that he is without power in Church Point and may come to Lafayette tonight once things calm down there. Panic way down in Plaquemine Parish. Mississippi levee is being topped and may burst. Parish president says get out NOW to anyone who decided to stay. God speed to those people!

5:01 PM: Pics of survivors and debris:

Gizmo- Survivor out of hiding

Debris- Backyard

Debris- My street

5:39 PM: Wind has died significantly. No rain. We can hear someone running a generator nearby. Not sure why. We have power, but that sound makes us nervous! We were watching CNN earlier when the Plaquemines Parish president was in the middle of an urgent message telling anyone left in the parish to get out due to a possible levee breach when Wolf Blitzer cuts him off to go to...wait for it... Laura Bush giving an address at the Republican National Convention. Seriously, Wolf?

6:40 PM: This will be my last post for today. The wind is down to a breeze. There's no rain now. Our friends Greg and Clelie and their dog Peanut will be coming to spend the night because they have no electricity at their place in Broussard. We survived the storm in fine shape, and life is great! The end.