The Q

Plans were hatched to visit the Audubon Zoo in New Orleans one June morning with a new friend, Theresa. Well, as with most plans these days, the rain had other ideas. Refusing to let a little water stand in our way, we decided to forge ahead!

The rain continued, relentlessly, so we had no choice but to ditch the zoo plans and head to the Q, better known as The French Quarter. It was the weirdest day ever. Let's see, I was first approached by a very inebriated man who got right in front of my face gesturing the peace sign. Every turn of my head to avoid him was met with him doing the same. That was pretty unnerving. I finally got away from him which took a few exhausting minutes. Several times throughout the day he turned up doing the same thing to other people. More unsettling things happened, but I'll just leave it there.

A break in the rain. A lovely woman is focused on a book or her phone.

Here is Mr. Peace Sign harassing another passerby.

And here he is again, flashing the peace sign to another girl.
I loved the faces of the onlookers. I see anger, amusement, fear & caution
on all four faces.

Lots of colorful umbrellas. 

This precious little girl watching all the shenanigans
in Jackson Square.

Meet Dorothy Smith. She approached me in St. Louis Cathedral with a very sad story.
She got my last $10. I'm pretty sure I was snookered, but I did
promise to pray for her whenever I look at her photo.
After I gave her the money, I remembered a pack of almonds in my purse.
Offering her the almonds, she politely refused, showing me her toothless gums.
Talk about embarrassing!!!!!!!!
Lord, please help this woman find housing and 3 meals a day.
And if she is scamming people, let karma have its way.
Amen!

Double D's Big Day

For those of you new to this blog, Double D is the nickname of my husband. His birthday was on May 6th, and since we moved to Baton Rouge he always wants to celebrate it in the French Quarter. Seeing him so happy makes my day. All images were taken with the iPhone.

Usually we make a beeline for Pat O'Brien's but since we parked so close to the river, I asked him to pose for me in front of the bridge. Actually, his first stop was to buy a hat. It took me a while to get used to this new look, but now I like it!

Two men asked if they could take our picture together. At first I was hesitant because 1) I hate to have my picture taken, and 2) I was afraid he'd just run off with my phone, but Double D said 'yes!' before I could think. All went well, thank goodness!

In front of St. Louis Cathedral.
My entry for Good Fences.

Every year he has to pose in front of the Pat O'Brien statue after he gets his hurricane.

Next stop is the bar "Famous Door". The cigarette smoke was killing me, so I made several trips outside gasping for air.

Ooops... Famous Doo.
The music was fantastic! Double D requested Born On The Bayou by CCR and we sang along as loud as we could. Fun!

This bar has been in business since 1935, so I'm surprised more letters aren't missing.

If only my birthday could have been as much fun. I suffered with nausea the first half of the day and windy, cold conditions the second half (when I began to feel better). Celebrating on Saturday (I hope!).

Linking with TexWisGirl's Good Fences meme. Can't wait to see the other entries!

Randomosity to the max

Cleanup on aisle 9 continues! More photos I never got around to posting. Besides, the rain we're receiving here is relentless, so I can't get out for any new photos. For those iced in, I feel for ya!

Old store in St. Gabriel, LA. I've posted it before in color and also black and white.
This time I used an HDR preset in Lightroom. I'm usually not a fan of HDR, but it worked on this photo, I think.

My "baby" on his 30th birthday, July 4th.

My eldest came for a visit in July. He asked me to take his picture by the Bourbon St. sign.
I noticed the NOPD Police sign later. Oh, the irony. I love his contemplative expression here.

Meet Casper. He appeared on my crape myrtle tree in July.

Sunset at LSU Lake in August

Skipper on zinnia, August

This old structure has been a fixture on Hoo Shoo Too Rd. for years. I took this shot on 10/2 with my 100mm lens
and planned to go back with a wide angle lens. The next time I drove by, it had been demolished. Majorly sad!

Sharing with Our World Tuesday.

Grand Time!

The weekend of October 4, we were so pleased to have two of Double D's children and three grandchildren come visit us for the first time since we moved to Baton Rouge. They're my kids, too, but my children have all visited, and I didn't want to confuse anyone.

Given some choices on what they wanted to do, the French Quarter won out unanimously. Although the day involved a trip to the hospital and a fender bender (unrelated events), overall it was a fantastic day. Since Hurricane Karen was threatening, I left Bertha at home; therefore, all the below shots were taken with the phone.

The famous Pat O'Brien's

Despite the possibility of a real hurricane, the girls jumped right in
and had their own. Those things are too strong for me!

Double D photobombed this shot and I didn't even notice until
I pulled it up on the computer. What the what is he doing back there! lol

Courtney (left) has lost 110 lbs and Lindsay has also lost a lot of weight doing
Beach Body. They look great! Such sweet and beautiful girls.

Shortly after Cami had her portrait done (a special treat for doing so well in school), Courtney
started vomiting and experiencing severe chest pains.
On the corner of Chartres and Bienville Sts. I called 911 and the medics arrived promptly.
We all have our own theories as to what occurred, but the diagnosis at Tulane
Medical Center was an anxiety attack. Hard to believe since we were having so much fun.
Thank God she's okay.

At the end of the evening, finally home, Seth talked Sparky into a game of Go Fish.
We later found Sparky under the bed protecting a Jack of Hearts, growling at anyone who tried to take it.

Double D's ex-wife and her husband generously let us use their enormous luxury van to travel in. Double D was doing a good job of getting us places in his patient, steady manner. After we picked up Courtney from the hospital, we needed gas, so we pulled into a station where we were quickly boxed in by three other cars; one in front, one in back and one on the side. Trying his best to maneuver us out in reverse, he scraped the front fender of the car behind us. The man was really upset at first, but Double D has such a calm nature that the man eventually told us to go and not worry about it. "I'm a nice guy", he said loudly in his N'awlins accent. I should say! That was a pretty long scrape on his bumper. And I felt terrible that now both sides of the van's bumper have matching boo-boos. Sorry guys!!!!!

We crammed a lot into two days, but it was worth it. I think the kids enjoyed Louisiana and will be back for more.

My day in the Big Easy wasn't that easy

Powerful thunderstorms began early in the morning, causing me a bit of stress. But I already had my heart set on spending the day at the aquarium and shopping. In an effort to quiet the voice of reason insisting I stay home, I made sure I had my ipad and iphone—two wonderful distractions. Besides, Double D was driving. By the time we approached the Bonnet Carre Spillway, the rain was coming down like a monsoon. Double D slowed to 35mph, put the flashers on, then reached over and muted the radio. When he did that, I knew we were in trouble. Here's a short clip:

By God's good grace we made it. Double D dropped me off near a pavilion across the street from the aquarium. Scattered about were some unsavory looking characters. And they were all staring at me. The stares made me nervous and self-conscious. I quickly assessed the situation and decided to make a mad dash to the River Walk Mall, several football fields away, knowing my perfectly coiffed hair would be ruined. Good thing I left Bertha at home. Double D had offered me his umbrella, but I didn't want to carry it around all day. Bad move. Soaked to the bone, I made it to the mall where I wandered around for 2 hours, wet and miserable. All the stores had the same touristy crap, so I got something to eat at the food court, then bought an umbrella to make my way back to the aquarium. By the time I made my exit with the newly purchased umbrella, the rain stopped. Of course! Nothing too exciting photography-wise, but I managed to get these with my phone:

Parakeet Pointe was easily the highlight of the day.

They were attracted to my purse for some reason. :/

Give it up lady. I know you've got the goods!

Double D picked me up on Royal Street five hours later. My bones ached and I was still damp, but felt better knowing we were going home. All was well until I went to the mailbox and retrieved a letter from the Louisiana Dept. of Revenue. Apparently they did not receive one of our tax payments and say we owe them more money. Trying to get through their phone labyrinth has been an exercise in futility, so I sent an email hoping it can get rectified that way. Ugh!!!

My Beautiful Autumn

We had so much fun visiting with my daughter and her boyfriend. We picked them up at New Orleans International Airport, hit the French Quarter immediately after, and never stopped to take a breath. Loved every single minute! No, cherished. Okay, loved and cherished. Since they left, I've been hitting the stores trying to get ready for my trip to Dallas tomorrow. I really wanted see our other kids and grandkids before Christmas and hand deliver their goodies. Whew doggies, I am one tired mama.

At Pat O'Briens (iPhone shot)
I love this girl. She is so much like my mother: gracious, kind and loving.

On the river, New Orleans (iPhone)
Jason is a sweetheart and takes very good care of my girl.

My daughter and our precious little cousin, Brody (iPhone)

Jason & Autumn on top the levee, across the street from my grandparents' property.
She used to always tease me for buying wedge heels and look what she's wearing! Haha
Sunshine, Louisiana

My dad, Autumn & Jason
Magnolia, MS

Planning to make blog rounds tonight after dinner. I've missed everyone!