This was a tough day. I put down the water pipe around the backyard fence and hooked up one of the misters. Went over to help Libbie by spreading bark mulch. She planted over 100 seedlings. Earlier I got a call that our Knock Out Rose was at the Farmers Market so we drove over to get the rose, our veggies and a few more perennials. The garden planting is going good. I put the cucumbers in the growbox also. Now we just have the 3 more empty grow boxes to fill. It got up to 91 today and was very hot working in the sun. Dinner was crab cakes with fresh tomatoes from the Farmers Market and homemade strawberry shortcake for desert. This is a good time of year when the strawberries are coming in.

May Day!!! I did the grocery run getting fixins for another Cajun meal on Thursday. Got the grow boxes in place and ran the hose to each one for watering. Lib planted some of the flower seedlings. I mulched them. One bag of mulch was infested with termites so I poured it into a wheelbarrow and sprinkled insect powder over it. This killed all the little buggers. I also planted all the tomatoes that were destined for the grow boxes. They joined the peppers which were done yesterday. Dinner was Chinese takeout with a bottle of Rodney Strong Merlot.

This morning we watched CBS Sunday then had to leave at 10:30 for Bright Stream live from the Bolshoi. We were the only ones in the theater!!!! It ended around 2 PM. We came home and I mowed the front lawn. Dinner was Libbie's amazing pizza. Worked on a photo book donation for the AVSA convention.

It's a cold day out, not much motivation for outdoors stuff. I started studying how to do the outdoor garden watering. Dinner was broiled tilapia with sweet potato and homemade pepper vinaigrette dressing over a spring mix of salad greens.

This was an unplanned day. The back porch was covered with water from the fish pond which sprung a leak. We worked at draining it and taking out the liner. It looks like a rock went through the liner and caused the leak. After lunch we went to the Farmers Market for tomatoes and a butterfly bush. Our favorite vendor said next week for the bush so we'll wait. We had the leftover gumbo and bread pudding for dinner with a bottle of Shiraz. I can't believe it but the WSR I bought has gone up .85 this week. I originally purchased this to get the 8.72% interest but I may sell early. We'll see how it goes. Our garden is looking great.

Surprising rain today, I was planning to mow the front lawn. Made Gumbo this afternoon. It wasn't very good since there was too much Roux in the mixture. The recipe calls for 4 oz, we put a cup of oil and a cup of flour into the gumbo as roux. Will try again but with less Roux. I did not like that the crawfish were sourced in china and the crab legs didn't add anything to the texture. The bread pudding was a delight. Libbie made the praline sauce, I think I'll keep her out of my cooking since she's not very good at sauces. Listened to the Rheingold live this evening while reading the Steve Jobs book.

It's a cold day with some rain. We went to Lowes for brick chips and also picked up some perennials for the fenced in garden. The garden is pretty soppy and footprints sink in pretty far. Despite this I was able to mulch the mint garden by the fence and Libbie planted the perennials we purchased. dinner was out to La Cocina because the lobster ravioli we purchased in Trader joes was moldy. I had a Margarita and a Quesadilla La cocina. Nice.

Lazy day. Did the Tuesday groceries searching for ingredients for Gumbo. Did not find cane vinegar or shrimp base so I tried Whole Foods with Libbie. I've been using the BAC Visa to get 5% cash back. Will be pissed if this doesn't work. Mowed the back lawn entirely yesterday. WSR, my purchase yesterday using Cap One 0% checks, went up 67 cents. I think it is an anomaly that will correct itself. Dinner was pulled pork barbecue on buns. The pulled pork was purchased in the store this morning.

It's frigid outside, only in the fifties. Worked on pictures, building a slide show. Bought some WSR using a cap one check with 0% interest for 12.99. It closed the day at 12.85. Bummer, but I have a year to collect interest I hope. Dinner was thai chicken over rice noodles.

It rained all day which was good because I was too tired to go out in the garden and work. We went to Sears when they opened at noonn and bought the top rated Vacuum Cleaner by Consumer Reports. This is a Hoover Anniversary edition windtunnel. The important thing was to buy it now because the rebate expired today. Brought it home after a minimum of difficulty in Sears which was a miracle. Dinner was Libbie's homemdade pizza. I took advantage of the rain today to use the soft window brush and scrub the car down. It really needed it after the Louisiana trip.

I signed up for Rocky's watercolor workshop. Went out to Jerry's Artarama and picked up all the needed colors for class as well as some smaller brushes.
Went to a very very crowded Farmers Market and got more herbs and perrenials from our favorite vendors. We also did a run to Beth Moore for tomatoes and strawberries. We planted all the herbs and perrenials that we purchased. Now we only have our own seed flats of bedding plants to put in. We mulched it all with pine bark. It's supposed to rain quite a bit tomorrow so this is good timing.
Dinner was Cajun Rubbed Tilapia filets with the last of the etoffee, the last of the Corn mach Choux. For desert Libbie made some shortcake biscuits topped with our Farmers Market strawberries. We had this with a cold bottle of Chardonnay.

Hitched up the trailer and got 10 bags of mulch from Home Depot then did two trips to the greenhouse for 5 cans of potting soil from the compost out back. Spread it 6 inches thick and mixed it into the garden with the rototiller. The bed is now prepared for plants. They were pouring concrete into forms for more of the sidewalk on Old Raleigh Road. I'm happy to see this even though it means waiting for a flagman. We had a longer wait on 1010 in front of the tank farm because they are widening the road (maybe). Saw a high school girl crossing 64 at Laura Duncan wearing only black tights below her waist. This is pretty revealing and I'm wondering what her parents thought. Dinner was more Tilapia with cajun rub and the leftover etouffee and corn Mach Choux. Desert was bread pudding. We had this with Shiraz.

Big day outdoors. I hooked up the rototiller and tilled the entire area inside the fence. Jack came over during the morning. He and Libbie worked inside the greenhouse while I tilled. After he left Libbie and I went to the greenhouse and picked up 4 more cans of potting soil. Spread that on top of the tilled dirt 6 inches thick and tilled it into the soil. We need more of this stuff. Libbie net planted the Alyssum and Cleome. After a brief rest and shower I tackled the dinner. Libbie made the corn Mach Chou while I made the bread pudding. I don't like the Kroger's Baguette. I need to find something better. Net step was the etouffee. It came out pretty good. Quickly broiled some Tilapia filets in the oven This came out yummy. It was my first cooking experience and it wasn't very hard. This was a most enjoyable day. First some hard work in the garden and then cooking of an enjoyable meal.

We went to the Farmers Market in the morning and did a lot of plant shopping. Honeycuckle Garden herbs were disappointing but Longwood Gardens of Raleigh had a nice selection of plants. We bought their Coreopsis and Cleome as well as an assortment of herbs. Dinner was Trader Joe crabcakes with the Farmers Market tomatoes.

Joy came over and worked violets with libbie while I worked with the chain saw cutting up the logs on the house side of the creek. I moved the logs into the pile nearest the house down by the creek. I went to Kroger and got all the ingredients for a Cajun meal which I will make on Thursday. Dinner was chicken in Briyani which was really good. I like the Biryani chicken Libbie makes.

Sprayed roundup inside the fence today to eradicate the lawn then I helped Joy, Jack and Libbie pack violets for the Albuquerque club. An interesting offer came today from Cap One. I can use their checks to get 0% money for one year for a 2% transfer fee. The car balance is $8800, it will cost $176 in fees. Interest would be $237. Not much savings. If I buy 1000 shares of CMOpB it will cost 14,720 and will yield $1,260 or $105 per month for a transaction cost of $295. On the other hand WSR costs 13,070 and yields $1,140 for a cost of $262. income works out to $95 per month, therefor 3 months to start making money. Dinner was chicken curry over whole wheat spaghetti.

Up at 6 Central time this morning. We had a 6:30 breakfast and stopped for gas next to the hotel before starting our drive. Opelika is 90 miles South of Atlanta and about 37 miles south of the GA border. Once over the border we we were in the Eastern time zone. Traffic was moderate. We picked up a biscuit and more coffee on the other side of Atlanta. Somewhere up in SC we stopped at a Pilot truck stop for a bathroom break and topped off the tank. It was half full but prices were 3.65 which is lower than the approx 3.80 per gallon in NC. We found 49 in Charlotte and used it to get to 64 and then home. Arrived at 4 PM which is good. Picked up a diGiorno pizza at Krogers for dinner. I also found Slap Yo Momma spices and Andoille sausage in Kroger. Everything looks good outside - unfortunately, the pink double rose I bought was red and not pink. The marigold seedlings needed a little more water than the auto system supplied. The sprinkler needs to be moved back from the edge of the bench.

Early for breakfast. Chatted with Stevie, Grace, Jan and a few others to say goodbye. On the way out of town we stopped at the fresh pickins store and picked up some Cajun spices. Next it was the breakfast bakery for some beignets. We ate them in a parking lot outside of town with our comfort inn coffee. Got to Baton Rouge with no problems. There was a 2 story BN next to the theater. We went to the bathroom there and browsed books. The opera started without the video. I think it was a theater problem. the audience was chatty and noisy. We had to change seats because the lady behind us decided to rattle her shopping bag constantly. Natalie was not in great shape. Worse was the awful sets with corrugated steel walls and austerity. I hated it. We got out at 3:15. Took a wrong turn onto 10 instead of 12 coming home. Doubled back and got stuck for about an hour because of an accident. This set us back getting into Opelika, AL at 11 PM. The Comfort Inn room was large and clean. Nice to have arrived.

Early morning breakfast then over to campus. Today we had a very young chef, Chef Colt who is one of the top 5 chefs in Lafayette. Our menu was collard greens with Tasso, salad with pepper jelly dressing and blue cheese, shrimp creole over grits and chicken smothered in Andoille sausage creme sauce. The cake came out like a brick, it wasn't good. I really got into sauteing the trinity. I think I can do this! I also had fun making the rice pilaf but there was a problem getting the rice to come out correctly. When we got back we took off in the car looking for a Daquiri drive through.Found one called Dix's but it wasn't a drive through. Drove 4 miles turning right on 90 but no deal. Came back and the lady said to turn left and go less than a mile. I went alone and found the drive through. Took some pictures then used the drive through and bought 2 16 ounce daiquiri's, one Margarita and one Strawberry. Very good. Got our diploma at 4 then got onto the bus and left for the boat ride on the Achatafalaya basic. This was quite scenic and our cajun driver was very colorful. Next it was dinner and dancing at Bes Pere. We sat with the Browns of Kentucky. They have done several music Road Scholar programs. I had the catfish with etouffee and a couple of beers. Libbie had the stuffed crab. Yummy. We also got up and did a little cajun dancing. Libbie ended up buying the band's CD. Back home at 9:16.

After breakfast we went to the college and had chef Nick of Bruce foods. Our menu was flounder stuffed with crab and covered with a mornay sauce, a salad with strawberry vinaigrette and pecan dressing, flaming banana foster for desert. Libbie was having fun flaming bananas over the stove. After lunch we went to a produce store and saw some amazing cajun spices. Came down at 4 for a long movie about the history of Cajun music. It was informative. I found some of the names on tom's music server were old cajun musicians. I incorrectly classified the music as zydeco. Dinner was at Prejeans, a unique restaurant with cajun music. I had crawfish half and half, half were fried and half were in an etouffee. Pretty good. The bread pudding was too dense.

We had the Road Scholar buffet again this morning. Eggs, sausage, potato and bagel with cream cheese plus coffee. It was adequate. This morning we had a very nice chef, Sanders who is the Executive chef of the University Dining Hall Services. He had us doing the cooking step by step which helped. Our Gumbo was outstanding. We chopped bread for croutons and chopped bread for bread pudding. The bread pudding had crushed pineapples and raisins added to it. Wow, was it good. It think adding some rum to the mix really spiced it up. Our Caesar salad was also outstanding with our own home made dressing. Yumm!!! After we ate lunch and cleaned up we walked over to the UL swamp. Libbie and I chose to walk around the swamp and skipped the bookstore. We peeked at it then got onto the bus for a tour of downtown. Stopped at the Catholic Church to see the 500 year old Oak Tree then came back. The bus A/C wasn't fully functioning. It's 82 outside. We went to the Martin Accordian company where we learned about accordians and had a pretty nice concert by the Martin family. Libbie bought Joel's CD. He's a pretty good young musician. Dinner was Deano's pizza where we had cajun pizza with shrimp and crawfish and a pitcher of abita amber beer.

I wasn't too keen about the breakfast buffet in our meeting room but I had the sausage and eggs and of course coffee. Our chef was Becky who teaches hospitality at the University. This was her kitchen. We chopped up some Tasso which is like a smoked ham and added some spices, celery and bell peppers along with cream and straight corn to make a corn Maque choux. We also chopped tasso and mixed it with cajun spices and crawfish to make an etouffee. Took some frozen catfish filets, rubbed some Cajun seasoning on both sides and baked. Served it covered with the etouffee. We also coated eggplant and baked it then ladled some sauce over it for serving. After lunch and cleanup we went to see Boudin sausage being made, Dinner was at LA Seafood hooouse where we had a huge plate of Crawfish with beer.

Breakfast this morning was french toast with sweet potato filling and swimming in honey, brown sugar and butter with pecans and Applewood bacon. On the side were slices of fruit. yummy. We packed up and headed for Lafayette around 10:30. It was a pretty straight shot for 133 miles. Once we were in Lafayette I filled up the gas tank then we headed for the hotel. Found it but didn't stop because it was early so tried looking for a lunch spot. We found "Chris's PO Boy" restaurant. We each had a shrimp Po Boy which came with chips, pickle and cabbage. Checked into the Marriott. It's a nice hotel and looks new. Our leader's name is a Cajun named Patti Daigle. The week looks full. Dinner tonight was at the Hub City Restaurant. I had the Blackened catfish over shrimp etouffee. Desert was bread pudding. Our bus driver, a college student, sat at our table. He's a graduating senior.

We started with some coffee early then when breakfast was served at 8:30 we had a plate of fruit and coffee cake for starters. Next was a crepe stuffed with Bagara, a ricotta type cheese. Nice but way too much food. After breakfast we walked the neighborhood touring the Esplanada Ridge. We then got into the car and found the garden district. We had a very nice 2 hour walk before stopping for lunch at a coffee shop. We had a chicken breast wrap and water inside the A/C to cool off. Then we drove over to the French Quarter and parked in the Canal Place parking garage. Libbie caught some beads from the Easter parade, we then walked to Cafe duMonde where we had coffee and beignets. The sugar pile up is unbelievable. Walked the French quarter and enjoyed a few street bands and the Easter hats. I had a Huge Ass beer which Ii shared with Libbie before we made it back to the parking garage and then home.
In the evening I printed a parking garage coupon and we drove over to the French Quarter. I decided against a taxi cause it was later and I didn't want to wait. The parking garage we went into said something about our car would be booted if we parked there. Left that one and drive onward crossing Bourbon, something I didn't want to do. Lo and behold we found parking around the corner from Mr B's. They took us right in to a nice table. I had the gumbo and barbecue shrimp which were unpeeled in a barbecue sauce. I wore a bib and made a mess eating them but they were delicious. Desert was bread pudding with irish whiskey. Wow!!!! Walked down Bourbon after dinner and stopped to listen to some good music by an older band with tuba, piano, horn and string bass. Quite good. Made it back to our car and home around 10.

Had an egg round and sausage on raisin bread toast for breakfast then hit the road. It was cold out, the car said 45 degrees. Went to the other side of Atlanta and stopped at a McDonalds for coffee and bathroom. Once South of Atlanta the scenery was nice and the traffic pretty light. We had lunch at a McDonalds in Alabama and got into Ashtons Bed and Breakfast at 2:15 Central time. We were listening to the live performance of Manon with Anna Netrebko. Very nice but we arrived. The B&B is outstanding. It's an elegant old mansion with beautiful interiors and a large patio in back with a live Oak and resurrection ferns covering the branches. After resting a little we went out front and took a 4:15 bus to the French Quarter. Senior fare was 40 cents. Got off the bus at Toulese and Rampart St and walked into the French Quarter. Walked to the Cathedral and then took in the sights of all the craziness. Lots of bars and much music spilling into the streets. Listened to some black guys playing jazz and a Cajun band singing songs. We stopped for a while and watched a street band with 4 horns, 2 drums and a tuba. They were pretty good. Went into the Red Fish Grill and had a marvelous dinner. I started with the barbecued oysters and blue cheese. Wow, good. We had a bottle of Ravenswood Zinfindel and then for dinner I had the cheese crusted snapper. Very nice and tasty. After dinner we walked along Bourbon. The crowd was definitely getting rowdier. Found a taxi that took us back to the B&B. We didn't know the address but guided him along by site since we knew we were the 3rd house after Johnson.