House pic

Only have the pic from the Realtor right now.

Big moving news: New Poist West Coast estate!

(Held from June 2 because I didn't have time to scan the pic before we were on the road again)

Eli and I have been sitting on this one for what seems like forever waiting for the financing to go through. Now that everything has been ok'ed, we can uncross our fingers and announce our new La-La Land home. It is a 1910 craftsman bungalow that gives us a good 30% boost in space over out Alexandria house, plus huge storage space in the attic and basement. We just fell in love with the place right away.

Pic to come.

The Big Easy

Eli and I have always had a soft spot for New Orleans and were distraught to watch the distruction and mayhem Katrina brought to Nola (and our frinds who live ). John and I ended our motorcycle trip through the Delta there, meeting up with Eli, as well as John's fiancee and my older brother. It was important for Eli and I to include Nola on our "farewell" tour.

Nola put on a good front for a holiday weekend, but it was very evident that the city is still recovering, and the tourism dollars aren't pouring in as fast as they could. Parts of the French Quarter already look different and I feel a lot will change in the next year.

The Napoleon House, a fav of mine. Still going strong and serving their Pimm's Cups.




















My brother's fav, Jean laFitt's Blacksmith Shop, how can a hurricaner hurt somewhere with no electric lights?














Bananas Foster being prepared at Eli's and my favorite New Orleans restuarant, the Palace Cafe.



















Eli and I did get out of the city, we vantured to "Laura," a Creole planation being rebuilt by its current owner. The owner is an avid fan of the tales of Lapin and Bouki, Senegal folktales that came over with the slaves and were translated into French and past down through generations. It was here at "Laura" that these tales were first recorded on paper. Most would know them better from their English counterpart, Brer Rabbit. Laura's owneralso noted that these tales are still past down in the natvie Sengal dialect and have remained unchanged for centuries. I did two student animations based on the Lapin tales, so I was estatic to find someone who could give me more insight into the folklore.

The rear of the main plantation house; it burned before Katrina but the centuries old brickwork held and now it is being reconstructed to appear as it did in the 19th century.













One of "Laura's" former slaves cottages (and later sharecropping shack). The Lapin legends were first recorded on paper in shacks like these at this very plantation.













Laura's owner, a great folklorist and excellent tour guide.













Unfortunately, even the areas around Nola were hard hit by Katrina, all of "Laura's" employee's were laid off after the storm and the plantation has only been able to hire a few on since.

It seemed quite apparent to us that loans and insurance checks weren't arriving in New Orleans and the only way to help the city get back on its feet is to visit and keep the place going with tourist dollars.

Going down to the Crossroads

Years ago, being a big Delta Blues fan, I planned a motorcycle excursion down through the Mississippi Delta, and talked my friend John into coming along. Over the years, we would schedule, cancel and reschedule (always do to my fast-changing life). This year we finally made it down there. It was a 2,000 mile motorcycle trip with an additional 1,100 miles return trip when we finally trailered the bikes (my wife, certifiably crazy for me actually drove the 1,100 distance to New Oreleans to meet us for the Memorial Day weekend before doing most of the driving back agin with us and our bikes).

John preps, Holiday mopes.













Off we go...













It took three days just to get the Memphis and the noirthern tip of the Delta. We stopped to visited relatives of mine in North Carolina, to taste beers and listen to some live country music in Nashville, saw Jack Daniels being brwed in Lynchburg, and to hang out on Beale Street and tour Chez Elvis (and Sun Studio) in Memphis. Over the course of a few days, a lot of BBQ was consumed, A&R in memphis won out as a hands-down favorite. There is no better place for people watching than the (free) continental breakfast at Elvis, Inc's Heartbreak Hotel.

My Aunt Mae in N.C.















Live country at Tootsie's on Broadway in Nashville.















Where Jack Daniel's is distilled.



















The famous Beale Street, long since removed from its historic infamy, is now just a Bourbon St. wannabe.















Graceland, pure '70's nouveau rich.















Our Delta trip really started in Clarksdale, Miss.; and our trip to Clarksdale began the heat spell that just about wiped us out (even the natives were complaining). In Clarskdale, we visited the Delta Blues Museum, Morgan Freeman's Ground Zero juke Joint, and the surrounding areas of Stoval farms (were Muddy Waters once plowed for 22-1/2 cents an hour) and Hopson's plantation (restored to the appearance it had in its share-cropping days) .

Ground Zero (#0 Blues Alley), were John and I got some Mississippi fried catfish and caught some live blues.
















Muddy Water's former cabin and where it used to lay.





























Hopson's Plantation, where the more die-hard blues fan than I can vacation in its restored shotgun shacks.















Our big day in the Delta found his starting in Clarskdale in the morning and criss-crossing back and forth throughout the Delta, slowing working out way south to Vicksburg. It took us 330 miles and 12 hours to travel the 140 mile distance from Calrksdale and Vicksburg. But it was a Blues sight-seeing bonanza.


The site of the old Tutwiler train station. it is here, in 1903, that W.C. handy first witnessed blues music, which he would popularize and introduce to the rest of the world.















Dockery Farms, believed to be the place where dozens of forms of African and European music merge to create the Delta Blues as we know it.















The crossroads from the movie Crossraods; no I'm not kidding, you want a blues crossroads, it fits prefectly, from the cemetry to the burned out trees. We did apparently arrive way too early in the day to strike a deal with the devil.















One of the three Robert Johnson gravesites (we saw them all, and Sonny Boy Williamson I's also) and its caretaker. Having a RJ gravesite seems to be a cashcow for these small, poor churches.



















Another RJ gravesite.




















From here, after having our brains boiling in our helmets all day, we sprinted to Vicksburg. And the next day we blew through Natchez and Baton Rouge and met up with freinds and family in New Orleans. This has gone on forever, so I'll break here.

Graduation!

Well, I have been busy over the last two weeks but have not been home much, so I haven't been able to update for a while. I'll try and check up over the next couple of days as time allows.

First and foremost, I finished my BFA, 12 years late, but it is done, and I did it Summa Cum Laude.















I was a bit insulted to find, after so many years as an undergrad, I would be graduating in a green robe like it was high school or something. But it is done. All that is left is for the diploma to arrive in the mail.

Just two short days after I walked, I left town for a week and a half to tour the Mississippi Delta on motorcycle. I'll update that next.