Category: Travel

“Back to Pacifica, CA”

On Monday, we walked to Walgreens to drop off a Kate Spade FedEX return.  I bought Diana an iPhone bracelet for Christmas and it’s the wrong size.  I got quite confused and called Kendra Scott to ask about it, prior to realizing that the bracelet was actually from Kate Spade.  I even tried to visit the Kendra Scott store for help, before realizing I had made the same mistake twice.

After the walk, we drove over to Frenchy’s gallery on Oak Street to look at a painting that he did of Jon Batiste at Jazzfest last year.  We had a very nice visit with Frenchy, just back from the Big Easy music cruise.  He told us stories and showed the paintings he made on the cruise.  I liked the Marcia Ball one, and he also had a great one of Keb Mo.

We liked the Jon Batiste painting very much – it captures the show that we saw at Jazzfest very well.  It is now hanging on the wall behind my piano.

Frenchy said he snuck Tab Benoit in as the middle marching Jazzfest guy.

Here’s some biographical information on Frenchy:

“Born to a boxer and a saint on August 16th, 1970, in Lowell, MA, Randy Leo Frechette – a.k.a Frenchy – has been drawing since he could grip a pencil.

Julia dropped off these pretty tulips as a get well from back surgery gift:

Clorinda was admitted to the hospital again, and so we flew to San Francisco on Wednesday afternoon.  We spent the majority of the rest of the week shuttling back and forward to Mills Peninsula hospital to spend time with her.  The NFL playoffs provided a little bit of distraction:

Alicia shared the annual report from her work with us.  She had a big part to play in the content and layout, with particular attention on the Director’s message.  Communivercity seems like a wonderful organization that brings together Community, University (San Jose State), and City in partnership to solve problems and encourage our youth.

It’s nice to see Alicia so happy and rewarded by such a worthwhile job.

My sister Elspeth’s birthday was on Sunday.  I enjoyed telling her that it was also:

My first book this week was “Walking with Sam:  A Father, a Son, and 500 Miles across Spain,”  by Andrew McCarthy:

“Andrew Thomas McCarthy is an American actor, travel writer, and television director. He is most known as a member of the Brat Pack, with roles in 1980s films such as St. Elmo’s Fire, Pretty in Pink, Mannequin, and Weekend at Bernie’s. He is ranked No. 40 on VH1’s 100 Greatest Teen Stars of all-time list.”

The book had me remembering a wonderful movie, “The Way”,  where Martin Sheen walks the Camino de Santiago with his son filming and directing.  A great movie, and this is a pretty good book.  A quick and enjoyable read.

McCarthy’s son takes a while to settle in to the routine of the walk and to feel comfortable opening up to his dad:

I’m about halfway through my second book, “Martyr” by Kaveh Akbar.

“Multiple Birthdays”

When I left you last week, Kenny was coming to pick up Diana and shuttle her to the “Birthday Girl’s Brunch” in the French Quarter.  The ladies loved their time at Broussard’s and the location was a complete surprise to Diana.  Kenny and Keith know how to keep a secret!

Anne and Kara had spent some happy hours together crafting special cat eye glasses and bracelets:

Here they are modeling them in the Broussard’s lobby:

The ladies thought Diana needed a commemorative ornament:

Kenny had been trying to find a time when Diana would be gone for a few hours, so that he could execute on his birthday gift.  He spent over three hours pressure washing the front bricks while the girls were at lunch.  What a great job, and such a kind gift:

Look at the handmade card Kenny attached to the top of the stairs:

The ladies weren’t quite finished yet – they walked down Bourbon Street to Bar 33 (the bar owned by and next to Gallatoire’s) for French 75s.

Kenny drove down to the House of Blues to see a friend, Nina, perform and several of the ladies met him there.  Thanks to Kenny and Kara for delivering the almost sixty year old home safely.

We surprised Merry Lee for a late birthday dinner at Acamaya on Monday evening.  We arrived early and she was very happy to see us there.  Jeff pulled off a great surprise.  I love this restaurant – wonderfully creative Mexican seafood and different drinks.

After dinner we were looking for some music and I finally found a piano player at the Saturn bar – a short stroll from Acamaya.  BC Coogan treated us to “Classified” by James Booker on arrival.

Tuesday brought another birthday – Kenny this time.  Diana made some jambalaya, and the trivia group assembled at Kara and Kenny’s home for dinner and cake pre-trivia.

We did all right at trivia but did not place in the top three.  After that, we got to the Maple Leaf in time to catch a good amount of Bookerfest – the annual tribute to James Booker on his birthday.  This has become an annual celebration event with Kenny.  It was entertaining to see our trivia master at the show – we had a good chat about music and trivia.

Here are two song clips from the wonderful Joe Krown:

The night finished up with six hands on the piano – so, so good and fun to watch:

A very enjoyable Tuesday night all around.

Are you feeling sleepy after all this activity?  Well, time to catch a second wind because we have another birthday on Wednesday to talk about.

Beautiful birthday flowers from Kris and Cat:

And an excellent birthday song from Andy.  He’s getting so good and seems to have quite the recording setup going these days:

I had reserved a section of Oak and Ale to host a birthday dinner for Diana.  We had about twenty four people there.

We love that our friends kids are part of the group and wanted to attend the event:

Here’s a selection with friends:

Chickie called a few minutes before we were leaving for the restaurant – his flight to Vegas had been diverted to New Orleans due to an emergency.  He wanted to know what we had planned.  So we added him to the party list:

I think Diana had a good time with everyone.

Merry Lee came over for a walk with Diana on Thursday morning, and suggested that we meet Jeff downtown for lunch.  We had another yummy meal at Meril – the restaurant that Emeril named after his daughter.

Friday was packing and organizing day.  We had our own Christmas gift exchange in the evening, followed by an impromptu visit from Anne with some gifts.

Saturday came with an early start.  Out the door at 4:30am for our 6:30am flight.  Adamo picked us up at San Francisco airport around 9:30am.  We made it smoothly and a bit early.   Time to catch our breath and relax a bit.  I enjoyed the UT and Clemson college football playoff game (UT won).

Today, we did some shopping for Christmas Eve dinner and I’m looking forward to the Cowboys game this evening.  I’m comfortable enough to admit that I’m currently watching “A Merry Scottish Christmas” – a classic Hallmark style movie – with McD.

With all that activity, I had little time for reading or finding new music – so we’ll skip those sections this week.

Coexist peacefully, with kindness and patience for all.

 “Retirement Celebration”

We flew to Austin early Monday morning and checked into the Carpenter hotel.  I had an executive committee meeting on Monday night, which turned into an early retirement party for me.

We went to the Guest House, which is an amazingly delicious Austin establishment.  I had a parmesan crusted filet that was ridiculously tasty.

There were lots of toasts and speeches that almost brought me to tears.  This has been such a wonderful work experience because of the people that I work with.  The team gave me a $500 gift certificate to Shaya, one of my favourite New Orleans restaurants.

Nikki and I shared a martini that came with quite the presentation.  Dry ice poured over the bottom:

Desert was quite a show:

What a lovely dinner and memory.

Tuesday was the annual holiday party at Bar Peached.  Great food, drinks and company.  They had a “Braveheart” cocktail in my honour:

Here I am with the IT team:

And here is a reprise of the “girls” from Roatan:

Here’s’ one of my favourites – the EXCO group (three of the people it has been a complete joy to work with.)

And finally with Neffie:

We had our usual pre-flight lunch at June’s.  Lisa joined us and we saw Lachie (CEO) walking by and he joined us for a drink.  This is where I had lunch after interviewing for my job, and where I had the last meal of my retirement celebration – seems appropriately bookended.

Here are my two cards:

And a ridiculously expensive bottle of bourbon from my team:

I enjoyed two separate free outdoor concerts on Saturday afternoon with most of the krewe.  “The Walrus” performed Beatles songs at the corner of Marengo and Dryads.  Such a good band.

That was followed by the Panorama Jazz Band at the Kingpin, which also had an outdoor Christmas market going.

Kenny will be arriving soon to shuttle Diana to her ladies brunch to celebrate her upcoming birthday.  All she knows is that it’s somewhere in the French Quarter.

I continued to work my way through Demon Copperhead this week.   Slow progress due to all the travel and holiday excitement.  I look forward to finishing it up next week in the lull leading up to the real holidays.

I love this Ethiopian song that I heard at the Carpenter hotel:

And another one from the same source:

Very relaxing:

And finally, some classic Bonnie Raitt:

Coexist peacefully, with patience and kindness for all!

“Keep Austin Weird”

Shortly after we left the Bywater last Sunday, (you’ll remember we were driving around looking at the art exhibits) there was a second line for the “Death of Democracy.”  What’s a second line?  Well…it’s typical a brass band led parade for a jazz funeral or a wedding.  The family or newlyweds are the “first line” and the folks dancing behind them are the “second line.”  Only in New Orleans would you find something like this related to the election results:

https://www.nola.com/gambit/news/the_latest/new-orleanians-hold-jazz-funeral-for-democracy-following-trump-win/article_3f80f38a-a06c-11ef-ba85-cf2bfab10e8c.html

We flew to Austin on Monday morning and I attended a Board Audit Committee meeting in the afternoon.  That was followed by an excellent Austin evening – dinner at the Odd Duck followed by Bob Schneider and Lonelyland at the Saxon Pub.

But I get ahead of myself again.  As we were getting ready for dinner there was an outburst from the hotel bathroom.  I had to get up and investigate – the nail polish bottle had broken, covering Diana’s hand and ring in red goo.  She Door Dashed nail polish remover from Walgreens and was going to send me to the Odd Duck and then meet me there.  Better plan – I found a nail salon just across the street from the restaurant.  They got Diana all cleaned up in a few minutes, and we were actually early for dinner.  Crisis averted.

We had the usual amazing dinner at the Odd Duck.  McD was delighted to find they had those yummy Palomas back on the menu and I was impressed with the fancy martini glass.

We started with ceviche, followed with a goat pizza, and finished with cappelini.  All creative and delicious.

We walked across the street to the Saxon pub for Bob Schneider and the Lonelyland band.   They sounded amazing and Bob had his usual hilarious stream of consciousness commentary.  We sat with a young couple from Spain that had a great time at the show.  Bob oscillates from heartbreakingly beautiful ballads to crazy rap and rock songs.  He typically starts with a lovely song:

Here’s one of his humorous songs:

Back to a beautiful ballad:

And finally, he always asks what style the audience would like the goodbye song to be played in.  Somebody said “Gary Numan.”

We enjoyed the walk back downhill to the hotel – what a great Austin evening.

Tuesday brought the full Board meeting.  They gave me a round of applause for my contributions before retirement – very sweet to be appreciated.  We enjoyed a Meditteranean lunch on the beautiful patio at Aba, migrated to the San Jose hotel patio and finished up with dinner at Two Hands, described as an “Australian restaurant” – D thought it would appeal to Tim.  A very fun afternoon/evening.

Wednesday in Austin – must be lunch at June’s all day.  This has become our on the way to the airport routine.  We had to get our favourites – steak tartare for D and bone marrow Bolognese for K.

Will and nine friends came into town on Friday for a bachelor party – Blake is getting married.  I picked up some cutouts that they had to have and delivered them to their Airbnb in the Marigny.

After that we went to a 50th birthday party for Debra at Kenny and Kara’s home.  A very fun evening all around.

Will took the guys to Gallatoires.  He reports having crab gratin with a New York strip on top and the redfish special.  Good grief. Is that grey in his beard?

I watched the UT game on Saturday morning while D had a walk around town.  Will and the krewe took airboats out looking for gators, and apparently found some:

Everyone should have a yellow rubber duck shirt ready to go.

Our neighbors got in on the action with a reptile birthday party – no thanks!  Britney is completely freaking me out with this pic (such a poser):

And little Auggie (sporting the shirt we brought him from Honduras) clearly got his Mom’s love for snakes:

For the first time in ages, Diana and I had different activities on Saturday night.  Diana was invited to watch the Lakers and Pelicans basketball game.   Seems like she had a great time:

Thanks Julia!  And particularly thanks to John who wanted to watch college football (Georgia Tennessee) over Lebron James.

I joined Kenny, Thom and Libby for the 25th anniversary Lost Bayou Ramblers show at the Broadside.  They played the documentary about the band, followed by the show:

It was a nice treat when Rickie Lee Jones joined as a guest.  I’ve played her self titled album with “Chuck E’s in Love” so many times over the years.

I love the rhythm of the Ramblers:

Will’s Airbnb host was raving about Bar Pomona on St Claude Avenue and so D and I gave it a try on Sunday for brunch.

The food (Turkish eggs for me and Salad Nicoise for D) and particularly the bread was very good.  The service was “interesting.”  Diana had to have some soft serve pomegranate ice cream:

My book this week was “The Bee Sting” by Paul Murray.  This is a massive 600 page plus book, and I’m about half way through.

The book started out really well, then moved into a section with no punctuation at all – difficult to read and I don’t understand the purpose yet.  I like the story and am interested to see how it all works out.  Here’s the online scoop.  This was a New York Times top ten book from last year and it better live up to that with the time investment that I’m making.

“The Barnes family is in trouble. Dickie’s once-lucrative car business is going under―but Dickie is spending his days in the woods, building an apocalypse-proof bunker with a renegade handyman. His wife, Imelda, is selling off her jewelry on eBay and half-heartedly dodging the attention of fast-talking cattle farmer Big Mike, while their teenage daughter, Cass, formerly top of her class, seems determined to binge drink her way through her final exams. As for twelve-year-old PJ, he’s on the brink of running away.

If you wanted to change this story, how far back would you have to go? To the infamous bee sting that ruined Imelda’s wedding day? To the car crash one year before Cass was born? All the way back to Dickie at ten years old, standing in the summer garden with his father, learning how to be a real man?

The Bee Sting, Paul Murray’s exuberantly entertaining new novel, is a tour de force: a portrait of postcrash Ireland, a tragicomic family saga, and a dazzling story about the struggle to be good at the end of the world.”

Let’s start with some classic Kate Bush:

Great drum sounds:

A great new sound for me:

Coexist peacefully, with patience and kindness for all!

“Happy 93rd Birthday, Clorinda – and Happy Halloween”

Captain Jack assembled the krewe for trivia on Tuesday.  What a waste – either last place or second to last – I knew none of the esoteric questions – here’s an example:

Jack claimed to know that Bluetooth was the ruler of Norway – just didn’t know the second country – I picked Denmark but think it was Finland.  All those small Nordic countries get so confusing (trying to sound like an ugly American traveling through Europe.)

Kenny has taken to hosting everyone for  a “Jeopardy” warm up before trivia.  He provided Negronis and snacks – such a nice feature.  And he’s walking distance from the venue.

I  took a flight to join Diana in San Francisco on Wednesday.  Our plan was to celebrate her Mom’s 93rd birthday on Thursday.  The best plans – and then life happens.  Before I even boarded the plane, Diana was calling to tell me that Clorinda had to go to the Emergency Room from dialysis – turns out she had an infection that kept her in hospital for a few days.

Diana slept on a bed in the hospital room that didn’t look comfortable at all for two nights.  I slept alone on Gypsy Hill – Diana noting that she had never slept there alone.  Here’s a sunset that was enjoyed on the hill:

Clorinda made it home on Saturday and was delighted to be back to her home and regular routines:

I flew back to New Orleans on Sunday and was home in time to watch the Sunday night Cowboys game.  They were losing and I fell asleep – first mistake.  Lionel (ghost) decided it would be fun to open the back door while I was napping.  I woke up, had a small freak out, and called the security guy to come and check the house.  No reason why the back door should be open.

Diana was able to organize the delayed 93rd birthday party on Tuesday night.  It seems Clorinda had a great time:

I picked up McD from the airport on Wednesday evening and we met the Krewe at the Ghost Mansion, close to our house.  Such an amazing display.

Diana has never been to the famous Gallatoire’s restaurant on Bourbon Street in the French Quarter.  I’ve been a few times – before Cowboys and Saints game and for my bachelor party.  This place opened in 1905 and is a formal (jacket required), but very fun restaurant.  They recently opened for reservations versus standing in line out front early in the morning.

I thought it would be fun to nix the ongoing commentary about never having been there by inviting Diana to join me for Halloween lunch.  That turned out to be a great idea.  She borrowed our neighbour’s witch’s hat and was all set to go:

The room was hopping with Halloween groups – loud and very enjoyable.  We started with a classic foie gras – absolutely delicious.

Diana had a crab and mushroom dish and I had a trout meuniere – both amazing!

There were a bunch of ladies dressed up as Helen Roper from Three’s Company (a 70s TV sitcom.)  I love the guy from the kitchen singing to the celebrant:

After lunch we went for a French Quarter Ramble (FQR) with a stop at the Will and the Way and then at a jewelry store where we picked out some things for Diana’s birthday.

Taylor Swift performed at the Superdome all last weekend, bringing in a lot of revenue for the city.  I think the friendship bracelet on the Superdome was a nice touch:

There was a band playing when I landed at the New Orleans airport with Swiftie bracelets on the back of the stage and a Taylor cutout for photos – I like that the town works hard to make big events special:

My book this fortnight was “Same as it Ever Was” by Claire Lombardo.  The book started out very well and had a number of beautifully written highlights – it was just so long and became plodding to me.  The chapters jumping back and forward in chronology started to irritate me – I just wanted the story in order.

The reviews are quite mixed – a number of folks loved the book, and several didn’t like the main character, Julia, at all.  Here’s the online summary:

“NATIONAL BESTSELLER • NAMED A BEST BOOK BY PEOPLE AND PARADE • The New York Times bestselling author of The Most Fun We Ever Had (“wonderfully immersive…deliciously absorbing”—NPR) returns with another brilliantly observed family drama in which the enduring, hard-won affection of a long marriage faces imminent derailment from events both past and present.

“Infidelity, dysfunction, secrets – this family novel delivers.”—The New York Times • “Lombardo has such a fine eye for the weft and warp of a family’s fabric.” —The Washington Post • “Witty and insightful…a powerful exploration of marriage, motherhood, and self.”–Bonnie Garmus, bestselling author of Lessons in Chemistry

Same As It Ever Was showcases the consummate style, signature wit, and profound emotional intelligence that made The Most Fun We Ever Had one of the most beloved novels of the past decade. Featuring a memorably messy family and the multifaceted marriage at its heart, Lombardo’s debut was dubbed “the literary love child of Jonathan Franzen and Anne Tyler” (The Guardian) and hailed as “ambitious and brilliantly written” (Washington Post). In this remarkable follow-up—another elegant and tumultuous story in the tradition of Elizabeth Strout, Ann Patchett, and Celeste Ng—Lombardo introduces us to an unforgettable cast of characters, this time by way of her singularly complicated protagonist.

Julia Ames, after a youth marked by upheaval and emotional turbulence, has found herself on the placid plateau of mid-life. But Julia has never navigated the world with the equanimity of her current privileged class. Having nearly derailed herself several times, making desperate bids for the kind of connection that always felt inaccessible to her, she finally feels, at age fifty seven, that she has a firm handle on things.

She’s unprepared, though, for what comes next: a surprise announcement from her straight-arrow son, an impending separation from her spikey teenaged daughter, and a seductive resurgence of the past, all of which threaten to draw her back into the patterns that had previously kept her on a razor’s edge.

Same As It Ever Was traverses the rocky terrain of real life, —exploring new avenues of maternal ambivalence, intergenerational friendship, and the happenstantial cause-and-effect that governs us all. Delving even deeper into the nature of relationships—how they grow, change, and sometimes end—Lombardo proves herself a true and definitive cartographer of the human heart and asserts herself among the finest novelists of her generation.”

The Tipitina’s record club offering just arrived – a solo Taj Mahal set that sounds great.  Here’s a favourite:

Something new from Tears for Fears, still making excellent music:

A surprise from Annie Lennox (fellow Scot) from her American song book cover:

Coexist peacefully, with patience and kindness for all!

“The Beatnik, Ocean Springs – Happy 60th Anne!”

I treated Diana to Happy Hour oysters at Superior Seafood on Tuesday.  We sat at the bar and first saw Fred enter with a guy who was assessing him for his psychiatry accreditation (we didn’t blow it for him), and then our neighbors Britney, Tony and little Auggie, Britney telling Diana that she and Tony met at Superior years ago – she was his waitress.  Me thinks a bit more investigation of that story is needed.

I attended Dat Dog trivia after oysters and we had a mediocre fifth place win – my contribution was also mediocre.  We need to pick up our game!  Anne and Kara joined for the second half and might have been a bit of a disruptive distraction, depending on one’s point of view.

Anne’s sixtieth birthday was a couple of months ago, and Denny had presented her with a certificate for a beach getaway.  We picked up Kenny and Kara, made the ninety minute drive to Ocean Springs, Mississippi, and rendezvoused with Fred and Kelly to surprise Anne at the Beatnik.

This is a motel with four units, a pool, firepit and nice seating areas.  Denny rented out the whole shebang for Thursday and Friday night.  The ladies put together a beautiful array of charcuterie, dips and fruits, and I think Anne was genuinely surprised on arrival – she thought it was just going to be her and Denny.  Smart idea from Kelly to move our cars over to the dive bar across the street so as not to blow the surprise.

Here’s a map to orient you on Ocean Springs location:

We walked across the street to Sweets Lounge in the evening and had good fun playing various different pool games.

I had Diana challenge the amount of the bill when we left – “It can’t possibly be that inexpensive.”  The bartender explained that drinks were reduced when a Saints game was showing – even before that they were prices from 15 years ago.

I walked across the street to the Lazy Oak for breakfast on Friday morning.  McD joined me after her run around town and ate the fruit that I had pushed to the side of the plate.  Then we had a nice time hanging out in the pool for a couple of hours.

We wandered around downtown Ocean Springs in the afternoon.  What a nice and eclectic little town.

Glory Bound provided us with a yummy Greek dinner.

We hung out around the firepit in the evening, with Kenny participating in a pool tournament at Sweets, and as is typical, making friends with a number of the locals.

We drove back via the coastal road on Saturday, meeting up with Kenny’s long time friend, Chris, for lunch at a marina side taco joint in Bay St. Louis.

Diana had texted Amy, also a resident of Bay St. Louis, to see what the chances of swinging by for a boat ride looked like.  The timing worked out well and we drove to Captain Randy and Amy’s place after lunch.  We were soon out on the water and enjoying the Jourdan river trail.

I had planned on watching the Cowboys and 49ers game on Sunday night – wrong weekend – the Cowboys are on a bye week and that’s next week.  Probably good for the Boys to rest up before that challenging game.

My book this week was “The Radleys” by Matt Haig.  I had enjoyed another of his books, “The Midnight Library”, and this one sounded good, except that I totally missed it was a story about vampires trying for abstinence from vampire activities.  Here’s an online review:

“Just about everyone knows a family like the Radleys. Many of us grew up next door to one. They are a modern family, averagely content, averagely dysfunctional, living in a staid and quiet suburban English town. Peter is an overworked doctor whose wife, Helen, has become increasingly remote and uncommunicative. Rowan, their teenage son, is being bullied at school, and their anemic daughter, Clara, has recently become a vegan. They are typical, that is, save for one devastating exception: Peter and Helen are vampires and have—for seventeen years—been abstaining by choice from a life of chasing blood in the hope that their children could live normal lives.”

Given the silly subject matter, I did still find this tale well written and entertaining.  I’m sure it’s not for everyone.

A very good cover:

And an even better cover – I love this one a lot:

And finally, some great 70s feel:

Coexist peacefully, with kindness and compassion for all!

“Return to Roatan”

It was a very early start on Monday – in an Uber to the airport at 4:30am.  We caught a 6am flight to Miami, “enjoyed” a couple of hours layover, and then took the next short flight to Roatan, Honduras.  A very bumpy thirty minute ride over an often washed out road and we arrived at the Kimpton Grand Roatan Resort.  The resort was purchased by Kimpton since we visited two years ago, and they have made many improvements, upgrades, and expansions.  While quite luxurious, with new restaurants and amenities, we missed some of the character of the old set up.

Here’s a map that shows the location of Roatan island:

After some lengthy negotiations, we secured a beach front condo with a wonderful view.

The trip is to honour the top performing employees from Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador – there were about forty of them in attendance.  We had a reception for them on Monday night, and the girls enjoyed dinner on their own – a wonderful paella topped with lobster.

Tuesday was a full day of presentations and discussions.  I participated in a panel discussion on “mindset” that seemed to be well received.  My very favourite segment was a presentation by Andrea Cardona, the first Latin American woman to summit Everest.  This was the best business talk that I’ve heard – beautifully linked back to the topic of the day, and presented with a complete lack of ego.  The answers that Andrea gave to the audience questions were excellent.

Andrea has asthma and it was fascinating to hear all the approaches that she deployed to counteract the impacts at the highest elevations.

Here’s a video of a short segment of Andrea’s presentation:

She said that she had a whole special speech planned for the summit, but just couldn’t get enough air to do it:

Meanwhile, the girls were enjoying some quality beach time.  The weather was not perfect – quite windy – but they made the best of it.

They did pick up an extra member of  the “girls” group – Lee, Belinda’s husband:

There was a fancy reception with dinner and dancing on Tuesday night, starting with a group picture on the beach:

Here’s the leadership team subset:

The dinner was good, and the fun really began with the dancing.

Unlike two years ago, when Lisa and Diana had to get the party started, the group was raring to get the dance floor up and going.  Of course Diana took full advantage of the opportunity to show her moves:

It wouldn’t be a real party without a conga line:

There were meetings again on Wednesday afternoon, and then free time in the afternoon.  The group enjoyed the ocean and sunset pictures.

That’s Diana, Jorge, and Sofie waving to me.

A small group of us enjoyed dinner in the Mediterranean restaurant on Wednesday evening, and then Blair arranged for the very talented guitar player in the restaurant to give us a private outdoor concert :

Some dancers joined in:

The guitar player went in to get a capo, so Jorge took over – is there no limit to this man’s talents?

Most of the group left on Thursday morning, and so Diana and I enjoyed some quiet time by the pool, followed by a relaxing meal in the Mediterranean restaurant.  Diana had some more of the excellent octopus, while I enjoyed some more of the squid ink linguini with shrimp, mussels and clams.  We had shared those with the table the previous night, and were happy to repeat the highlights.

We did take advantage of the “social hour” on the upstairs restaurant balcony before dinner – what an amazing view:

We snapped a quick selfie and then took a shuttle to the airport for our long day of travel back home.  The four hour layover in Miami really was a bit too long, getting us home shortly before midnight.

The Kingpin had a band called “The Been Around Band” on Saturday afternoon.  Most of the Krewe (minus Denny and Anne – in Alabama) assembled and enjoyed the music – quite a different kind of band than normal.

The Blues and BBQ festival is an annual event put on by the Jazz and Heritage Festival folks – so the sound and timing are always impeccable.  Here’s the lineup for Sunday:

We arrived in time to see Billy Iuso at noon.  The event was very quiet due to the Saints game at the same time.

We humoured a Jazz and Heritage employee who was taking pictures and videos with signs:

Iuso played a great set of covers and originals.

That was followed by Mitch Woods and his Rocket 88s, with John Fohl on guitar – he really can play any style of music.  Here’s the song I hear every morning as Diana’s alarm clock:

We finished up with a wonderful sounding Eric Lindell band:

What a wonderful free day of music!

We headed back home to watch the Cowboys game and should have stayed at the festival – a pathetic performance all around.

I finished up “Tell Me Everything” by the amazing Elizabeth Strout.  What an excellent book – weaving together the characters from all her previous novels into a new set of tales.

The characters are some of my favourites in all of my reading.   Highly recommended.

Some of that great 70s feel from Candi Staton:

A great sounding song from the Allman Bros offspring:

And finally, a deep cut from Tom Petty:

Coexist peacefully, with kindness and patience for all!

“A Quick Austin Visit”

We flew to Austin on Monday afternoon, arriving in time to check into the Carpenter hotel, and then for me to attend a reception in downtown for successors to the Executive Committee members with our Board of Directors.  The reception was very nicely done and thankfully didn’t last too long.

We had our three year strategic plan presentation with the Board on Tuesday morning.  That went well and our budget was approved.  We retired to the Soho House (a private club that our CEO, Lachie, belongs to) for lunch.  I had been there once before and while the space is beautiful, was not impressed with the service.  The food was very good, and again the service was slow and spotty.  Such a shame they can’t get it all together at such a fancy place.

Meanwhile, Lisa and Diana relaxed at the Carpenter pool.  They always have such a good time hanging out.

We had planned to be finished with the afternoon event and Blair and I were going to meet Diana and Lisa at the Odd Duck for dinner.  The best plans!  The group was still going strong at the time of our dinner reservation.  Lots of frustrating back and forth ensued on what to do.  The Odd Duck didn’t have room for our extras, so Lisa and Diana enjoyed a very yummy dinner there, while the rest of us visited the crazy Tiki bar across the street.

Odd Duck is one of my very favourite Austin spots – so creative and different.  Here are some of the pictures that the girls taunted us with as they worked through the menu:

We had some snacks and crazy Tiki drinks:

We met Damon at June’s All Day, our typical last stop in Austin on the way to the airport, for lunch and were home early Wednesday evening.

My excitement on Thursday was getting my teeth cleaned – all looks good – whew!  Patience is required for a full set of x-rays.

Diana joined the Krewe for Happy Hour and tacos on Friday night.  I was worn out from the Austin trip and took a pass for an early night.

Saturday was a relatively busy day.  We started with a visit to NOAC – I had a pleasant swim (timing after the aqua aerobic ladies) and an even more pleasant visit to the steam room.

Diana picked our after workout brunch spot – Paladar 511 in the Marigny.  She was pleasantly surprised that I quickly agreed with her first pick.  It’s close to eight years since we last ate here, and it’s still very good.  Diana had a crab and corn Benedict – the corn cake base was phenomenal, the corn very fresh and the sauce delicious – a wonderful brunch.  I had the huevos rancheros – also delicious.  I’m going to have to think about my choice for the next place – Paladar will be hard to beat.

After lunch we got our COVID and flu shots.  Diana was going to get the shingles shot as well, but they were out of stock – probably a good thing as I had a bad reaction to it and she was looking forward to Greg and Colleen’s pool party on Sunday.

We enjoyed watching the Saints game on Greg’s new outdoor TV by his pool.  He cooked burgers and a sweet potato dish – always a very good chef and host.  Trey, Lynn, Danny, Chris Peet and Tyler, Claire and Ollie (Greg and Colleen’s one year old grandson) were additions to the normal krewe.  Unfortunately both the Saints and Cowboys lost this week.  But it’s not about winning – it’s about spending time with friends!

I started Ann Patchett’s “The Patron Saint of Liars” this week.  Kindle says I’m only 22% complete – busy week of travel and meetings.  This was Patchett’s first novel and I’m enjoying it so far.  She will be visiting the Garden District Book Store, across the street, next week.  Maybe I’ll pop over and meet her.  Here’s the online summary:

“Acclaimed author Ann Patchett’s debut novel, hailed as “beautifully written . . . a first novel that second- and third-time novelists would envy for its grace, insight, and compassion” (Boston Herald)

St. Elizabeth’s, a home for unwed mothers in Habit, Kentucky, usually harbors its residents for only a little while. Not so Rose Clinton, a beautiful, mysterious woman who comes to the home pregnant but not unwed, and stays. She plans to give up her child, thinking she cannot be the mother it needs. But when Cecilia is born, Rose makes a place for herself and her daughter amid St. Elizabeth’s extended family of nuns and an ever-changing collection of pregnant teenage girls. Rose’s past won’t be kept away, though, even by St. Elizabeth’s; she cannot remain untouched by what she has left behind, even as she cannot change who she has become in the leaving.”

Such a great funky feel:

A deep discovery that I love:

I saw Jesse Malin on a morning show this weekend and found this collaboration with the Boss:

Coexist peacefully, with kindness and patience for all!

“Mermaid Parade”

We flew home from San Diego on Monday afternoon.  I could tell Diana was uncomfortable for most all of the almost four hour flight.  Walking through New Orleans airport, I asked her how miserable the flight was for her on a scale of 1 to 10.  “About a 12.”  We’ve got to get our backs healthy again soon.

The “Gentlemen Out At Lunch” club met at Origen Venezuelan Bistro on Tuesday.  Denny wasn’t able to join but the rest of the group assembled at the restaurant on St. Claude avenue in the Bywater.  Origen was Denny’s suggestion and he insisted that we go ahead without him.

This was another great experience – a new place for all of us, recently opened, with great service and a creative menu.  We shared ceviche and arepas appetizers and then I chose the mahi mahi for my main.  All delicious.

Here’s an article with more information about this hidden gem:

https://nola.eater.com/2024/4/22/24135036/origen-venezuelan-new-restaurant-open-new-orleans-bywater-brunch-julio-machado

We followed lunch with a visit to BJ’s lounge – just down the street.  Oops – getting ahead of myself again.  Kenny gave me a quick driving tour on the way.  The house he group up in with his eight siblings was three houses down from the restaurant – I got a drive by of that as well as the local schools, including the one where his Dad taught mathematics and French.  The tour was really enjoyable.  Kenny really has missed his calling.  I need to revisit getting him certified to give walking tours of the Garden District.

We had a fun pool tournament, with Kenny and I winning 3-2 over Thom and Alex.  But who was keeping score?

We didn’t decide on the September luncheon location.  I suspect Kenny’s repeat recommendation of the “Messina’s Runway Cafe” inside the restored art deco building at the Lakefront airport may win.

Our next entertainment came on Saturday, after a couple of quiet days.  Thom suggested we meet at Cooter Brown’s for lunch and college football.  Diana joined us, as well as Fred and Kenny, and later Peggy.  I take pictures of the “Hey Dude” shoes that Campbell gave me from random locations.  Here they are from Cooter’s:

Kenny and Kara picked us up in the evening, drove us to the Firehouse for parking, and then the 2nd annual Mermaid Parade.

MermaiD was anxious to join in on the action.  She can enter next year!

The parade was short and fun, with some excellent throws:

It was still early and Kara suggested Bouligny Tavern for a snack.  Who’s going to argue with the driver.  We enjoyed some delicious snacks and drinks.

I tried something new this week – picking up “It Ends With Us” by Colleen Hoover.  This is a romance style novel that Diana had on the kitchen counter to finish.  Goodness – I hope all her romances aren’t this dark.  The topics are marital and emotional abuse – apparently based on Hoover’s childhood.  The writing and characters are so good that I had to finish the book.  Certainly not for everyone, although it appears to have topped bestseller lists for several years, and is now a movie.

Two new albums were released this week by artists that I enjoy.  First, Uncle Lucius with a great sounding live album:

Next, Nick Cave:

And finally, something I came across that reminded me of an amazing Lucky Peterson concert in Dallas:

Coexist peacefully, with kindness and patience for all!

“Flying around – Austin and San Diego”

My travel experience to Austin early on Monday morning was surprisingly quiet and easy.  No wait at the security checkpoint and lots of open seats on the flight.  The walk to the Uber line in Austin is always annoying in 105 degree heat.  It must be at least a half mile hike.

The Carpenter Hotel was accommodating and let me check in at 10:30am.  Very helpful.  I was able drop my bag, get some medications from the wonderful Thom’s Market (they have some of everything you need) for my sore back, and meet Neffie for lunch downtown.

Neffie chose the Peacock Mediterranean Grill for our lunch meeting – prep for a large group session on Tuesday.  The Mezze plate with falafel, hummus, baba, and pita was right up my alley, along with a side of latkes with smoked trout roe and dill labneh.  I could eat this stuff several times a week.

Neffie offered to drop me in the office for my afternoon meetings.  Seemed like a good plan until I tried to get into her little BMW.  I got in and then my sore back would not permit me to lean out and close the door.  Good grief.

After a long afternoon of work, I was not in any mood to go out for sushi with the guys.  Instead I chose an early dinner by myself at the Carpenter Hall.

I only do Yelp reviews when things are either really good or really bad.  You can see from the above review that I had a very nice experience at the Carpenter Hall.  And it allowed me to be in bed early.

After a long and frustrating day of meetings, dinner on Tuesday night was hosted by our applications development partners at Perry’s steakhouse.  The seafood tower appetizer was full of yummy things, and that was followed with a well-cooked sea bass with creamy corn and a red pepper coulis.

My martini was served with a side of accoutrements – an oyster, a lemon twist and blue cheese stuffed olives.  What a choice.

The dinner went on for several hours, I enjoyed the discussion and was back in my hotel room in time to watch some of Michele Obama’s speech.  Her husband had a hard time following her.

My flight back to New Orleans was smooth and I was able to plop into my spot for a relaxing evening.

Meanwhile, the Ogans and Kirsches had rendezvoused in New York to watch some of the US Open tennis tournament.  Here they are at brunch:

And then taking in a Bansky exhibit:

The last one is a post Katrina mural from New Orleans.  I like the Ziggy Stardust Queen one.

There was a special memorial show for Nick Daniels III (Dumpstaphunk bass player) at Tipitina’s on Thursday evening.  Trombone Shorty and members of Galactic joined the band.  Advertised start time was 7pm.  I showed up at 7:30 and planned to stay for an hour or so – yeah right!  The music started at 9pm and was very good for the short while I lasted.  I did have some interesting conversations while we waited – Logan the molecular biologist was one of the more engaging characters.

They had a special light show that you can see in these videos – first time I’ve seen anything that fancy at this venue.

Friday had me back on a plane – this time to San Diego to meet up with Diana’s “California girlfriends” and spouses.  We were celebrating Donna’s 60th birthday.  I met up with Diana at the San Diego airport (she arrived a bit before me from San Francisco), we rode the long shuttle to the rental car facility, and then the relatively short drive to Encinitas and the Airbnb.  After settling in, the group made a very short drive to Kris and Cat’s home.

We shouldn’t forget Idris, the cat.  This is the one that Molly babysat when Kris and Cat came to visit.  He loves catching lizards and trying to take them inside the house.

We finished the night back at the Airbnb around the firepit.

Jeff and I enjoyed empanadas for breakfast at Bump Coffee on the main strip, after dropping Diana for a run along the beach road.

Then it was back over to Kris and Cat’s for a birthday pool party and dinner.

Sunday began with a casual breakfast at Nectarine Grove.  The food and outside seating were very good.  After that, things started to get a bit “over engineered” as they can with a large group – let’s do the art walk, then park at the beach and listen to the concert, and maybe get some lunch in there somewhere, then back to the house to change for dinner at 7pm.  I could tell that was too much and was going to get frustrating, so hung out at the house, played the piano, read my book, and watched some TV – a much more relaxing afternoon than Diana reported.

I joined up with the group again for dinner at Le Papagayo.  They had pleasant live music, good drinks and yummy food.  Very enjoyable.

My book this week was “Go as a River” by Shelley Read.  I hadn’t planned on this book and just grabbed it from the kitchen counter as I was leaving for my Austin flight.  While this is definitely more of a McD type plot, I really enjoyed the outdoor descriptions and understanding the tragedy of destroying the village.

Victoria had a very challenging life and it is very well described throughout the book.  I was happy for the resolution in the last few pages, otherwise things would have been very depressing.

Here’s an online summary:

“Seventeen-year-old Victoria Nash runs the household on her family’s peach farm in the small ranch town of Iola, Colorado—the sole surviving female in a family of troubled men. Wilson Moon is a young drifter with a mysterious past, displaced from his tribal land and determined to live as he chooses.

Victoria encounters Wil by chance on a street corner, a meeting that profoundly alters both of their young lives, igniting as much passion as danger. When tragedy strikes, Victoria leaves the only life she has ever known, fleeing into the surrounding mountains, where she struggles to survive in the wilderness with no clear notion of what her future will bring. As the seasons change, she also charts the changes in herself, finding in the beautiful but harsh landscape the meaning and strength to move forward and rebuild all that she has lost, even as the Gunnison River threatens to submerge her homeland—its ranches, farms, and the beloved peach orchard that has been in her family for generations.

Inspired by true events surrounding the destruction of the town of Iola in the 1960s, Go as a River is a story of deeply held love in the face of hardship and loss, but also of finding courage, resilience, friendship, and, finally, home—where least expected. This stunning debut explores what it means to lead your life as if it were a river—gathering and flowing, finding a way forward even when a river is dammed.”

Here’s a lovely mellow tune that was playing in the Carpenter restaurant when I enjoyed dinner.  I found out later that this was played through a vintage McIntosh amplifier with four tubes – no wonder it sounded so good.

An interesting song from a collection by Gilles Peterson, “Gilles Peterson Digs America”:

There’s a lot of interesting and deep variety on this collection.

One of my favourite moments from the Democratic convention was Bill Clinton comparing his party’s “We the people” to the opposition’s “Me Myself and I.”

Coexist peacefully, with patience and kindness for all!