The Cave Singers - Haller Lake

Here's a little bit of The Cave Singers for you playing a song called Haller Lake. Cool tune from a band that keeps growing on me.

(Playing with a new blog template, complain or praise away; seems like my twitter feed is lost in this format.)

Thinking about that plate...

Been a while since I posted a picture of Jozy up here. Took this the other night after having some dessert. She was a bit jealous, turned on the charm but to no avail.

Dawes

Becoming a big fan of this band these days. Dawes is from Los Angeles and just does stuff like this that is full of lyrical genius.

There were moments of dreams I was offered to save
I live less like a workhorse more like a slave
I thought that one quick moment that was noble or brave
Would be worth the most of my life.

So I pointed my fingers and shout a few quotes I knew
As if something that´s written should be taken as true
But every path I have taken and conclusion I drew
Would put truth back under the knife.

And now the only piece of advice that continues to help:
Is anyone that´s making anything new only breaks something else.


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And then there are songs like this where your realize that not only can they turn lyrics like the above into catchy songs, but into what I what I would consider great poetry.

Cause it’s a little bit of everything,
The way you choke, the way you ache,
It is waking up before you,
So I can watch you as you wake.
So in the day in late September,
It’s not some stupid little ring,
I’m giving a little bit of everything.

Family visit includes pilfering from Buddha...

This post is a bit overdue but I wanted to share a couple family related photos. My aunt and uncle from Texas stopped by for a visit recently and it was awesome to be able to spend a little bit of time with family. It's not often that we get to visit with these two so it was a real treat.

Here is a photo of the group of us after having an amazing Sunday Cajun brunch at The French Press.

We went on a quick tour of Jungle Gardens at Avery Island (where Tabasco sauce is made), a favorite place for people coming to our neck of the woods due to the opportunity to see some really beautiful live oaks, gators and tons of migratory birds.

 

And of course, there is the Buddhist Temple at the garden, where people leave donations on this little elephant. As you can see, my aunt has a knack for getting into trouble. Here you can see that I caught her red handed trying to pilfer the donations!

Just kidding obviously...I made her pose for that shot.

Cajun Signs and Football Fever

We spent a little time out at the UL tailgate this past weekend. UL has a new vibe this season with their new coach and local support is through the roof. Oddly enough, 10 years here and this was my first time out at Cajun Field for pigskin. Didn't stay for the game, but the atmosphere was cool regardless.

Here's a classic Cajun sign. Yes, it reads, "Our drinking team has a football problem."

Here's the Rajun Cajun band playing in front of the stadium, viewed from underneath an old live oak. 

Awesome artwork painted on a sheet and hung in the front of someone's RV. Yeah, that's a crawfish ready for battle. 

After the game we had to swing by the grocery store. Here's the display for the fish monger. Those little things with helmets? Fresh prawns on the line of scrimmage. Gotta love it.

You might catch us out there again, maybe this Jersey boy can get behind the "Wear Red" movement this year.

Homemade Modified Cucumbers

It's been a long long while since I gave an update on the elusive perfect pickle search...so far only found from Steck's in NJ. Where have I turned to in order to satisfy this craving? Homemade pickles. The photo above is my first batch. These were made with Bobby Flay's recipe found here. I don't have the right equipment to made the kind that take 4-6 weeks to achieve pickle-ness, so these are the quick overnight kind. And actually they are pretty good! They have a long way to go to reach Steck quality though. The hunt continues.

Remembering

Of Monsters and Men - Little Talks

Of Monsters and Men are from Reykjavik, Iceland and apparently draw a lot of comparisons to Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros. Personally, they remind me a lot of this song from The Lumineers.  The video below from KEXP is apparently what kick started their fame. I can see why. Cool tune.

Over exposed found family photo...

A couple of years ago I found an old roll of film that was from our old home in NJ that had never been developed. I took it to a place to get developed and all of the photos came out bright orange due to over exposure or age. While taking shelter from the storm this past weekend I tried to restore one or two of them using the photo editor on our mac. Here is the original from the roll of film - this was the best ones on it. The rest were almost indecipherable.

Here is the one that I ended up with after adjusting the color balance. Not sure if it is better or not...

This is an old family photo taken outside of our front house in North Branch, NJ. Looks like around Christmas time. Not sure what year at all but I'm obviously the short one in the front left who looks pretty darn cold. It looks like it was before building out our front stoop area. I remember helping hang those Christmas lights every year. Good old Miller Ave memories.

Things used to be different...

I've spent the last two days cleaning out the closet in my office. It is a treasure trove of trash, memories, office supplies, and souvenirs from trips all over the place. Needless to say I found a ton of old photos and got a particular kick out of this one, which is courtesy of Sineddie who sent it back to me in 2003. The photo itself has to be from 1998 or prior but I am not 100% sure what year. I'm going to guess 1997 but I could be totally off base. These were the college years...back when I was innocent and full of hair...

Update: Now that I take a closer look, I think I can place this photo in Cincinnati. Quite possible that my brother might be able to pinpoint the year (if Sineddie cannot) as I think that is my brother's alpine chair in the background. 

Tornado Drills...

After we finished securing the items in our back yard in advance of the heavy winds, we decided to do a dry run or two of getting Jozy into tornado readiness. It took a few treats but eventually she got the hang of it...

Hunkering Down...

The weather is pretty calm at this point today but the word is that late tonight is is going to get a little rough in Lafayette with Tropical Storm Lee in the area. It's a slow moving system so we are expecting a ton of rain and we are under a tornado warning for most of the day. Luckily enough, our brand new couch finally arrived yesterday so we are going to set up camp there tonight well away from the frequently falling limbs of our pecan tree that is next to our bedroom. Jozy has already picked out her spot. We're probably being little over cautious in doing so...but I'd rather be safe than under a pecan limb.