Cajun Louisiana

The architect for our home in Georgia, Samuel Wilson, Jr., of Koch & Wilson in NOLA, did the restorations for Oak Alley, etc. When I was at Tulane, I took his Louisiana architecture class. He chartered a bus with a keg of beer, and we visited all of the plantations of which you speak. My roommate and I were both in that class. BTW her husband, Charlie Melancon, is one of the U.S. congressmen from Louisiana. She and I had a fabulous time in that class. Dr. Wilson also took us to many homes in the Garden District and the French Quarter that he'd restored. It was one of the best experiences of my life.

And my daughter knows the "Cajun Night Before Christmas" by heart.

Glad you enjoyed it;it is like no other place. The sand is brown thanks to Old Man River-silt, silt, silt! And you picked up on a fact that most people never do-there are no Cajuns in New Orleans! :razz:

I bet that Cajun Night Before Christmas is cute! Can only imagine! Want so bad to go back. We had it made that week we went, didn't have to pay for a motel room, had free lodging thanks to my husband's uncle and his wife. Stayed in their house for the entire week free of charge. I tell you one thing, the humidity down there was horrible. Would go outside at 8:00 in the morning and my arms would instantly cover with a wet sticky film from it being so humid. Horrible. Way worse than here. That won't stop me from going back though.

Glad you enjoyed it;it is like no other place. The sand is brown thanks to Old Man River-silt, silt, silt! And you picked up on a fact that most people never do-there are no Cajuns in New Orleans! :razz:

Not many Cajuns in NOLA. But plenty of Yats, as we called them at Tulane, as in, "Where y'at?".

I bet that Cajun Night Before Christmas is cute!

The Cajun Night Before Christmas
By ?Trosclair?

?Twas the night before Christmas
An? all t?ru de house
Dey don?t a t?ing pass
Not even a mouse.
De chirren been nezzle
Good snug on de flo?
An? Mama pass de pepper
T?ru de crack on de do?.

Den Mama in de fireplace
Done roas? up de ham
Stir up de gumbo
An? make bake de yam.

Den out on de by-you
Dey got such a clatter
Make soun? like old Boudreau
Done fall off his ladder.

I run like a rabbit
To got to de do?
Trip over de dorg
An? fall on de flo?!

As I look out de do?
In de light o? de moon
I t?ink ?Manh, you crazy
Or got ol? too soon.?

Cuz dere on de by-you
W?en I stretch ma? neck stiff
Dere?s eight alligator
A pullin? de skiff.

An? a little fat drover
Wit? a long pole-ing stick
I know r?at away
Got to be ole St. Nick.

Mo? fas?er an? fas?er
De ?gator dey came
He whistle an? holler
An? call dem by name:

?Ha, Gaston!
Ha, Tiboy!
Ha, Pierre an? Alce?!
Gee, Ninette!
Gee, Suzette!
Celeste an? Rene?!?

?To de top o? de porch
To de top o? de wall
Make crawl, alligator,
An? be sho? you don? fall.?

Like Tante Flo?s cat
T?ru de treetop he fly
W?en de big ole houn? dorg
Come a run hisse?f by
Like dat up de porch
Dem ole ?gator clim!
Wit? de skiff full o? toy
An? St. Nicklus behin?.
Den on top de porch roof
It soun? like de hail
W?en all dem big ?gator
Done sot down dey tail.

Den down de chimney
I yell wit? a bam
An? St. Nicklus fall
An? sit on de yam.
?Sacre!? he axclaim
?Ma pant got a hole
I done sot ma?se?f
On dem red hot coal.?

He got on his foots
An? jump like a cat
Out to de flo?
Where he lan? wit? a SPLAT!

He was dress in musk-rat
From his head to his foot
An? his clothes is all dirty
Wit? ashes an? soot.
A sack full o? playt?ing
He t?row on his back
He look like a burglar
An? dass fo? a fack.

His eyes how dey shine
His dimple, how merry!
Maybe he been drink
De wine from blackberry.
His cheek was like rose
His nose like a cherry
On secon? t?ought maybe
He lap up de sherry.

Wit? snow-white chin whisker
An? quiverin? belly
He shook w?en he laugh
Like de stromberry jelly!

But a wink in his eye
An? a shook o? his head
Make my confi-dence dat
I don? got to be scared.

He don? do no talkin?
Gone straight to his work
Put playt?ing in sock
An? den turn wit? a jerk.

He put bot? his han?
Dere on top o? his head
Cas? an eye on de chimney
An? den he done said:
?Wit? all o? dat fire
An? dem burnin? hot flame
Me I ain? goin? back
By de way dat I came.?

So he run out de do?
An? he clim? to de roof
He ain? no fool, him
For to make one more goof.

He jump in his skiff
An? crack his big whip
De ?gator move down
An? don? make one slip.

An? I hear him shout loud
As a splashin? he go
?Merry Christmas to all
?Til I saw you some mo?!?

Love it! :lolabove:

And speaking of Cajun, I miss Justin Wilson and his cooking show. Also, do Cajun's still eat those nasty 'ol nutrias? :puke:

Dunno. I never did. We just liked to watch the guys gator in an inch of booze while occasionally slipping out for a Lucky Dog to maintain our sobriety.

When I taught Kindergarten in South Louisiana I always read the cajun night before christmas. More 'cajun' books are Going to Wezeana and all the Gaston books. He is an alligator that goes on many adventures. Such as Gaston the green nosed alligator and Gaston goes to Mardi Gras.. Such a wonderful culture and it is great that they work on keeping it going through books, storytelling, music, food, etc.

The Boudreaux and Tibedaux jokes are the best, I should post some so we all can have a good laugh!!!

😀 Good joke!

Working At The Space Center

One summer Boudreau and Tibodeau got a job at the Kennedy Space
Center in Florida. They didn't know they were in a dry county, so they
were in for hard times with no booze. Towards the end of the week they
were getting pretty thirsty for a beer, but alas, they were out of luck!
No alcohol on the premises--that is, for drinking purposes.

Boudreau was getting desperate, but he had a bright idea. "Go
downstairs and get us two cans of Sprite in the pop machine, Tib. Don't
ask why--jus' do it." Tib went downstairs for the pop and Boudreau
went to the warehouse with a big coffee cup. He filled it with some 300
proof methyl alcohol--used for fuel in jet engines at the Center. He went
back and met Tib at his work station. They each drank a few slugs of
pop to make room in the cans, filling them back up. He grinned at Tib
and told him to try some as he walked back to his room.

About thirty minutes passed and then the phone started ringing off
the hook. After drinking his drink, Boudreau was not in the mood to talk
on the phone. He let it ring a few times and finally answered. "Hello,
who is it?"

The voice on the other end said, "Hey Boud, this is Tib. Did you
drink your spirits yet?"

He said, "Yes, who is this?"

"This is Tib and I gotta ax if you went to the men's room yet?"

"No, me I didn't go yet."

"Well, don't poo when you go in 'dere' cause I did--and I'm way out
here in North Carolina?"

Wife and I make a trip to NOLA and South La at least once a year. If you ever get the chance, take old River road, and tour the plantations. Some really pretty places. Also Oak Alley has a great lunch.

😀 I have several Louisiana travel books that have been sent to me over the years, including one this year. The next time we go we are probably going to just stay in a motel even though we could use that house again if he asked his uncle but he doesn't want to do that. We don't want anyone to feel like they have to entertain us that whole week while down and we know our way around as my husband lived down there for about 9 months back when he was in his 20's. I wish now we had gone to Rip Van Winkle gardens when down. We went right past where it was and didn't go there. I want to do just a clean sweep of plantation homes all around Franklin and Jeanerette, etc. I love the way they call creeks coulees.