On Friday afternoon, Brian started mumbling something about “wallafels.” “Do you mean “falafel?” we asked. “Yeah, something like that,” he said. So we piled into the van, thinking we were heading out for Middle Eastern food for dinner. Instead, we ended up in one of those really, really weird Louisiana places where the door is hidden and the only sign is something unintelligible spray-painted on the metal siding on the wall. Barry says he wouldn’t have set foot in the place (a fire trap with interesting health code ramification) except that the parking lot was completely full.
The word Brian has been trying to remember was “muffaletta,” which, according to Brian, sounds like “falafel.” They’re like huge grilled paninis, filled with meat and cheese and olives and peppers. Nothing like a falafel, but not at all disappointing!
Barry and I also popped by the Cafe du Monde for 3 beignets to go this week. We took our little paper bag to a nearby park bench and opened it. Somewhere, amidst the half pound of powdered sugar in the sack, there were three warm rectangular French doughnuts. We made such a mess of ourselves with the powdered sugar that tourists passing by laughed out loud.
Last night, Brian took Cayenne’s dinghy and his generator over to Neil’s boat, in the West End. We tied the dink astern, where it puttered away, providing electricity for many watts of Christmas decorations strung all over the boat. A party of about ten people spent the evening tooling around the West End marinas and comparing ourselves (very favorably, of course) to the rest of the boats in the Christmas parade. Brian commented that it was the first time he’d had a chance to take the helm of a boat (not counting the dinghy) since he came down to New Orleans!
While running errands (something I do a fair amount of, but not as much as Brian), I came up with some ideas for “Top Ten” lists. Here are the completed lists, generated with much assistance from the guys…
Top Ten Reasons Not to Work on a Boat in New Orleans
1. No open container laws and not a good beer within 2000 miles
2. Fire ants, mosquitoes, roaches, fleas, alligators (did we forget any?)
3. Signs on the termite tents: Do Not Approach Closer than 100 Yards (in 6-point type)
4. New Orleans potholes: Almost as bad as New Orleans drivers
5. Rain measured in inches per hour and a 5-acre puddle named Lake Seabrook
6. Our neighbor, the classic Chris Craft with the flyaway flybridge
7. $3000 profit margin on boatyard utility stands, if you hit one by accident
8. Our scenic gypsum factory across the waterway, who’s never known a bearing worth oiling
9. The Pot o’ Gold on Monday
10. Weekly news updates on Sheriff Lee’s gastric bypass surgery
11. Seabrook’s boatyard pool to see which boat will fall over next
Top Ten Reasons to Work on a Boat in New Orleans, Louisiana
1. Drive-through daquiri windows and no open container laws
2. The Chicken Box: More Cluck for Your Buck
3. Humor and entertainment provided by Determination Fiascoes Unlimited
4. Most scenic boat stuff store: Sea “Chest”
5. Watching the local news to see which elected official was indicted today
6. Free Internet access at the sail loft, if you spend over $10,000 on sails and don’t mind sitting on the floor
7. The Pot o’ Gold on Tuesday (after its weekly cleaning)
8. You Can’t Beat Wagner’s Meat
9. What EPA?