2010 July 08 — Patchwork Times by Judy Laquidara

July 8, 2010 · by JudyL

Eileen is my friend from Louisiana. You’ve heard me talk about her before. Her husband is Roger. I haven’t talked too much about him because well . . he’s a man. I could tell you about his July 4, 1992 fireworks display that none of us will ever forget, especially Roger because we remind him of it often. Vince has never met them and I keep telling him “those two are the kind of friends everyone should have” and I guess everyone should try to be those kind of friends too.

Anyway, Jessie is their daughter and she’s a talented photographer/writer — very artsy! This is an article in Madison Magazine about Jessie’s show, “Nutria Queens”, that she shot in Texas and Louisiana a couple of years ago. Know what a nutria is? Dinner for some folks! Jessie’s article gives a shot of what life is really like for many who live along the bayous of southwest Louisiana and the southeast Texas coast.

I haven’t seen Jessie’s show but just reading the article and Jessie’s thoughts about making the show makes me so proud to be from southwest Louisiana and so proud to have known Jessie since she was knee high to a duck! That was way back when I had no kids and Jessie and her brother, Rick, would pester my killer dachshund, and I wondered why sane adults ever had children. Some days I still ponder that same question!

I wasn’t a beauty queen, nor would I skin a nutria but maybe a little insight into life in southwest Louisiana will make you realize why I do some of the crazy things I do and write about on here. Life is different in Louisiana but it’s a great life and I miss it terribly!

Trapped!

July 8, 2010 · by JudyL

We mostly catch critters at night so in the mornings when I go out to tend to the chickens, I’m always halfway afraid to see what’s in the trap. I guess my biggest concern is we’ll catch a skunk. One morning this week there was nothing in the trap so I just left it alone. About mid-morning I went out to get eggs and noticed the trap was sprung but couldn’t see what was in there til I got right up to it.

Not exactly the chicken eating, garden destroying type critter I was trying to catch! Could someone please let me outta here?

Those nosy chickens! They’re watching every move I make and wanting to know what was going to happen to the turtle.

I let him out

And he took his sweet time about walking away. That’s how turtles move, you know . . slowly! He’s probably stuffed since he ate a ton of the marshmallows, which is what I use for catching raccoons!