How To Cook Snapping Turtle Part 1

My lovely wife (seen above) came across an 8lbs snapping turtle trying to cross the road. She pulled on the the side of the road and proceeded to battle the snapping turtle until she became the victor. This past weekend we went to her brothers house where my wife, my father-in-law and brother-in-law cooked turtle for father-in-law's birthday. You may have heard of turtle soup but here in the prairie region of Acadiana we make a "sauce-picante" with it and serve over rice. Its good stuff.

How To Cook Snapping Turtle Part 2

Protest Art Funding Cuts - April 1, Baton Rouge

PLEASE DISTRIBUTE WIDELY!
Calling all artists, musicians, performers, and patrons of the arts!
Join like-minded citizens on Wednesday, April 1 at 11:30 AM in Lafayette Park (across from the Shaw Center) for a Jazz Funeral for Louisiana Arts and Culture in protest of Governor Bobby Jindal’s proposed budget cut that will devastate Louisiana's economy by SLASHING the state budget for THE ARTS and ARTS EDUCATION by 83%.
Louisiana’s cultural economy, which is the states second largest industry (next to oil and gas), is in SERIOUS TROUBLE. On Thursday, April 2nd Bobby Jindal will enact a shameful budget cut that will devastate Louisiana's economy by SLASHING the state budget for The Arts and ARTS EDUCATION by 83%.

Yes, you read that correctly... 83%!

This budget cut will devastate a 10 billion dollar industry that sustains 144,000 jobs. Investing in the arts is economically productive. Every $1 invested in Louisiana’s non-profit Arts and Culture industry generates $6 in revenue for the state. The Arts and Culture industry is paramount in revitalizing struggling urban centers and dilapidating historic districts. In terms of civic engagement, these programs foster public discourse and debate and critically activate public memory. Moreover, these programs attract tourism, which is a VITAL part of Louisiana's struggling economy.
WE MUST ACT QUICKLY. The Louisiana House Appropriations Committee will be meeting on Thursday April 2nd. They are our last hope to stop Jindal from pursuing this INSANE course of action!
How to help:
1) Write your Legislator- it literally takes 5 seconds. go to: http://www.lparts.org/index.cfm enter your zip and click Write Your Legislator then click Take Action. Ask for a response. Let them know where you stand. Ask what there position is in regards to this issue. And finally, ask them what they are doing to prevent it from occuring..
2) BLITZ THE MEDIA- We are desperately trying to get national media coverage. Write the national networks (CNN, MSNBC, CBS, ABC, Comedy Central etc), blitz the blogs, call local and national radio and tell them to PLEASE COVER THIS STORY. Feel free to post and repost this email everywhere. If you want to post another cool link, Howie Klein has written an awesome article at the Huffington Post- check it out at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/howie-klein/bobby-jindal-dont-like-no_b_180462.html.
3) TAKE IT TO THE STREETS!
Plan of Action: We will meet at Lafayette Park across from the Shaw Center at 11:30 AM and begin marching at 12:00 PM up 3rd St. and then down Spanish Town Rd. toward Capitol Grocery.
What to Bring: Please wear attire appropriate for a Jazz Funeral. Feel free to bring hankies, umbrellas, and musical instruments. If you choose to carry signs, we suggest the following writing: “R.I.P LA Arts & Culture” or “Funding Arts and Culture in LA is FISCALLY responsible!”
Keep the Protest/ Performance Peaceful: According to Kim Brooks, Legal Advisor for the Chief of Police, we MUST keep moving, stay on the sidewalks, and avoid blocking street and pedestrian traffic. PLEASE ABIDE BY THESE GUIDELINES!
PLEASE do whatever you can to stop this budget cut. This is serious. We need all hands on deck.

Boogie Woogie

I hope you got to dance all weekend because I was sick and wished I could have danced.

Photo from Red Stick Ramblers' "Made In the Shade" video shoot.
Watch it on You Tube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=slLJFBeq0TM

Sunday Post

It's Sunday. And even though I haven't been a church-goer for 15 years now, I thought this photo might make a good Sunday blog post.

The Bluerunners

If you have never experienced the the awesome, bluesy, zyde-rocking music of The Bluerunners
then you have been leading a life not worth living.

Crawfish Boudin

This is T-Boy's Slaughter House's sign. What it dosen't say is that they have crawfish boudin there every Friday in Lent. Crawfish boudin - because Lent is a time for sacrifice.

T-Boy's Slaughter House, Mamou, LA
Shot with Holga 6x6 with b/w film.

Prairie des Femmes

Jindal Hates The Arts & Education &.............

Gov. Jindal, once again is showing just how damn Republican he can be. The week after he cut millions of dollars for higher education he has now basically cut all art funding. You can read more about it here: The Independent

I got this email earlier today. Please read and follow the links to write to the power that be in Baton Rouge and tell them just how important the arts are for this state.

Dear Friends,
>
> At today's Louisiana Partnership for the Arts/Arts Advocacy meeting I
> heard devastating news. Governor Jindal has cut Decentralized Arts
> Funding (DAF) by 83%. You heard right, 83%. He has also cut statewide
> arts grants by 31%, halved folklife funding, and eliminated funding
> for artist fellowships, the Percent for Art program, and several
> longtime staff positions.
>
> WHAT YOU CAN DO:
> The House Appropriations Committee will meet next week and we need to
> deluge them with emails, faxes, letters, and phone calls urging them
> to reinstate grant dollars. Go to www.lparts.org, type your zip code
> into the box on the left that says "write your legislators," click
> "take action," and the capwiz system sends emails to your
> representatives for you! It gives you a sample email, but you can
> personalize the email however you want. I especially urge you to tell
> your legislators how you and your organization will be affected if
> these cuts go through. We need to hit home that this 83% DAF cut and
> 31% SAF cut will devastate the cultural economy which is the second
> largest industry in the state.
>
> Once you've taken action, please pass this email on to your board
> members, friends, and membership. Through our grassroots efforts, we
> were able to restore funding for the arts back in 1994 when we faced a
> similar situation. WE CAN DO IT AGAIN NOW. We just need your help to
> get the message out so every member of Appropriations receives
> thousands of emails!
>
> Thank you for your support,
>
> Laura Larkin
> Grants & Community Development Director
> Arts Council of Greater Baton Rouge
> 427 Laurel Street
> Baton Rouge, LA 70801
> 225-344-8558
> fax 225-344-7777
> llarkin@acgbr.com
> www.artsbr.org

Fleur de Lis Project

I like tattoos. I have a growing assortment of tattoos. And all most of my tattoos have something to do with my Cajun culture or my beloved state of Louisiana. I even have a fleur de lis tattoo (not the one above -the one above is a lot fancier than mine.) And I am just one of many Louisianians that have a fleur de lis permently inked into their skin.

There has been a large increase in fleur de lis tattoo since Hurricane Katrina. I find this outward sign of pride of place and pride of culture super interesting. So I started photographing fleur de lis tattoos. I want to photograph as many as I can in the coming year. I am planing to have gatherings in Lafayette, New Orleans & Lake Charles, invite everyone with a fleur de lis tattoo and shoot, shoot, shoot. While also collecting the stories behind the art. I also want to talk to the tattoo artists of South Louisiana and hear what they have to say abou the rise of fleur de lis tattoos. And in a perfect world I would exhibit the photos next September - 5th year anniversary of Katrina. But we'll see.

So if you have a fleur de lis tattoo - I want to shoot it. And if you don't -don't be such a square man......

Zack Smith - A Post A Day? - Blog Wars!

So Zack Smith said that he will write a post a day on his blog. So not to be out done - I will write a post a day on my blog, until such time Zack forfeits by missing a day - or vise versa. So there - let the blogging begin..........or continue - you know what I mean.

(note: Zach Smith is unaware of this challenge. And he is really a nice guy. And a good photographer and plays in a kick ass band that just played a SXSW. Really, there is no good reason for me to pick on him. He didn't do anything to me. I guess I am just a jerk. Or maybe this is a way to get him to write more on his blog because I am a voyeuristic creep and I need something to entertain me while I wait for hundreds of photos to convert out of RAW.)

Update: Zack found out about my challenge and it is on. He also up the ante and said that he would post an original photo everyday. I agreed to do the same. So look for a flood of work from both of us.

Notre Graffiti Est En Français - Our Graffiti is in French

Some say that the French language is all but dead, here in South Louisiana. But, I think that as long as you find graffiti written in French (seen here in The Blue Moon Saloon bathroom -Lafayette, LA) the language will live on - at least an other generation.

Waffle House Wedding

I am jealous.
I often find photographs that I wish I would have taken. Some because they are sooo damn good. And some, like the "Waffle House Wedding" I wish I would have been able to witness and document the bizarreness that is the South.

Waffle House Wedding by Benjamin Hagar with Gwinnett Daily Post
Enjoy:
http://www.gwinnettdailypost.com/ftp/multimedia/waffleweddingx/publish_to_web/

A Toast On This St. Patrick's Day

Always remember to forget
The troubles that passed away.
But never forget to remember
The blessings that come each day.

May neighbours respect you,
Trouble neglect you,
The angels protect you,
And heaven accept you.

Road Side Produce

I'm a sucker for a hand painted road side sign. Call me nostalgic.
Eunice, LA January 2009
Shot with Holga 6x6, B/W Film

Pour L'Amour De La Louisiane

Pour L'amour de la Louisiane: An Evening of Music, Arts, and Culture in support of the Center for Cultural and Eco-Tourism

Thursday, March 12
6:30-8:30 pm
Alumni Center, St. Mary Blvd. Lafayette

Please join the CCET staff and Fellows, as well as artists, musicians, and supporters of Louisiana's heritage for a fundraiser to benefit CCET. An art auction, hors d'oeuvres, and drinks complement a music ensemble led by Archival Technician Chris Segura.

Lazarus- Rise

Above is an unfinished collage that I started. I titled it Lazarus. It was/is about New Orleans.

I like the idea of rebirth (but who doesn't). Starting over. I wish, many times I could start over. Or, more like a migratory bird (I know crows aren't migratory) live a life in one place for a while, then another for a spell, then back again. I would like to think that absence and distance would give way to a new fondness and deeper insight. Of course this is all a flight of fancy. I think maybe that this is more about........well something else far more Freudian (or would it be Jungian?).

Whooray For Ash Wednesday

Oh man.........thank God Lent starts today.

If I threw plastic forks at you on Monday night, I am sorry about that.

CODOFIL Print Ads

Here are the finished CODOFIL print ads that I photographed. I was very happy to work on this project because the preservation of the Cajun French language is very important to me. Also, the chair in these ads were built in Ville Platte, LA by my grandfather's uncle about 100 years ago. I thought that the chair would not only tie the three portraits together but add a bit of history and authenticity, even if I am the only one that knows.

I Got That Feelin!! - Mardi Gras est ici.

Filé & Turnips

The other day I came across a man selling produce by the side of the road. I have found that stopping and taking a look around is often worth being 10 minutes late to where ever I am going. This guy, set up at a gas station at the edge of the town of Ville Platte, LA was selling turnips and filé - homemade filé. A true find. I didn't know people around here still made their own filé. I was able to get 16oz. (enough to last me a life time) for $4.

1 Year of Blogging

One year ago, for whatever reason, I decided to start blogging. I told my self I would give it a year and see how it goes. I have come to enjoy it (even if it is just me looking at it.) Happy Birthday Bloggy.

Congrès Mondial Acadien 2014 Louisiane www.cma2014.com

www.cma2014.com
For the last year or so I have been part of a group of people that have worked very hard to create a bid to hold 2014's Congrès Mondial Acadien in Louisiana - Acadiana to be specific.

The World Acadian Congress is a huge gathering of Acadians from all over the world. It takes place every five years and the next one will be held in 2009 in the Acadian Peninsula, in northeast New Brunswick.The first World Acadian Congress took place in 1994, in southeastern New Brunswick, and it was organized by nine francophone municipalities from that area. The second Congress took place in 1999 in Louisiana and the third was organized in 2004 in Nova Scotia.

The CMA is a great way for all Acadiens to celebrate being Acadien. It will also bring an estimated $15 million dollors to South Louisiana.

But a big part of winning the bid is proving that the people of South Louisiana want it to come here. So we have built a website www.cma21014.com where people can add their name to the list of people who wish to see CMA 2014 in Louisiana. Also, you can make and upload videos to the website. I encourage all of you (all 3 of you) to go to www.cma2014.com and at the very least sign up and support us.

We Ain't Always Pretty, Cher

The other day, I was searching the internet for recipes when I spotted a "Cajun" recipe. I clicked on it and of course it is some bastardized recipe (bastardized half out of necessity and half out of ignorance) written by someone that lives far away from Louisiana. Nothing new here. I wonder how many people taste something that is suppose to be Cajun (but is far from it) and decide that they don't like Cajun food.

But there is one comment at the bottom of the page that caught my eye - "These dish is not very pretty. It is all brown............Cajun food subscribes to the Looks like Hell, tastes like Heaven school......."

I never really thought about it but our food is not always pretty. But it always tastes good. But try and make boudin look appetizing to someone that didn't grow up with it. Or how about Sticky Chicken?

We ain't always pretty, cher....mais, we always good.

Photographs shot with Holga 6x6 of a "Cajun Microwave" (top) and Moise cooking graton in a black iron pot (bottom.) Savoy, LA

Kitchen Music

Here is Linzay Young of the Red Stick Ramblers playing fiddle in his kitchen. It seems that around here most things take place in the kitchen. We cook, we visit, we drink and play music. The kitchen is the center of activity in most Louisiana homes.

Photo shot with Holga 6x6 w/ old B&W film.

Faquetigue Courir De Mardi Gras

This is 2009's Faquetigue Mardi Gras Poster. I made it from a photo I shot last year. I can 't tell you where Faquetigue Mardi Gras is but I can still get you a poster. Contact me by clicking on my profile on the right > then click email on the left.

Les Camarades du Mardi Gras

Life long friends and fellow musicians, Joel Savoy and Linzay Young. Mardi Gras 2007.

Boys In The Ancestral Land

June 2000. Grand Pre, Nova Scotia. (clockwise from top) Joel Savoy, Matthew Doucet, Andy Perin & me (Lucius Fontenot).

We were all attending Universite Ste-Anne's French Immersion program that Summer. We four Cajun boys decided to take a road trip to the site at which the British begun the expultion of our Acadian ancesters. It is may seem hoky to say but I felt a true connection there. I felt at home.

GO!

You just can't out run it sometimes.

Dudley LeBlanc Stomp Speech Mamou, LA Feb. 1952

Here is a little gem I found while searching LIFE Magazine's photo archives hosted by Google
http://images.google.com/hosted/life

From Wikipedia:

Dudley Joseph "Cousin Dud" LeBlanc (August 16, 1894 – October 22, 1971) was a colorful and popular Democratic and Cajun member of the Louisiana State Senate whose entrepreneurial talents netted him a fortune through the alcohol-laden patent medicine known as "Hadacol."

LeBlanc often campaigned in French when he made appearances in Acadiana. In his ethnic tongue, he extolled his virtues as a politician who deserved the support of his fellow French ethnics, and he attacked his opponents in a language that most of his rivals could not understand.

In addition to his determined political activities, LeBlanc was a staunch defender of preserving Cajun culture in Louisiana. He served as president of the Association of Louisiana Acadians, and in the late 1960s, he worked to establish the interest group, CODOFIL, or the "Council for the Development of French in Louisiana." LeBlanc helped to make Louisiana the only bilingual state in the nation.

LeBlanc wrote three books: The True Story of the Acadians in 1927, an "improved version" of the first book in 1932, and The Acadian Miracle in 1966. The latter was a revised and expanded edition of the first book.

FEMA, (once again) Blames Louisiana

FEMA, sticking with their policy of "blame the victims" told Louisiana Governor, Bobby Jindal that Louisianians were too greedy and that is why they ran out of MREs after Hurrican Gustav. To which the Jindal administration responded,

"FEMA brought up this same assertion during the storms, and the governor made it clear that it is nutty to tell the people of south Louisiana that we are simply eating too much and are choosing MREs over our terrific local cuisine," Jindal's spokeswoman Melissa Sellers said.

Read the whole story at The Times-Picayune website.

So FEMA thinks that when people in Louisiana want to eat MRE over what is stocked in the deep freezer? NEWS FLASH FEMA - when the power goes out the food defrosts and then spoils. It is then that we eat MREs. And seeing as after every hurricane I seem to work 12 hours of the day cleaning up, I think that I would need something to eat. Even if it is MREs.

FEMA, YOU SUCK

CODIFIL TV Spots

Louisiana 1938

Aren't they cool.

Year In/End Review

It is twelve and a half hours till 2009. I am sick. I usually get sick, I mean really sick, once a year. This year, I will ring in the new year zoned out on cold meds and feeling like crap. But, this is not a marker of how my year has been. In fact, this has been a very good year for me. It did start on a low note- moving back to Mamou. I thought that if I moved away from Lafayette, I would be moving to New Orleans or New York or New Brunswick (hmmmm...I am seeing a pattern.) But after going through a slight depression I snapped out of it. I live in a great house. My company, Valcour Records won Offbeat Magazine's "Record Label of the Year" award and "Allons Boire Un Coup" won Offbeat's "Cajun Record of the Year." My friends and I put together, for the third year, a real community Mardi Gras run. I celebrated my second wedding anniversary. I turned 30 (ok so that is not a fun highlight.) Two new friends and I managed to create a international art exhibit about Acadian and Cajun music. I am getting more freelance work. America took a huge step and elected Obama presedent. It snowed. Cedric Watson's cd (a Valcour Records release) is nominated for a Grammy as well as Offbeat Magazine's "Cajun Record of the Year." It truely has been a good year. Shitty things happed too.....but I am not looking back on them. I am hopeful that 2009 will be just as good. I hope your year was a good one and I hope that 2009 is at least as good.

Voices of the Atchafalaya

Voices of the Atchafalaya is a documentary of Louisiana's Atchafayala Basin. Combining photographs with a soundscape composed from oral histories and ambient sounds, it hopes to portray life in this region.

Click here to see a multi-media slide show.

This was an exhibit in Patterson, LA in 2007. I wish I would have known.

The Future of the Cajun Culture & Language

Yes, the future of the Cajun culture/language is in the hands of the Cajun people. But most who claim that cultural identity, cannot be bothered to participate in the culture except to go to a festival and get drunk. They (in the words of Marc Savoy) traded in their hot bowl of gumbo for a cold tasteless American hot dog. Then, for those who do care & put their children in French immersion schools - they find out that the state will not provide French textbooks. What kind of shit is that? We have past the point where we could have a bilingual society in Louisiana. We may have past the point where there is any authentic culture in Louisiana. But it doesn't mean that those few who care about their culture and their language have to go down with out a fight. We, like Beausoleil (the rebel Acadian - not the band)can fight and cause frustration and resist and and strike fear in those who get in out way. And we don't need anyone's permission. We don't need to be government sanctioned. We don't have to organize. We, fight under the understanding that 1,000 cuts brings down the animal. It is our fault. It is our fight.

Something New - New Work

Losing Louisiana - Times-Picayune Report

In case you didn't know, We are losing Louisiana's coastline. Along with the coast we are losing our culture. The Times-Picayune has been reporting on this problem. Here is an great report on the problem and possible solutions.

http://www.nola.com/coastal/

I Throw My Shoe At You!

Hahahahaha.
Take that Bushy Boy.
A fitting farewell for W, in my opinion.

Sneaux: part deux

Snow in Mamou, LA, 7AM, December 11, 2008

Snow (sneaux) in South Louisiana

It has been 20 years since it snowed in South Louisiana. I was 8. This morning it snowed 3 inches in my town - Mamou. It even snowed in New Orleans.

Valcour puts out "The Triangle" cd

Christine Balfa Plays the Triangle, featuring Christine Balfa. Nearly an hour of pure, unadulterated classic Cajun triangle. Seriously, its an idea so simple and so brilliant, we had to get Cajun royal lineage involved! This is sure to become a collector’s item, as we’re only going to print a limited amount, and it features Christine Balfa’s playing, the production of Chas Justus, and the engineering of Joel Savoy.

No one will ever do this again.

Working with christine on this record was effortless. Any artistic direction I could have given would have just gotten in the way of her purely simple yet nuanced style. Her playing transcends genre, stripping away superficiality and reaching directly to the core. It’s playful, emotional and at times cathartic. Let her take you on a journey of musical discovery that channels the old masters yet remains innovative and uniquely Christine.

- Chas Justus, Producer

Christine Balfa comes from a long line of traditional Cajun musicians
centered in the prairies of Southwest Louisiana. Her father Dewey gave her
a triangle while she was still a toddler and she spent much of her childhood
jamming with the Balfa Brothers in the family home near Basile. It wasn’t
long, however, until she found herself longing to break free from the
stifling tonality of fiddles, accordions, and guitars. An undeniable need
to express the sounds she heard around her without limitation - mama
stirring coush coush in the pan, cowbells tinkling as the herd came back in
for the night, daddy grinding the school bus gears in the morning - became
the dominating force in her life. This CD realizes, at long last, her
vision of liberation for the instrument. Unfettered by melodic or harmonic
content, she can finally tell her story, and the story of her people, to the
world.

- Dirk Powell, Expert

Musicians Appearing on this Album
Christine Balfa - Triangle, occasional yelling

Tracks
1. L’Anse au Paille 5:01
2. The Balfa Waltz 3:32 Listen>
3. La Port en Arrière 4:50
4. Blues de Port Arthur 4:20
5. Valse d’Heritage 3:45
6. ‘Tit Fer à Grand-Père 4:11
7. Chères Joues Roses 5:05
8. Two-Step d’Acadien 5:24
9. Blues de Tac-Tac 4:30
10. Triangle Club Special 3:25
11. La Valse d’Orphelin 4:34
12. Bayou Teche Two-Step 2:51
13. Pine Grove Blues 4:06

Total Playing Time 55m28s

THE CD IS REAL BUT IT IS A GAG.

Nominated for a Grammy!

No, I have not been nominated for a Grammy, but in a way I am.....kind of. Cedric Watson's self-titled debut cd (I did the photography) on Valcour Records (which I own with two partners) is nominated for a Grammy in the "Best Cajun/Zydeco" category. I am proud of him and Valcour Records.