My book “Stone Motel: Memoirs of a Cajun Boy” (University Press of Mississippi, Spring 2020) takes place in the early-to-mid-1970s. From the first pages, I give the reader a sense of place (a little roadside motel in Cajun Louisiana), and for context, a sense of time: This was all before widespread access to cable television, microwave ovens, fast food, and of course way before the … Continue reading We’ve landed in 1974, Baby!
Eunice native Jere Longman, writing for today’s edition of The New York Times, on the tumultuous late 1960s to early 1970s and beyond. He beautifully captures the electricity of a period when our home city was in the throes of transition. Continue reading Sunday Times: Dispatch from Eunice, La. on a Piece of its Desegregation History
In April, when I converted my old newsletter (Parenthetically Speaking) into this blog, I announced that the University Press of Mississippi (UPM) will be publishing my memoir next year. At the time, the title of my book was “The Canasta Summers – Memoirs of a Cajun Boy.” This was the only title I’ve ever considered for this book because the story covers a period of … Continue reading How’s this for a book jacket blurb?
C.A.K.E. It’s my favorite four-letter word. No matter the time of day, or the setting, or the circumstances, I never turn down cake. Even the lowliest, skankiest-looking 24-hour-convenience-store shelf cake (think Entenmann’s but without the ‘finesse’) has me squirming with glee. That said, I definitely gravitate towards the more substantive, authentic homemade cakes – those that our mommas and mémères and tantes made. I also … Continue reading Cakeover: Beautiful Black & White Cake
It’s been a full, lonnnng month since our last cake expedition. I got a lot of ooohs and ahhhs on my Louisiana Butter Pecan Cake in May. (You can get all the buttery, pecan-y lowdown here.) So it’s a new month and, as promised, it’s time we talked cake again. Specifically, another “Cakeover” of a cake that was popular during my 1970s childhood in Louisiana. … Continue reading Cakeover: Watergate Cake – Redux
(Parenthetically) Speaking 