New Orleans, Bridge and Bacon

Next stop . . . New Orleans . . . to visit Frank's cousins, listen to good music, get some good Cajun cooking, and rest our bones after the long drive from California.   Frank's cousins, Jeff and Derrick, own an auto body shop near the Garden District, complete with full RV-hook ups in their lot (thanks to post- Katrina trailers provided to the cousins by FEMA because their houses were flooded out). 

Private, family oriented . . . and the price is right

So we pulled into the back lot late one afternoon and settled in for a nice visit in New Orleans.  

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Also living in New Orleans is another Oceanside High School grad from the Class of 1962, John Onstott.  Both Frank and John were on the OHS football team. 

Two All-League members of the 1962 Pirates offensive front line

John was at the reunion in Oceanside and invited us to a party he and his wife Eleanor were giving on November 17 at their lovely home that faces Lake Ponchartrain . . . kind of a pre-holiday get together with his bridge club and business clients.  If you play bridge, you will recognize John as a Grand Life Master and one of the biggest names in the contract bridge world.

As it so happened, that date worked in perfectly with our travel plans, and so we scheduled our driving back East so we'd be in New Orleans for the event.  In fact, we pulled into New Orleans just the day before the party.

Bridge aficionados all . . .

Hard to see . . . but there was live music and dancing by the pool

Where does the bacon fit in?  Well, among the tasty delights of the evening was an item called Sweet Chile Bacon . . . a Cajun concoction if there ever was one.  It is simply thick-cut bacon that has been sprinkled with a little brown sugar and chili powder, and then baked in the oven to delightful crispness.   The bacon was just part of an amazing spread of shrimp, spicy pasta, beef tournedos, crab and assorted salads and finger desserts.

A luscious New Orleans buffet

After most of the guests had left, John opened up the good wine and real Cuban cigars and he, Frank and a few other good friends really got down to some male bonding by the far end of the pool.

What a great time we had!  It was a delightful evening.