I'm getting my washboard, spoons, and squeezebox ready

It's a lovely, rainy day in Iowa City, and I'm listening to some good music for the day (courtesy of Lucy), and will be reading a good book for the day soon (courtesy of Minty). As much as I would like to kind of wander around in the weather, I still feel like I'm recovering from cold-like symptoms (or possibly allergies, I just don't know) so I should probably play it safe and just hang out inside and stay dry. Besides, I've got my ham sandwich, Diet Dr Pepper, tunes, and reading material, why would I leave?

I feel like I've been in a little bit of a food-funk lately, ham sandwiches have been the norm. Not that it's a bad thing, I love all things ham, I really do. It's just not invigorating sometimes. I did have a delicious falafel yesterday. That's not that unusual for me, though, I haven't challenged myself or stimulated myself with different foods. I think that's going to start to change tomorrow, though. For you see, I'll be heading to the Amana Colonies for their annual Taste Louisiana Cajun & Zydeco Fest. (really, what says Louisiana more than a small German community in rural Iowa?)

I've always contended that I was born in the wrong era in the wrong part of the country. I should've been born about 80 years ago in New Orleans. I love Creole food (etouffee, jambalaya, gumbo, crawfish, pralines [pronounced praw-leens], beignets, the whole deal, and spicy spicy spicy) and the music (I dig Zydeco, but my real passion is the New Orleans-style jazz). Sometime in the future, I want to spend some time in New Orleans. I don't think I'd necessarily want to live there, but I still want to take it all in. And eat the food. Here's a couple photos to show everyone what I'll be stuffing into my face in about 24 hours. Hei toi!

A plate of crawfish

The proper way to eat a crawfish (I'll most likely inadvertantly stick my pinkie in the air, because that's what I do)

Beignets