Patch, Princess and a Clematis

Here is a particularly evocative picture for me because I lost Velvet (on right) a couple of years ago. Patch (the pic's a little blurry) is still with me, and brings me joy every day.

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The Ghost of Marie Laveau

Not so long ago, I reconnected by email with my old Vivian friend Jay Denny. Finding out at a North Caddo High reunion that I had started writing novels he’d bought a copy of Big Easy and began reading. Like me, Jay Denny lived in New Orleans for a time. He has moved back after a stint in LA. Here is a ghost story he swears is true. He is allowing me to tell it but made me promise not to reveal the actual hotel and bar so as not to offend the ghost of Madam Marie Laveau.

* * *

When I was nineteen, I lived across the street from Madam Marie Laveau’s house on St. Anne’s. In the seventies, I worked in a hotel on Rampart. It was rumored that part of Madam Marie’s bed was on the wall above the bar. It was a side piece that had a sliding door. This is so she could close herself off totally while sleeping and no one could cast a spell on her.

In the nineties, after a long sojourn in California I was back in New Orleans for a visit and decided to stay at the hotel. I went in the bar to see if the bedside was still there. It was, the bar remodeled, and the bedside moved it to a new spot.

I didnt tell a soul thinking some disrespectful person might mark it up if they knew the story. After checking into my room, I went about the business of seeing old friends from my LSU days and having dinner with them. We ate at recently opened Baco on Rue Chartres.

After returning to my hotel room I retired for the evening and turned out all the lights but one in a little dressing area kept coming back on. Thinking it had a short, I unplugged it. It came on again!  Then I realized my room was directly over the bar and the piece of Madam Marie’s bed. Now that I think of it, maybe she was trying to thank me for not giving away her secret.

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A Halloween to Remember - a story

Born the day before Halloween, I seem forever connected to that particular holiday. My deceased wife and I hosted Halloween parties for years. One unplanned Halloween party proved the strangest.

A Halloween to Remember

Halloween was on a Friday, so we planned the big bash for Saturday.  Not all our guests got the message, as three revelers showed up for the Friday night party. Born on the day before Halloween, I seem forever destined to be connected to that holiday.

Anne and I married early in 1980 and decided to host a Halloween party that year.

Jakob, an Israeli expatriate doing stonework around our house for us, showed up as a cowboy.  He was soon followed by Nancy, a geologist dressed, strangely enough, as an Indian princess.  John, another geologist, showed up a little later, his only costume a mask. 

Nonplussed, Anne and I broke out the alcohol.  There was a championship boxing match on television that night - Oklahoma City's own Sean O'Grady versus James Watt, a Scottish boxer.  The fight occurred in Glasgow, Scotland, and saying there was a bit of home cooking is a mild statement.  After a few rounds Watt head-butted Sean, resulting in a horrible cut over his eye.  Watt should have been disqualified, and O'Grady declared the winner.  Instead, the local judges ruled the amount caused by a punch rather than a head-butt. 

Those days, there was no rule about excessive bleeding.  To say that little blood was strewn around the ring would be a true understatement.  The crew looked more like the inside of a working slaughterhouse; all the viewers, including myself, were in shock and totally aghast.  The fight was soon called, and Watt was proclaimed the world champion. 

We went on to drink, carouse, and celebrate into the wee hours; Anne and I were in slight shape for the Halloween party that continued as planned the next day. 

I met Sean O'Grady at a Christmas Party in Oklahoma City a few years later.  The room was crowded, and I stood against a wall, sipping my whiskey.  When O'Grady spotted me, he pushed through the crowd, looked me straight in the eye, and said, "You look just like "Little Red" Lopez." 

He wasn't smiling, and I could tell from his expression and the clench of his fists that he was getting ready to hit me.  Having seen his devastating punching power on more than one occasion, I immediately raised my right palm. 

"Believe me, I'm not "Little Red" Lopez.  I'm one of your biggest fans." 

Sean smiled and we proceeded to have a friendly conversation.  It seems Lopez had beaten the teenaged O'Grady, and he had never forgotten or forgiven.  I have posted a picture of "Little Red" on my photo page to show that I look nothing like the former boxer. 

That was the first Halloween party I hosted, eventful like everyone else.  I have another Sean O'Grady story, but I'll save it for another day.

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Born near Black Bayou in the little Louisiana town of Vivian, Eric Wilder grew up listening to his grandmother’s tales of politics, corruption, and ghosts that haunt the night. He now lives in Oklahoma, where he continues to pen mysteries and short stories with a southern accent. He authored the French Quarter Mystery Series set in New Orleans, the Paranormal Cowboy Series, and the Oyster Bay Mystery Series. Please check it out on his Amazon author page. You might also like checking out his Facebook page.

Old Creole Winter Okra Soup - a weekend recipe

In Black Magic Woman,  my French Quarter Mystery No. 4, Wyatt Thomas and Mama Mulate's latest squeeze, Jason Fasempaur, travel back to old New Orleans, circa 1845, to implore voodoo high priestess Madam Marie Laveau to help them lift a curse that is plaguing Wyatt. While there, they visit a haunted plantation on River Road and a townhouse in New Orleans. Wyatt also fights a duel with a French sword master. When Jason sees the rustic kitchen of the New Orleans townhouse, he enjoys a bowl of cook Sarah's delectable soup that he declares ‘a taste of heaven.’ Here is Sarah’s recipe. Try it, and I think you’ll agree with Jason.

Old Creole Winter Okra Soup

Ingredients

      ·         3 pints Okra

·         6 tomatoes, fresh

·         2 onions

·         2 T butter

·         2 dozen oysters

·         3 T rice

·         1 red pepper pod, deseeded

Directions

Wash and stem the okra, and then slice it very fine. Chop the tomatoes finely and preserve the juice. In a large pot, chop the onions finely, and then fry them in the butter. Wash the rice well. Slow stew the onions, tomato juice, and pepper in about three quarts of water and one pint of oyster juice for three hours, stirring frequently. Don’t add the okra and rice until ten minutes before serving, then let it boil. Drop in the oysters, boil up once, and serve.

Note: Even though south Louisiana usually has a long growing season, the Creoles of New Orleans didn’t have fresh okra and tomatoes during the winter. They resolved this problem by canning fruits and vegetables during the plentiful months. To follow the original recipe, use one can (jar) of okra and one can or jar of tomatoes instead of fresh okra and tomatoes. Either way, it's good.

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Born near Black Bayou in the little Louisiana town of Vivian, Eric Wilder grew up listening to his grandmother’s tales of politics, corruption, and ghosts that haunt the night. He now lives in Oklahoma, where he continues to pen mysteries and short stories with a southern accent. He authored the French Quarter Mystery Series set in New Orleans, the Paranormal Cowboy Series, and the Oyster Bay Mystery Series. Please check it out on his Amazon author page. You might also like checking out his Facebook page.

Bertram's Tailgate Oysters - a weekend recipe

Louisiana is football crazy. People in New Orleans like the Saints and everyone in Louisiana like L.S.U. Bertram Picou is no exception. He’d like to tailgate along with all the other Louisiana football fanatics except he has no help at his eclectic French Quarter bar. When the Saints or the Bengal Tigers are playing, he’s always working.

Through the years, he’s devised ways to keep his bar open while watching the big games and doing his own version of tailgating. He used to have a little TV set under the bar. Now, he has a big screen mounted on the wall and makes even more money than before from the lucky fans that wander in off the street. Lucky, you say? Bertram has an open grill in his tiny kitchen.

During big games, he always cooks up some tailgating fare, Louisiana style, and serves it free to his customers. Here is one of his and his customers, favorite tailgating fare:

Ingredients 

·         Oysters, large and fat

·         Bacon, thin strips

·         Butter

·         Parsley, minced

·         Lemons, sliced

·         Olives, sliced

Directions

Place a thin strip of bacon on a skewer, alternating with the oysters until the skewer is full. Broil over a medium flame. When the edges begin to ruffle, the oysters are ready. While you are doing this, prepare drawn butter by placing a cup near the flame so that it will melt. When it does, mix in the minced parsley.

Alternate the oysters and bacon on a hot plate and pour the drawn butter and parsley over them. Garnish with olives and lemon slices and you have the perfect, Louisiana tailgating snack, even if you are in a bar watching the game on a big screen TV.

Born near Black Bayou in the little Louisiana town of Vivian, Eric Wilder grew up listening to his grandmother’s tales of politics, corruption, and ghosts that haunt the night. He now lives in Oklahoma where he continues to pen mysteries and short stories with a southern accent. He is the author of the French Quarter Mystery Series set in New Orleans and the Paranormal Cowboy Series. Please check it out on his Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and iBook author pages. You might also like to check out his website.

French Quarter Fritter Batter - weekend recipe

If you visit New Orleans for its Cajun and Creole cuisine, you’ll soon discover the many desserts synonymous with the venerable city. The Big Easy is probably the fritter capital of the world. Known in New Orleans as the beignet, the fritter can combine with almost any fruit to create an exquisite desert. Think apple, banana, or cherry fritters. Let your imagination go wild. It all starts with the fritter batter, and here is the recipe. Hey, if you can't visit New Orleans soon, read my French Quarter mystery Big Easy and take a trip in your mind.

Ingredients 

·         1 cup flour, sifted

·         ½ cup water, cold

·         2 eggs

·         ½ cup sugar

·         1 Tbsp. olive oil

·         2 Tbsp. brandy

·         ¼  tsp. salt

Directions

Separate the eggs. Beat the whites into a thick froth and reserve. Add the yolks to the flour, and then beat until very light. Add the sugar and blend well. Add the brandy and beat lightly, and then add water and oil to make the batter the consistency of a thick starch. Add the egg whites and beat well. The batter is now ready for the desired fruit needed to create your amazing Creole dessert beignet. Enjoy!

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Eric Wilder eBook Morning Mist of Blood now just 99 cents

Read Morning Mist of Blood on your Kindle or Nook for only $.99. If you love dogs, cowboys, and things that go bump in the night, you'll love Morning Mist of Blood. MMoB is the second book in the Buck McDivit Mystery Series.

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Big Easy, the first book in Eric Wilder's French Quarter Mystery series, is now available on your Nook or Kindle for 99 cents. Clarion Review said, "Wilder's fiction is like an icy cold Hurricane slush on a hot Louisiana day." Read it now for only 99 cents and take a trip to the Big Easy.

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A Tornado Alley Tale

My friend Terry and I were having drinks after work when he recounted a tornado story that he'd experienced during the 1973 Union City tornado.

Terry was still a cop at the time and sent to help shortly after the big tornado. He found a man standing outside the ruined shell of what had recently been his house. Those of you that have experienced tornadoes know they often leave certain things completely untouched amid massive destruction. A coffee table remained in the spot that had been the man’s living room, not even an hour before. The telephone sat on the coffee table, undisturbed by the storm. As Terry talked with the home owner, the phone rang.

Terry watched as the man carried on a short conversation with someone. After hanging up, he walked back to where Terry waited.

“That was strange,” he said. “It was a man calling from Moore. He was standing in his front yard a few minutes ago when my TV Guide dropped out of the sky in front of him. Just before the storm, it was sitting on that coffee table beside the phone.”

Moore is a town about thirty miles east of Union City. The magazine wasn’t even wet.

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Happy 4th of July, Everyone

I awoke this morning with the strange feeling I needed to start drinking beer and eating hotdogs. Then I realized what day it is.


The kids are all out of town, working, or somewhere else. Doesn’t matter with Marilyn. She has enough food for an army, in case one shows up. She’s grilling burgers on the back porch on a $5 dollar Hibachi grill she bought at Wal-Mart. Bet everything will still taste wonderful.

Still smarting about her favorite cook’s recent social problems, she prepared Paula Deen’s famous potato salad. There’s also watermelon and strawberries for desert. No Vidalia onions at the store for some reason. Oh well!

HAPPY 4TH OF JULY, everyone! Hope you are having as much fun as us.

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Tiki Torches and Fireflies

This spring has been absolutely crazy in Oklahoma. It snowed in April, and we’ve had two F5 tornados like the world has never seen before.

Marilyn and I live on an acre of land in the southeast corner of Edmond, Oklahoma. It’s almost rural. From my front porch, I’ve seen deer, coyotes, hawks—well you get the picture. Our house was built in 1975 and our large swimming pool is anything but modern. My hot tub is a fiberglass antique, covered by a gazebo my step-son Shane built. We get our water from a well. The water is wonderful, except it is loaded with calcium. My step-daughter Shannon spent two days this week cleaning the calcium deposits off my hot tub. Tonight, my three dogs and I tried it out.

As I mentioned, the weather has been crazy this spring. I usually take my first dip in the pool in April, sometimes March. Tonight, already late in June, I took my first plunge of the year. The dogs, my two pugs and English bulldog, loved it. They can’t swim but they loved licking pool water off my head, neck, and back. Following Shannon’s labors, the hot tub felt wonderful.

After a stint in the hot water, I plunged back into the pool. Sitting on the steps in shallow water, I soaked in the stars, flame from Tiki torches and fireflies lighting up the night. I couldn’t have been happier when I finally came inside and pulled off my wet swimming trunks decorated with surfboards, sailboats, and paeans to places like Florida and Waikiki Beach.

I’ve been to Florida and Waikiki. Tonight, I wouldn’t have traded either for my backyard pool, hot tub, and three faithful dogs. It made me think. It isn’t where you’ve been in life, it’s where you are right now that counts.

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Bertram Picou's Spicy Tomato Sauce - a weekend recipe

Except for occasional help from his on again, off again girlfriend Shirley, Bertram Picou relies mostly on himself to manage his French Quarter bar. Every now and then, he grows tired of tourists and locals, and shuts the doors for some R and R, usually cooking something just for himself. Sometimes, his friend Wyatt Thomas becomes the lucky recipient of his cooking prowess.

Bertram might lug his charcoal grill upstairs to Wyatt’s room, grilling on the balcony overlooking Chartres as they listen to the sounds of boats on the river, and cacophony on Bourbon Street. When Wyatt gets very lucky, Bertram, drinking shots of Cuervo as he cooks, will grill up his Andouille Fired Oysters, topping them with his spicy tomato sauce.

Here’s the recipe for Bertram’s own spicy tomato sauce. It’s a great sweet and sour sauce that goes perfectly with broiled and baked fish, and, oh yes, Andouille Fired Oysters. Stay tuned for Bertram’s Andouille Fired Oyster recipe. Meantime, here’s the recipe for his spicy tomato sauce.

Bertram’s Spicy Tomato Sauce

Ingredients

·         1 onion, thinly sliced

·         2 Tbs. butter

·         2 tomatoes, fresh, finely chopped

·         2 lemons, juiced

·         1 ½ Tbs. sugar

·         ½ tsp. mustard, dry

·         salt, to taste 

Directions 

Sauté onion in butter and then stir in tomatoes. Add lemon juice, salt, and mustard, and then simmer for a few minutes.

 

Check out more of Bertram and Wyatt in the French Quarter mysteries Big Easy, City of Spirits, and Primal Creatures.

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Happy Mother's Day

There’s a biker’s bar in Oklahoma City that’s also a restaurant and off-track betting facility. Marilyn and I like going there on Friday’s to eat Oklahoma comfort food (chicken fries, steak fingers, fried okra and cream gravy, etc.) and bet on the ponies. That’s where we were yesterday along with friends J.R. and Carol.


I’m not a great handicapper and almost always lose more than I win. I like wagering on names and lost six bucks in last week’s Kentucky Derby betting on Itsmyluckyday. It wasn’t! I think he finished sixth. Yesterday was no different. I was losing more than winning when the horses for the next race at Woodbine (we were watching races at several tracks so I’m not sure which one) showed the horses for the next race. The name of one of the horses was Mavis Road.

Mavis Road is a street in Ontario, Canada. Mavis was also my mother’s first name. One of the track pundits picked Mavis Road as a possible strong contender. It didn’t matter to me. Even with the odds at 22-1 that Mavis Road would win, I would have bet on the horse because it had the same name as my mother. Mavis Road didn’t win the race. It did come in second place and I won almost thirty bucks on a six dollar bet.

Do I believe my mom had anything to do with my success in the race? You bet I do. My mother, like almost everyone else’s on the face of the earth, was the single most important person in my life. Even from the grave I feel she’s still close by; always lending a helping hand. Thanks Mom, for reminding me you’re still with me, and HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY.

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Werewolves in South Louisiana

Eric Wilder pens his third novel in the French Quarter Mystery Series. Garden District residents are unaware that one of their neighbors has kept a rougarou (Cajun werewolf) frozen in their basement freezer for forty years. When a killer hurricane takes direct aim at New Orleans, Wyatt Thomas, the French Quarter’s favorite sleuth, is called into action. Before the hurricane strikes, Wyatt and N.O.P.D. Homicide detective Tony Nicosia must deal with the thawing rougarou, and solve two heinous murders at a monastery in the secluded, south Louisiana wetlands. Primal Creatures is the third novel in the Wyatt Thomas French Quarter Mystery Series that includes Big Easy, and City of Spirits. Available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Smashwords.

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