Got up early enough on Friday that I was able to get out for a walk.  Cold was entirely gone and I strolled down Canal, in part so I could find The Ruby Slipper where a bunch of fellow Berkely authors and I were due to have breakfast on Saturday.  From there I walked down Rampart Street, because it was there, and it was Rampart Street.  Found Lafayette Square.  Found the appellate court, which is housed in the John Minor Wisdom building.  And the jokes just sort of write themselves, don’t they?  Saw a bit of the warehouse district as well before turning back to the hotel and the conference.…

Woke up Thursday feeling much, much better.  Good enough, in fact, to head back to Cafe Biegnet for, you guessed it, biengets, and strawberries, and some really strong coffee.  Life was very, very good. Thursday’s item on the agenda was the “Exorcising Your Writing Demons,” with Patricia Rice, Patricia Burroughs, and Mary Jo Putney.  3 of us met up at Daisey Dukes, a 24/7 diner next to the hotel.  I finally had red beans and rice.  And fried green tomatoes.  Delicious, and plentiful. The panel went really well.  We spent time talking about things that hold us back from writing — feelings of insecurity, unsupportive surroundings, fear of what relatives…

So, back there in a previous post, I talked about being a wannabe foodie.  I also love grand old restaurants.  So, when Jessica Freely suggested lunch at Antoine’s, I said YES.  Cold or no cold, I was not missing this. Antoine’s is a genuine New Orleans establishment.  It moved to its current location in the 1860s. Our waiter was the 3rd generation of his family to work at the restaurant.  It has 15 dining rooms, including the Japanese room which was closed on D-Day, and did not open again for 50 years.  All the Mardis Gras kings and queens have their meals here before the parade.  It has also hosted…