Baja St. Martin

My two sisters have been calling to keep me updated on their Michigan weather. Ten degrees below zero! Then 19 below! That was extraordinary even for them. My baby sister said it was terrible getting gas – having to stand outside pumping in sub-zero temps. I felt a little bad to have complained about our weather which was far too cold for my comfort.

A few crawfish are being caught and I’ve been told by one buyer that the price is now $4.85 a pound to the fisherman. I assume that’s for good stuff. The water is very high in the spillway.

I prepared for the freezing temperatures as best I could. Sadly, if the predicted lows became a reality I will probably lose my schefflera, Norfolk pine, two orange trees and a Meyer lemon. All are tropical and should not be grown here anyway, but of course, I do grow them and they do wonderfully – most of the time. I’ve been picking baskets of blood oranges to eat myself and sending or taking them to friends and relatives. Oh, and my papaya will probably be finished. I will pick some of the fruit to hopefully ripen indoors.

I’m heading to San Diego on, as this is written, Thursday coming. And right now I’m hoping the bad weather won’t affect my flights. From NOLA to Houston to San Diego should be just fine, but I don’t know where my United flights will have come from. I got stuck in Memphis once when a California flight went through Chicago and was grounded because of bad weather.

I’ve read a few things about an effort to develop more inter-city air flights to avoid having to always go through a major hub even on a short trip. My granddaughter once checked into a flight from Orlando to Pensacola and the plane first went to Detroit, then Atlanta and then Pensacola.

That same granddaughter, by the way, is in Chicago right now where she reports the temp at minus 14. For some reason her UCF non-profit organization scheduled a conference in Chicago this week. Even assuming the organizers didn’t know how cold it would get, January isn’t the best time for any event in Chicago. She says it’s cold but she’s having a good time.

At this time, I have a lot of dead plants in my yard with a few more to come, but I’ve quit worrying. Not a thing I can do except wait a week or so before trimming dead branches. There is actually an odd odor in the air which I think is frozen vegetation.

As I sat at my living room counter the other afternoon, I looked out onto my porch to see a young raccoon cautiously eating some dried dinner rolls I’d tossed out for the birds. Fortunately, neither my dog nor cat saw the little fellow so he/she ate all the rolls and then disappeared. I’ve now put out some dog food for the visitor.

You have probably received a flyer about this event, but if not, or even if so, please try to come for the sheriff’s winter gumbo for the seniors of Lower St. Martin Parish. It will be in the Stephensville Elementary School gym on Saturday, Jan. 18 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. There are usually a few guest speakers representing parish activities and of course Bingo with lots of prizes. Do try to come if only for a few minutes. Meet the sheriff and some other elected officials. Meet some Baja neighbors. You can just show up or let me know and I’ll pass the word along that you’re coming. There has never been a shortage of food, however, and the gumbo is terrific.

Teche News’ Lower St. Martin correspondent, Linda Cooke, can be e-mailed at lcooke9417@bellsouth.net.