It's Wed evening now, though I don't know when I'll post this.

I went to the local gym Mon and this afternoon. At home with the weights in the garage I have nothing to compare, but I have no competition for the equipment either, which happened today. There were also a number bulky guys today too. That was one "concern" I had about going there: I'm a skinny guy working with little weights and everyone else is bulked up. Have to start somewhere though.

The trip started on Sat. The flights were okay, but our one, big piece of luggage didn't make it on our flight. The guy at the ticket counter said it would be on the next flight, so we hung around the airport waiting. It wasn't, but he again insisted it would be on the NEXT one, so we waited BUT I filled out a luggage claim slip in the mean time. It was on that flight, but all of that meant a lot of extra time in the airport with Dolly's step-sister waiting in the parking lot.

The next evening was the limo ride to the restaurant and the big anniversary dinner. It was the in-laws' 30th. The parents were surprised and amused by the limo showing up at their door. They didn't know anything was planned and didn't know we were coming for a visit. There were five adults and three kids all about ten-years old. We rode around in the limo for a while and looked at holiday lights and let the kids (and the adults) enjoy the experience before the dinner reservation time.

Tues Dolly, Kitty, and mother in law went to tour two plantation houses, of course, along the river. The plantation houses in southern Louisiana are along the river in the French long-lot system where every gets land near the river and the back swamp land.

The first one was San Francisco and the second was Oak Alley.

San Francisco was originally St Frusquin, old French slang for "One's All", named so because its "lavish" construction and no money left over. The owner, Edward Marmillion, had the house completed in 1856 (four years before the war). Originally it had a large formal garden in the front, but the Mississippi River has changed course since then and the modern, large levee and the road have eliminated it. The houses have thick interior and exterior brick walls covered with plaster and painted. The woodwork was cypress, but painted to look like different woods (faux bois). The fireplace mantles and other trim were also cypress, but painted to look like marble (faux marbre). Because they were taxed based on the number of rooms, they didn't have closets but armoires. San Francisco had door panels between some "areas", so when removed they make one T-shaped ball room and make the men's parlor, women's parlor, the main entry, and another sitting room.

San Francisco has one cistern on each side of the house, each providing water to a side of the house. The upper, larger pipe collected the water from the rain gutters at the roof and the lower, smaller pipe carried the water back to the house.

The girl doing the tour was wearing a hoop skirt and bodice, but we caught flashes of her jeans when she walked and could see her t-shirt under the bodice too. A minute or two after completing the tour, she was walking from the house minus the costume.

Oak Alley was finished in 1839 and is one of the elaborate ones. Between the house and the river there is an avenue with fourteen live oaks on each side. The oaks were planted about a hundred years before the current house, so they are about three-hundred years old. The owner, Jacques Roman, named it Bon Sejour, "Good Rest", but travelers named it Oak Alley. It's very popular for wedding pictures, etc.

I'll post some pictures when we get back.