Month: October 2013

I’m a museum junkie.  There’s hardly a museum I won’t go out of my way to visit.  There’s even a museum in Av’s parents’ basement.  So the last time we were in Jackson, I of course took the opportunity to visit the International Museum of Muslim Cultures.  Why is that in Jackson, Mississippi and not some place like NYC or Dearborn/Detroit? Here’s the answer: a local art exhibit on Spain in the early 2000s had no mention of the Islamic influence so an exhibit was developed at a mosque, then purchased for use by the museum that was developed.

The image above is one I took from the other side of the building, as the museum does not allow photographs.  The museum is inside the two dark doors on the far wall.  There is an admission.

I was the only visitor the morning I was there; while I wanted to like the museum and learn a lot, the exhibits weren’t fresh or inviting (panel, panel, panel, panel).  What the non-school attendance of the museum is, I have no idea.  Some influx of funds dedicated to exhibition should be made, otherwise it’s a one-and-done experience.

Well, actually, the museum has been in the news lately, as a television news network made a huge gaffe (which if you read this, you have to wonder how on earth anyone would actually fall for it being true) about how the museum was being supported during the federal shutdown, a ridiculous notion as the museum is not run by government auspices.  The Washington Post and other news outlets picked up on the story.

In the ‘any press is good press’ category, the museum issued a press release, part of which is below, stating that it the attention ‘has been good for IMMC’:

…Last Friday, October 4, 2013 it published a fictitious article wherein, IMMC was listed as having received a special contribution from President Barack Obama. The article claimed that, although other federally funded museums were closed because of the government shutdown, IMMC would remain open, because President Obama had stated in a press conference that he was taking his own personal monies to keep it open. This, of course, would be a wonderful thing, if it were true. However, it is not true.

This story, however, got even greater fame on Saturday when Fox News’ “Fox and Friends” morning program host Anna Kooiman repeated the National Report storyline about President Obama going into his own pockets to support the Museum. Although Ms. Kooiman has since apologized on tweeter for what she called “flawed research”, this created a news frenzy that has been good for IMMC.

IMMC is not a federally funded institution. And no, we’ve not received any funds, or contribution from President Obama, although we would welcome such contribution. We are an independent non-profit institution that is supported by its membership, grants and other donations and contributions from individuals, businesses, City, County, States, and national sources, as well as local and national foundations.

One of the best meals of the year has been a lunch we had at Restaurant R’evolution in the Quarter.  I’ve been following this restaurant since it was first announced especially because behind it are John Folse and Rick Tramonto. They brought in craftspeople for just an amazing interior…

I’m going to intersperse their own press here along with pictures I took — loved seeing this room especially — the Storyville Parlor — as it features a mural by Grahame Menage:

Restaurant R’evolution is the first joint venture of award winning chefs John Folse and Rick Tramonto, offering modern, imaginative reinterpretations of classic Cajun and Creole cuisine. Restaurant R’evolution’s menu reflects a melding of the chefs’ distinct culinary styles. Steeped in the diverse historic and cultural influences of Louisiana, the menu features not only the chefs’ interpretations of New Orleans classics such as gumbo, po’ boys, and beignets, but also new creations highlighting ingredients from what Chef Folse refers to as “the swamp floor pantry.” Tableside service components play an important role in the dining experience, promoting guest engagement about the history and evolution of the food they are enjoying.

Soups such as Creole Louisiana Snapping Turtle Soup and Death by Gumbo – quail gumbo served with a whole, semi-boneless quail stuffed with oysters, andouille sausage, and rice – play on unusual presentations of these traditional dishes that date back centuries. Appetizers showcase selections such as Espressoâ€Âcrusted Venison Carpaccio with black walnuts, shaved dark chocolate, and dried fruit and Beer-battered Crab Beignets with four rémoulades. Restaurant R’evolution also features extensive charcuterie and cheese programs, as well as house-made pastas such as Oysterman’s Spaghettini with oysters, garlic, Creole tomatoes, cream, and shaved bottarga, a tribute to the Italian culture that is still prominent in New Orleans today.

Signature meat dishes include the Triptych of Kurobuta Pork, which presents crispy belly, smoked tail, and crispy ear, for a head-to-tail tribute to the Louisiana boucherie. A large selection of premium steaks and chops are available, with an array of sauces, crusts and toppers. Wild game also figures prominently in dishes such as Brick Oven Barbequed Rabbit and Triptych of Quail, reflecting the important role that hunting and outdoorsmanship play in Louisiana.

Louisiana’s renowned seafood is featured prominently in dishes such as a Gulf Shrimp and Grits “Villages de l’Est,” stir fried with chiles and ginger, with dried shrimp-enriched grits; as well as Crawfish-stuffed Flounder Napoleon served with artichoke and Gulf oyster stew and crisp fried crawfish boulettes.

Desserts showcase classical New Orleans sweets done in a new and contemporary way, including Coffee and Beignets, chicory mocha pots de crème with coffee-infused beignets and black fig jam. Creole Cream Cheese Panna Cotta pays homage to New Orleans’ rich tradition of dairy-based desserts.

AND (ah, yes, I did this) here is even a pic of the restroom as the images on the doors are just so beautiful:

The service here is impeccable, and there are thoughtful touches, like little purse stools at each table so you don’t have to hang your bag on a chair, put it on the floor, or set it behind you on the seat.  The china is Limoges, there are glass-blown fruit pieces at each table, and from the T-P:

…the lounge features a cabinet brimming with historical curiosities. Among the eyebrow-raising: Robert E. Lee’s diminutive camp stove and a spoon from the captain’s table of the Lusitania.

Attention to detail reaches near OCD levels. The door knobs, cast in Lithuania, feature monogrammed Rs. The 12-seat table in the Market Room is sinker cypress dredged up from the swamp…

Each dish was just perfection. Here, the Creole Louisiana snapping turtle soup with deviled quail eggs, Madeira

Gumbo:

We came on a Thursday so I could have the Beef Daube, not often seen on menus anymore:

Flounder LaFreniere:

Terrific, terrific.

We found this in Crystal Springs, Mississippi.

In 2009, we were in Cordova, Alabama and stopped for a couple of pics.  In 2011, this exact piece of land, and that around it, was forever changed by the tornado that come through.  The tornado left a damage path that was a staggering 116.45 miles long, and at the time it came through downtown here, was an EF-3, 1/2 mile wide (Cordova actually got hit by two tornadoes that day, one the EF-3 and another in the afternoon that was an EF-4).  Since that time, there were fires, and the city decided to sweep the foundations clean.

This is what’s left:

The Tallulah in tile was from the old Tallulah Hotel.

Relieved to see that Tallulah’s still here.  Hopefully this will be able to be preserved in some fashion:

Auburn’s Urban Studio has been working on helping Cordova:

The NYT wrote this week about the little cemetery for his wife that James Davis has in his Stevenson, Alabama front yard.

(These pics I took in 2012:)

From the article:
James Davis figures that his first mistake was asking permission. If a man promises his wife he will bury her in the front yard, then he should just do so.

But ever since Mr. Davis granted his dying wife’s wish by laying her to rest just off his front porch, he and the City of Stevenson have been at odds. From City Hall to the courts, the government of this little railroad town in southern Appalachia has tried to convince Mr. Davis that a person who lives in a town cannot just set up a cemetery anywhere he likes. On Oct. 11, the Alabama Supreme Court affirmed a judge’s decision saying as much.

But Mr. Davis, 74, is not inclined to back down.

“They’re waiting on me to die,” he said early last week, standing on the porch of the log house he built and looking out over his lawn, which along with the grave features an outhouse and a large sign demanding that his wife be allowed to rest in peace. “I am not digging her up.”

…Mr. Davis and his wife, Patsy, grew up in Dayton, Tenn., having first met when she was 7 and he was 11. She was a teenager when he asked her to accompany him to a strawberry festival. “We went on that one date, and it was me and her the rest of the time,” he said. They were married for 48 years and had five children.

…According to court filings, Mr. Davis declared to the City Council members that he would sue and take his case to the State Supreme Court if necessary. But instead, he just decided to ignore them.

“I just got a backhoe and went ahead,” Mr. Davis said, later arguing that the lack of a specific burial ordinance meant that they had no right to stop him. He installed a vault, the funeral home put his wife in the coffin, and on a Saturday morning 10 days after the City Council vote, Mrs. Davis was laid to rest before a gathering of family members.

The city sued him a month later.

According to the NYT, last Friday he warned of “an incident” if the city came onto his property, but asked if the town would agree to him digging up the coffin, having Patsy cremated (although she had been afraid of the idea in her later years, he said time has passed and thinks she would not mind now), and putting her urn back in the grave.  Sounds like that’s what will happen.

Mr. Edmiston acknowledged that there was no law against tombstones or the placement of ashes, but he insisted that the coffin and the vault be removed. So if Mr. Davis fully complies with the city’s order, the yard will end up looking exactly as it does now, only with an urn rather than a coffin underneath.

This may raise the question as to what the whole fight was about. But Mr. Davis has no doubts.

“There was never any couple in love like us,” he said. “We was meant to be together.”

Protecting rights of a book and a title are two different things.

Nelle Harper Lee has long had the rights to her own novel (setting aside the recent unpleasantness up north that’s settled out), but owning the words ‘To Kill A Mockingbird’ is being taken up.  She’s suing the Monroe County Heritage Museum for using those words, her name and title, on the tees/tchotchkes they sell.

From The Guardian:

The author of 1960 novel To Kill a Mockingbird has filed a lawsuit against Monroe County Heritage Museum in Alabama, claiming the museum earned more than $500,000 in 2011 through selling products including aprons, tea towels, clothing and coasters, all bearing her book’s name.

Now the museum’s lawyer Matthew Goforth has told Reuters: “Every single statement in the lawsuit is either false, meritless or both”. He says that in fact only $28,500 was earned from merchandise last year, with “every penny… being used to further the museum’s mission of educating the public and preserving the area’s history.”

“I find it curious that her handlers suddenly want to profit by suing the museum for essentially preserving and promoting what Ms Lee helped accomplish for this community”, he added.

As ABC reports,
Lee’s complaint argues that her book title has built enough common law protection that it can’t be used by the museum without her permission.

There are at least three important issues in the litigation, according to Leigh Ann Lindquist, an attorney specializing in trademark and copyright law with Sughrue Mion, PLLC, a law firm that is not involved in this dispute. The first is the parties’ past relationship, if any. The second is how long the museum has been selling the clothing and gift store items with “To Kill a Mockingbird” on them. The third issue in litigation will likely be when Lee first knew about the sale of these museum items.

and

The lawsuit claimed the museum is violating federal trademark infringement laws and federal law of unfair competition, and other laws.

One of the examples that Lee provides in the lawsuit of unauthorized use of her name in museum marketing materials says, “Restored to its 1930s appearance, our courtroom is the model for Harper Lee’s fictional courtroom settings in ‘To Kill A Mockingbird.’ It’s now one of the most recognized courtrooms in America because of the popular film version of the book.”

“Historical facts belong to the world, but fiction and trademarks are protected by law,” the complaint says. “The museum has steadfastly ignored Ms. Lee’s demands that it cease and desist from its illegal action. The museum has even attempted to block Ms. Lee’s federal registration of her trademark in ‘To Kill a Mockingbird.'”

—
The Plaquemines Parish School Board has lifted its 12-year ban of TKAM.