I live in the flattest place on earth

I live in the flattest place on earth. People that say Denmark is flat have never seen my home. The small strip of prairie is long and narrow. Thirty miles to the north is forest and red clay hills. Thirty miles to the south you will find swamp and bayous. My paternal great grandfather was once a coal miner from Kentucky, but homesteaded nearby and began growing rice in the early 1900’s. When he returned to the hills for a visit many decades later he was asked to describe his new home. He told them “It is so flat, your eyes get tired…you can see forever.”

This week work took me to north to Allen Parish on errands. I asked Loryn if she wanted to ride along. So we made the trip together. First we headed up Hwy 165 to Oakdale. About 10-20 miles north of our home you notice the land getting hillier. The rice fields give way to patches of pine forests and the roads begin to rise and swell with the land, even to the point that I had to wait for a clear view to pass a slow moving logging truck loaded with freshly cut pine trees. The bark flew off in the wind and splattered my windshield and the scent of fresh evergreens wafted in through the air vent. I have to pass these trucks because I’ve heard of logs sliding off the load and into the front seat of following cars.

After delivering some paperwork, I traveled down south, stopping in Oberlin, the parish (county) seat, but it only has one major street, the court house and a few gas stations. There are no real restaurants and if I need the restroom I have to stop at the public library. If I want a snack I have to visit the Dollar General store. It’s a tiny little town.

I promised Loryn lunch out so we continued on south to Kinder where we passed in front of Coushatta Casino Resort, the Indian casino that my sister-in laws-tribe owns. My brother has worked there since before it opened starting out as security and working his way up to being head manager of the poker room. There are a lot of great restaurants there but I didn’t want to hug the wall today. (Because Loryn is underage we have to follow a red carpet line along the wall to stay out of the casino areas when we go to eat there.) Tribal members and their guests eat free and my brother can also get comps to concerts for us at any time. It is a perk we try not to over use.

Instead we opted for a Cajun place called Fausto’s. It is filled with an anti-taxidermist’s nightmare. Game trophies adorn the dining rooms and what was once a very large alligator is housed in the LSU room. In the other dining room, a bear and panther as well as deer hang from the walls. All over the state you can see homage being made to Louisiana State University’s football and baseball teams as they are regularly titled national champions.

All types of fried seafood are on the menu, but I love their stuffed baked potatoes. We skipped the alligator, oysters crawfish or catfish. Instead we shared a huge Cajun grilled shrimp baked potato. I was filled with grilled shrimp and onions, cheese and fresh tomatoes! It was huge! And delicious.

Notice the peppers selection. Of course there was Tabasco, but also hot peppers in vinegar and Louisiana Hot Sauce…I never use any of these…I’m not really Cajun by blood. I don’t speak French (un petit peu).I don't have an accent. I’m not Catholic.... I’m Cajun by osmosis.

My schoolmates, however, most of them were CAJUN. Their school lunches, Mostly rice and gravy and a meat product, would be bright orange, liberally sprinkled with the Louisiana Hot Sauce. But that is another story for another time!