by Ron Foster
She gave me a mischievous look and said ok and made sail.
I cranked my engine, and checked to be sure my passengers were ready before I slowly pulled away from the dock and watched Sherry getting the feel for a good wind and her load and starting her first tack. I put the boat about mid throttle and felt the surge of power as the front end of my boat came up and my group went speedily along towards Frank and Nancy’s.
“Donnie, grab that box and bag of charcoal when I pull alongside the pier” I said throttling down and coasting towards the dock.
“Don’t get your hands or arms between the boat and the Dock” I cautioned to my landlubber crew who were trying to help keep us from drifting into it while Donnie grabbed the supplies.
“Got it” Donnie said and motioned for me to carry on.
I put the boat in reverse and slowly cruised the front of the surrounding properties and piers which were all empty save one.
“Package pickup Donnie” I said pointing ahead two piers up.
“I see it” Donnie said and grabbed more charcoal and a big cast iron pot full of baked beans.
“See people made things” My mom said to me put out that I had prevented her from doing something similar.
“We are doing more than enough mom. You can help with those extras we brought when we get there I reassured her.
The Boat ramp was situated in the middle of what looked like a wharf with a few docks sticking out. I couldn’t really see what was above on the bluff and I pulled up to the first dock. Very soon a whole gaggle of people where wandering down happily babbling and introducing themselves as I unloaded my passengers and cargo and waved at Sherry to make her approach to the dock to the right of me.
I got her said Frank and went over to the next dock to receive her bowline when she came in. Everyone was friendly as hell but there were just too many people milling around and I didn’t catch half their names as Sherry started performing the tricky maneuvers I required of her to come into her slip.
I heard a Cajun accent next to me and felt a hand on my back as an old swamper with a craggy deep suntanned face said “That’s a fine looking pirogue you using for a meat wagon, I am Boudreaux” he said shaking hands beside me but not taking his eyes off the sailboat as Sherry cranked in the centerboard some. He pronounced his name BOOD-Row.
“Whee! Too much little lady, you can leave her down a might, you got pretty good portage here” He hollered to her about deafening me with that rebel yell of a ‘wheel’ to get her attention.
“Bring her on in” I yelled to Sherry and she straightened the boat out and made a remarkably easy landing.
“Hi Sherry! You got that thing looking like an Old Norse Viking Boat” Frank said to her as Boudreaux ambled over and made a sharp whistle at the deer and said something in what sounded like French.
"LAISSEZ LES BON TEMPS ROULER, “I think he said meaning let the good times roll and a slogan for Mardi Gras.
“Permission to come aboard, Capt.’s?” Boudreaux addressed the Sherry and hopped down in the boat’s cockpit before Sherry could break her smiley face grin and answer him.
Boudreaux tugged off the wet sheet that was keeping the turkeys cool and announced loudly to whoever was listening, “Well bless us today if this little girl ain’t got us a whole boat load of turkeys for dinner. Damnation child you shoot this big Tom Gobbler with that there scatter gun? ""AIEEE!" "WE GON PASS A GOOD TIME, YEAH, CHER," "OO, I LOVE YOU LIKE A PIG LOVES CORN," he said hugging an overwhelmed Sherry like he had known her all her life.
“You men folk get down here and help unload this skiff! David you shake your bones and come over here and have a little parlay with me and Sherry for some lagniappe if do me an honor and a favor” Boudreaux said all excited and ordering people around like he was the tool pusher on an oil rig
Let me translate for the reader here, Lagniappe - "Lan Yap" This is what New Orleans call something you get for free. For example, if you go to the butcher and he gives you a bone for your dog, it's called lagniappe. Or a baker’s dozen of donuts is 13.
“Now I got me this old hound that has probably been pining away for me for over a month now I just gotta see. I live right over there and threatened to try to paddle across this here lake yesterday to see about him but nothing around here is suitable and me drifting in the middle of the lake does no good for nobody. You let me ride with someone right now to go see about my dog and I will be beholden to you forever as well as I got me a big turkey fryer over there you can bring back” Boudreaux said in total animation while helping to unload the boat as well as grab me or Sherry once in awhile. Did I say Cajuns talk with their hands a lot? Boudreaux managed to do it even if it had a turkey or a deer pole in it.
“Settle down Boudreaux, and go jump on that motor boat. I will take you now, but I want to drain a canteen and fill it from that cooler that’s heading to the top of the ramp.” I managed to get out before Boudreaux was out of the sailboat, hollering at the man with the cooler to hold up and getting in my boat to search for the canteen. He even made the man start walking back before I got over to the boat. We filled the canteen and took off leaving everyone on the landing in amazement staring at our departure.
“You got binoculars on this thing?” Boudreaux asked as antsy as ever as we neared the center of the lake.
“Yes, hang on “I told him and opened the glove box on the boat and passed him a pair.
“Mon Ami! He still waits on his Paw Paw! You lookee there at that fine dog.” he said passing me the binoculars and pointing at a little cottage. I had about two seconds to see what he was looking at, while he drove and I looked before he snatched them back, but I saw an old hound dog full of love and devotion patiently sitting on a back porch.
“That be my Bear dog, he don’t hunt them, just what I named him” Boudreaux said jubilantly.
“I bet he been sitting out this whole month of Sundays waiting on me.
"Where y'at Bear! The old Cajun hollered across the Lake and the dog perked up and gave an exuberant howl back that reminded me of a pack of coon hunting dogs.
“You bin looking f'dat that old Paw Paw long time now HUH!” He called to the dog that was almost getting airborne with his tail wagging in a circle on the dock now. I had just cut the motor to coast on in when Boudreaux jumped off the boat and the dog jumped in the lake and they began to swim around each other in circles overjoyed at their reunion.
The back door of the cabin next to where I had parked opened up and a stocky old woman wandered out.
“Boudreaux bless the saints you made it back” she said and hurried over as Boudreaux and the dog were coming out of the water.
“That fool dog of yours has been worrying me to death” she said hugging a wet Boudreaux and not even complaining when Bear shook the water off himself onto both of them.
“Bless you my friend for bringing him home “she said to me and gave me a surprisingly strong hug for a woman of her years.
“Back and forth, back and forth, between your door and mine every hour or two looking for you. Dang fool won’t listen either when I tell him I don’t know where you are at! I got to let him in once in awhile so he can see for himself I haven’t hid you in a closet or something. An that old bastard of a hound wont eat nothing but biscuits and complains if I burn them” She said exasperated but glad the old codger was safe and pretending to take offense at the dog occasionally poking his nose into her like he was saying I told you so.
I am not sure Boudreaux heard half of what she was saying, he was busy rubbing the dog, then standing straight up like he was going to say something to her, and then back down to rubbing the dog and even rolling around on the ground with it once.
“I am Beverly” She said extending what was still a calloused hand for her years of hard work in probably a factory somewhere.
“David is my name. Looks like a match made in heaven “I said observing Boudreaux on his knees with the dog’s paws wrapped around his neck loving on each other.
“What was that about biscuits you were telling him?’ I asked as Boudreaux rose to join the human conversation that was going on.
“That dog knows he can’t have none of my biscuits except as a special treat or when Boudreaux thinks I am not looking and sneaks him one. He won’t eat dog food, canned beans, or fish whatever. After the first week or so when Boudreaux wasn’t back I tried him on a biscuit and now he thinks I have to bake everyday or he wont eat” She said frowning at the happy dog who now did not have a care in the world and was taking the time to snuffle around my pants leg trying to figure out what I had been up to with his master.
“I bet he wanted butter on them biscuits before he found out he wasn’t getting none” Boudreaux said hugging and giving his neighbor a peck on the cheek while still playing with his mutt.
“I always told you that you spoiled that slobbery snoot face too much, maybe he will eat his dog food like he supposed to now” Beverly said escaping the grip he had on her that required her to go up and down with him as he patted his pet.
“The hound looks good; you been worrying over him at a rocket pace it appears. You want to maybe come to Mardi Grais with me and David and take Bear for a boat ride?” Boudreaux said to which he perked his ears up reminding me of that old “Dogs bacon bacon “ commercial and ran down to the dock and hopped in my captains chair like he was going to be the driver and occasionally looking over the windshield wagging his tail trying to hurry us.
“Hells bells Boudreaux, I haven’t seen you for a month and you don’t even let me fix my hair before you got me a flutter going god knows where” Beverly said unsure what we were proposing.
“ Go get what you need Boudreaux, I will explain everything to Beverly and she can make up her mind if she is coming or not” I started to say before Beverly interjected she was coming irregardless and Boudreaux started back towards his house and the dog jumped out of the boat to join him.
“I have been hard living for the last few weeks and that old Pirate come back and say lets go to a party? I will get him for this later. David be patient 10 minutes as I just put on some lipstick and rouge” she said watching Boudreaux carrying out a turkey cooker and the dog helping by trying to keep the propane hoses from dragging the ground by carrying them like leash in his mouth ,
“Go right ahead and fix up, and I will go help him load the boat” I said and left her to her primping for the party.
“Grab that bucket of cooking oil David and I will carry the propane tanks” Boudreaux said while the dog ran back and forth between the boat and us knowing there was some kind of people food involved in this boat ride.
We grabbed the supplies out of the little storage room attached to the house and returned for the rest of what Boudreaux wanted to carry to what might be remembered as the new first Thanksgiving in my mind.
“Come on to the house David, and get your Lagnappe. I got to get me some spices for that big Tom that they better of not skinned.” And we walked back up to his home.
“That dogs not allowed to drink but he will bother you for it the old sot, go in back of my bar and you will find an unopened bottle of Wild Turkey Whiskey, that’s your bit extra, and give me a reasonable price for the boat rides and me and Beverly can settle up with you” Boudreaux said going into the kitchen and making selections while hollering out to me did I need this our that injectable spices he had.
“Grab everything you need and you get three turkeys to cook and I got three I can do my way, if they haven’t started already.” I told him and wondered if that smart dog of his would carry my whiskey down to the boat for me. I put the bottle neck in his mouth a couple times but he thought we were playing fetch or keep away and that game didn’t go far and I retrieved my bottle from under a chair.
“Boudreaux I am going to check on Beverly and meet you down at the boat.” I told him and headed next door.
Beverly answered my knock and the old girl looked totally different with a bit of makeup on.
“You’re looking pretty Beverly, you about ready?” I said wanting to hurry up and get back over to the party
“Yes, grab them jars of canned peaches and pickled okra and we can get going. A party, who would’ve thought that old lounge lizard would get home and have a party to go to before he even gets in the door good. “She said smiling and locking her backdoor.
Everybody including Bear piled in the boat and we were off.
““Boudreaux how did you get stuck on the other side of the lake?” I asked him as we were heading back to the wharf.
“Hell I drove over about 60 miles to put my boat in the shop at the marina and hang out at the bar until it got done when that damn solar storm shut everything down” he said disgustedly and Beverly advised him if he hadn’t of wanted to hang out in a bar he could of got his boat fixed closer to home to which he just ignored her.
“I have been trying every which away to even work my way back here. I tried poling an old bass boat through the shallows but that didn’t work so well and just tuckered me out. I been walking for weeks along back roads and lake roads and trying to avoid the crazies and the rowdies. They got some kinda feud going on amongst them folks in Jackson’s gap and they pointing a gun at anything that moves. I finally made it to Jeremy Stokes place and there I been sitting for 4 days healing up and trying to figure out how to get across this here lake when you come along” he said as he patted his dog while telling his tale and looking at a sympathetic Beverly.
“How much we owe you for this ferry ride David?” Beverly asked.
“Oh it’s on me, could use some gas on the return trip though if you wouldn’t mind my partner Jack siphoning some out of your car” I told them.
“Where you gonna be?” Boudreaux asked and I told him I had to go relieve Jack on guard duty in a couple hours and that it would be him that would be taking them home later on.
“Don’t seem fair you go to all the trouble of setting up that little soiree and then have to leave just when the dancing starts but I can’t say as I blame ya wanting to keep an eye on your place these days.” Boudreaux said while getting into a can of peaches.
“What Dancing?” I said to Boudreaux thinking he was using some kind of Louisiana slang.
“They didn’t tell you? No you hadn’t stepped off the boat long enough to suck the head on a crawfish. I got a mess of them by the way. I can play a little and there are a couple musicians over there and we decided we would call ourselves a band. You going to get to hear cottoneyed Joe like you never heard before. Aiee! And Beverly you going to dance with me.” He said grinning and the dog got all excited at the two of them hugging each other knowing some kind of fun was in the works.
If he gets that dog to dancing to fiddle music I am going to have to stick around for that I thought
I slowed the boat and coasted towards the pier. Frank and Sherry came down to the pier and moments later they introduced me to Jeremy Stokes who had wandered down in back of them.
“Boudreaux we saved that Tom for you, we figured you could use that cooker of yours to boil some water and loosen those feathers easier than we could because nobody has a pot big enough.” Jeremy told him
Sherry helped Beverly bring up her canning jars and I just sort of followed the procession up to the recreation area on the boat ramp where everyone seemed to be doing something. I had to laugh at the kids running around playing Indian with turkey feathers stuck in headbands made out of rags or bits of cord.
“We went ahead and started cooking those turkeys David, hope you don’t mind. We didn’t want to leave them out in this sun too long and you gave simple enough directions on how to do it so we just went for it” Frank said and I looked over at the four garbage cans they had set up with the charcoal placed just right approvingly.<
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Boudreaux was happily ordering everyone about to fill his kettle full of water and hook up his propane etc. While he took a giant syringe and was injecting one of the turkeys saved for him full of some concoction he said was also good for growing hair on your chest. I noticed they had a couple of those steel camp grills getting fired up too where they were going to cook some venison steaks and someone had a pit made in the ground with a fire burning down in it that I guess they were going to slow cook the roasts like you do when cooking a hog in the ground.
I saw Donnie engaged in a deep conversation with several people and he had some small stacks of silver coins in front of him that he would point to occasionally.
I guess he is trading or banking so I won’t go meet those folks just yet I thought
Seems everyone knows my name but the occasional quick introductions left a jumble of names in my head that I hadn’t associated with the faces yet. Seems most were related in some way and that southern way of giving you the lineage of the person with a couple names before getting to the persons real name just got me confused. This is Michael’s son that favors his momma side Juliet’s Cousin Trevor boy Monroe, his name is Billy or some such introduction would just leave me saying pleased to meet you and not remembering his name at all 5 minutes later.
I knew the women would remember every last detail so if I had a question about somebody I would get clarification of who’s who later.
I went over to where Boudreaux was pulling the feathers out of his turkey with a vengeance after dipping it in the boiling water. I hate the smell of feathers after that process and got on the upwind side of him.
” I hear you staying in Bernie’s place and he sort of gifted it to you all “Boudreaux said and had me help him get the kettle of water off the fire and proceeding to singe the pin feathers off the turkey which smelled worse for the dipping process.
“You know Bernie? Small world isn’t it” I said to him and proceeded to tell him how I come to know him and Roland.