Famous Astrologer Maria Shaw Is Coming to New Orleans This Week

My friend Astrologer Maria Shaw is coming to New Orleans.

Maria is the country's most popular and beloved astrologer. To millions of fans and followers, she's known for her amazing accuracy and predictions for Hollywood's hottest stars. You've seen her on every television network and show imaginable from VH 1 to MTV, Life and Style, Fox, NBC and more.

She is the personal advisor for many of Tinsel Town's elite and has given over five hundred readings for famous movie stars, athletes and musicians.


Maria is doing a limited number of readings while she is in New Orleans.

The cost for a reading is $150 for 30 minutes or $295 for an hour.

If you didn't know Maria has a house in the French Quarter. So several times a year Maria will come to New Orleans to do Psychic Fairs and readings for us locals. You can contact her at Maria Shaw . Her readings include numerology, astrology, tarot and intuitive and include a free cassette tape of your reading. She is always right on target. I get a reading every year so I know what I can expect.


This coming Saturday and Sunday, August 1 & 2, Maria will be at her Summer Psychic Fair. The Fair is being held at The House of Broel, located at 2220 St Charles Avenue.
The hours are Saturday 11-4 and Sunday 11-5. Admission is $10. You can get a Reading for a $1 per minute.

There will be 10 psychics at the Fair, plus free lectures, vendors, and alot more. You can also buy crystals, jewelry, and other new age gifts.

Ms Bonnie Broel, who owns House of Broel, will also be singing her book. Bonnie is a ball of fire. She might even give you a tour of her gorgeous house. It has been the site of many a fabulous wedding.

Special guest speakers will include RN Angela Shockley, wellness expert Harry Henderson, DK Brianard, Angelo and Miriam.

You can select from psychic readers, DK Brainard (DK lives in New Orleans), Angel reader Aimee Buckle, Cari Roy ( Cari lives in New Orleans), Barb Garza, Charee, Rev. Cindy, Joe Lawson, David Fuller, Angelo, and Miriam.

And, if you want to listen to Maria live, you can catch her on WWL AM/FM (Spuds Show) this Friday at 1PM.

Maria will be broadcasting her Empower Radio show with Joe Lawson all week long from different sites around the French Quarter.

Joe will be doing a special presentation of his show The Paranormal Gallery this Thursday from a Haunted Site in the Quarter.

Be sure to tune in for the chilling live broadcast from the most Haunted City in the United States! It should be an interesting week in The Big Easy.

CHAIRish The Children Chair is Finished

For the past 10 years, the Louisiana Children's Museum has done an event called "CHAIRish The Children". Artists from New Orleans take an old chair and redo it. Then, all the chairs are sold at their gala to raise money for the Museum.

This year the gala is on August 29th from 7-11PM and the theme is "CHAIRish The Earth".

This past Saturday, I spent the day redoing a chair for this event. Who knew it would take 9 hours to create such an over the top chair.




Here is the finished chair. Look at all those pink dots. I redid the chair at the home of my friends Martin Welch and Tim Buckless in Uptown New Orleans.

If you look closely you can see some of Martin's artwork in the background. We had so much fun redoing this chair we could hardly stand ourselves. We painted and laughed the entire day away.

This chair started out to be a Lowly Chewing Cud COW chair, but with each passing hour, it kept changing...it took on a life of it's own. It kept saying "I MUST BE A GLAMOROUS CHAIR.." That is exactly what happened.

It went from a COW Chair to a Sultry Marilyn Monroe, Come Up and See Me Some Time, PINK LEOPARD... I AM Dangerous, But Fabulous Chair....



This is Tim Buckless working on the PINK LEOPARD. Tim is an artist himself. He added about 12,000 pink dots to that chair. Just when I thought the chair was finished Tim and Martin would look at me and say "Wellllllll....it might need a little something more."

This is code for.... it's not ready yet and don't even think about taking this chair out of here until it is finished.

Tim burnt all of his fingers gluing the cording on the chair. You can't see the cording very well in the picture, but it's there, in all it's pink, green, gold, and purple glory.

Paulette Lizano, another New Orleans artist came by to review our work. I should have recorded some of the commentary on the chair. It would make for some fun and interesting reality TV.
Paulette is designing a chair too. Hers will be made out of art glass from her store Lizano's Glass Haus.

This is the virgin chair, void of all decoration and waiting to become a HOT MOMMA.


The first step varnishing the chair. See some of Martin's work in the background.

Mr. John's Steak House

Greg Syrup, The Executive Chef, Wild and Crazy Man in the Kitchen


Last night, my husband, famous New Orleans' artist Martin Welch, his partner Tim Buckless and yours truly went to Mr. John's Steak House on St Charles Avenue. We went to celebrate another one of my new ventures that I have started.

The process of deciding where to go eat is always an adventure when you are dealing with 3 men. If you ask my husband where to go he will always pick steak. The amazing thing is that all three of them decide that I would choose where we will eat.

I first tried Mr John's with a group called New Orleans' Women and Wine, whose entire purpose is to sample great wine and food pairings together.

Desi Vega, the managing partner of Mr John's, grew up in the restaurant business. Desi was "groomed" by Miss Ella Brennan at Commander's Palace, Miss Ruth Fertel of Ruth's Chris Steakhouse, and by Emeril Lagasse. In New Orleans, those are the biggest names in restaurants.

Desi's partner Rodney Salvaggio, (Mr. John's son -in-law), owned and operated the very popular, "Smilie"s, in Jefferson Parish. His other partner Paul Varisco has been in the restaurant supply business for over 14 years. Paul is the one who brought the partners together to continue Mr. John's name. And we are all glad that he did.

Now, I'm a foodie. I love that all the steaks were cooked to perfection especially since this is the first time that Martin and Tim have eaten at Mr. John's. It's like watching an orchestra, because suddenly 4 waiters all arrive at the same moment to place those plates of meaty wonderment sizzling from the kitchen in front of us.

Since I am not a very good cook I always order side dishes that I will never make at home, so the potatoes Au gratin were just the right combination of gooey lush, slightly crunchy baked cheese on the outside and firm, creamy potatoes on the inside.

We shared the side order of mushrooms, scooping up those plum, rich morsels and decking our steaks with more flavor.

The wait staff is like a well oiled machine. They are attentive and entertaining. Shawn was our waiter and he is The King of Entertainment. Every time I have eaten at Mr. John's, he has been my waiter and he has never failed to entertain.

The real action is in the kitchen. You need to walk through the kitchen to get to the restrooms ( Hey, this is New Orleans and all the buildings are old...we consider this charm and character).

The ringleader is Executive Chef Greg Syrup. He is full of life, energy and he has the magic touch when it comes to food. Make sure that you walk back to the restrooms and meet Greg. He will give you samples of other fabulous food that you might not have ordered and you can soak up some of that exquisite energy of his.

You might want to call for reservations on Friday and Saturday nights, because they get booked up.

Mr John's is open: Tuesday- Saturday 5:30PM-9PM , and Friday Lunch 11AM-2PM.

2111 St. Charles Avenue | New Orleans, Louisiana
Restaurant 504-679-7697 | Office 504-679-7689

Canine Capers at The Arts Market this Saturday

Artwork by Martin Welch


Celebrate the dog days of summer during the "Fun in the Sun" series at the Arts Market of New Orleans this Saturday, July 25th in Palmer Park. From 10 AM to 4 PM, see precious pooches depicted by local artisans in ceramics, paintings, photography and more.

On the last Saturday of every month, the Arts Council of New Orleans presents a vibrant market filled with handcrafted creations by local talent- live music, performance and creative crafts for children.

In the food court, find delicacies to satisfy every craving and drinks on ice. Relish National Hot Dog Month with a "Hot Diggety Dog" by 25 year Jazz Fest veteran TJ Gourmet.

The Deep South All Breed Obedience Club will have a Dog Show at 10:30 AM in the Kids Tent. Children can make Puppy Puppets all day after the show. You can listen to Big Easy Bluegrass by The Tanglers at 1:00 PM. Then at 2:20PM the Gal Holiday & The Honky Tonk Revue will play in the Music Tent.

Palmer Park is located at the corner of South Claiborne and South Carrollton Avenue .

Visit The Arts Council or call 504.523.1465.

Celebrate 98 Years with Lionel Today

Lionel Ferbos, the oldest active jazz musician still performing in New Orleans, will celebrate his 98th birthday today.

He is playing at Snug Harbor tonight. You can help him celebrate his birthday by bringing a birthday card. He is doing 2 shows...one at 8PM and then one at 10PM. Put some money inside those birthday cards. Heck the guy is working on his birthday!

There is a free show with Sweet Home Jazz Trio at 12 Midnight. Snug Harbor Jazz Bistro is located at 626 Frenchman Street. Give them a call if you have questions, 504-949-0696.

Great American Seafood Cook-Off This Weekend

Chefs from throughout the United States will gather in New Orleans tomorrow to compete in the 2009 Great American Seafood Cook-Off, which is presented by the Louisiana Seafood Promotion & Marketing Board.

This will be the sixth consecutive year that the popular culinary contest has occurred.
The event, has featured both up-and-coming and celebrity chefs over the years.

Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal recently sent letters to the governors of all 50 states asking them to appoint a chef to compete in the event. To date, 15 states have registered chefs including Alabama, Alaska, California, Idaho, Illinois, Kentucky, Maryland, Maine, Mississippi, New Jersey, Oregon, Texas, Rhode Island and West Virginia.

Louisiana will be represented by Chef Tory McPhail of Commander's Palace.

Sig Hansen, the commercial fishing captain who stars in the popular documentary television show Deadliest Catch, and Chef John Folse, who is often recognized as Louisiana's Culinary Ambassador to the World, will co-host the 2009 Great American Seafood Cook Off.

The event is from 12-4Pm at the Morial Convention Center. Everyone is invited to see the cookoff.

Louisiana Food Expo

Each year the Louisiana Restaurant Association puts on an event called the Louisiana Food Expo. It is closed to the public, but I get to go because my friend Martin Welch will be there in conjunction with the Louisiana Seafood Marketing and Promotion Board.

Martin designed the 2009 Louisiana Seafood Festival Poster. The original piece of artwork will be on display at the food expo. The piece of art stands about 8 feet tall and about 4 feet wide. It's pretty spectular.

I'm taking my camera so I can take pictures and give you all the scoop.

Thursdays at Twilight at City Park

Are you looking for something to do on Thursday Nights with your family? One of your many choices is the series Thursdays at Twilight at City Park. It is a concert series put on by the park. It takes place at the Pavilion of the Two Sisters.

The doors open at 5 p.m. and concerts begin at 6 p.m. There's a $6.00 admission fee ($3.00 for children over 4) Mint Juleps, wine, beer and soft drinks are available
for purchase. So pack up your picnic basket and enjoy the music as you hang out with all your friends and make some new ones along the way.

Here are the names of the groups playing for the next couple months. Of course, musical groups are subject to change

July 16 James Clark Group:
Eclectic Jazz and Clarinet


July 23 Thais St. Julian Milton Schuermann: Broadway Songs
July 30 Gay Men's Chorus: Popular Songs and More
August 6 Lars Edegran: Jazz Piano
August 13 Shades of Praise: Great Gospel
August 20 Leah Chase: Jazz Vocalist
August 27 Tom Sancton: Jazz Clarinet
September 3 Jimmy Robinson: Acoustic Guitar
September 10 Paul Soniat and Guests: Singer/Songwriter
September 17 Seva Venet: Jazz Guitar
September 24 Lynn Drury: Country & Blues
October 1 Balsa Wood Flyers: Blue Grass
October 8 John Rankin: Acoustic Guitar

Third Annual San Fermin Festival in New Orleans

The third annual San Fermin Festival is taking place this weekend in New Orleans. This year's festival includes 3 days of events and the proceeds benefit the Animal Rescue New Orleans

The Encierro will begin promptly at 8am on Saturday July 11th when they release the Big Easy Roller Girls upon you, followed by the Krewe of the Rolling Elvi! You need to get there at 6:30am (no later than 7am, you don't want to miss a new addition) at 400 Burgundy- The Three Legged Dog Bar. Don't ask me I don't have a clue what this is.

The Post Encierro Fiesta is at the Gazebo Cafe (1018 Decatur St) immediately following the Running of the Bulls. Nothing like a cocktail first thing in the morning surrounded by hot Latin Men.

Saturday night is the first Fiesta de Pantalones (Pants Party), featuring Los Poboy-Citos. Tickets will be sold in advance at El Txupinazo and the Post Encierro Fiesta for $10 and $15 at the door.

Party with Danny Devito Today at 3

The Carousel Bar in the Hotel Monteleone will be the place to be today at 3 pm. Chef John Besh will preview some of his Italian staples that will grace the future menu at Domenica, his soon-to-open trattoria.

Actor Danny DeVito will join in the demo as will Kevin Jenkins, the Atlanta-based personality behind "Chef and the Fat Man,". The cooking demonstration is open to the public, free of charge.

You can also catch Actor and comedian Danny DeVito at Dorignac's this Saturday from 11am - 2pm to sign bottles of his Danny DeVito Premium Limoncello. Limoncello for all my friends.

Chefs Besh will treat the star of "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" to a special dessert: sorbetto made with Danny DeVito's Limoncello.

Domenica will be the fifth property for the Besh Restaurant Group. It is slated to open late summer 2009.

Tales of the Cocktail

Tales of the Cocktail is an internationally acclaimed festival of cocktails, cuisine and culture held annually in New Orleans, Louisiana. The event brings together the best and brightest of the cocktail community-award-winning mixologists, authors, bartenders, chefs and designers-for a five-day celebration of the history and artistry of making drinks.

Each year offers a spirited series of dinners, demos, tastings, competitions, seminars, book signings, tours and parties all perfectly pairedwith some of the best cocktails ever made. We are all about fun In New Orleans.

For more information on Tales of the Cocktail, visit www.TalesoftheCocktail.com. There you can get a run down on all the events that happen these next 4 days. Some of the events are sold out already.

A Rainy Monday Painting with New Orleans Artist Martin Welch

Monday, I had the opportunity to spend the entire day painting with New Orleans' Artist Martin Welch. Together with his partner Tim, we painted the day away at their gorgeous home in Uptown New Orleans.

Now, I paint...but nothing in comparison to Martin. I have 6 good paint brushes....Martin has 50...I have small tubes of paint...Martin has gallons of paint. I might have 2 spare canvases...Martin has 100. I have to find a place to paint. Martin has 1,000 square feet to paint in.

What a fabulous way to spend the entire day. See the bird houses? Tim and I painted bird houses while Martin painted my husband and I from a picture I had given him.

It's interesting watching yourself come to life on a canvas. Kinda surreal....One minute the canvas is blank and the next minute I magically appear ...one brush stroke at a time.




This is a picture of the working part of his studio. You don't have to worry about getting paint on the floor, since it just adds to the total look of the space.

The other part of his studio is set up like a gallery. The walls are filled up with paintings by Martin. Just when you think you know which painting is your favorite, you see another painting that could be your favorite....Decisions, Decisions.





One of the ways that you can decide on your own perfect Martin Welch artwork is to click on his website, Martin Welch Art

There you can spend quality time with his art and then decide for yourself, your favorite piece of art for your home or office. Let me know which one is your favorite...we'll compare notes.

Dirty Linen Night

Mark the date on your calendar, August 8th on Royal Street. Become a fan on facebook,, just search facebook for Dirty Linen Night. There you can check out pictures from last years' event. It's another reason to have a party.

Go Fourth on the River in New Orleans

The Go Fourth Celebration takes place this Saturday. Here is the event schedule:
Washington Artillery Park 11:00 a.m.
Teddy Cross & Company Gospel Choir sing patriotic gospel

11:30 a.m.
Second line with trumpeter and stilt walkers to Dutch Alley to be met by Treme Brass Band with students for a Louis Armstrong Tribute "When the Saints Go Marching In"

Dutch Alley Performance Pavillion Noon
Daddy-O Brothers Band featuring Lisa Lee
2:00 p.m. Larger -than-Life Signing the Declaration of Independence
3:00 p.m. Tuane & the 3rd Eye Production Band
5:30 p.m. Chuck Perkins and the Voices of the Big Easy
7:00 p.m. Preservation Hall Stars featuring Carl LeBlanc

Flea Market 2:30 - 3:30 pm Watermelon tasting at French Market Produce

New Orleans Jazz National Historic Park Visitor's Center 1:00 pm
Chuck Perkins and Voices of the Big Easy
3:00 pm Showing of the 1957 film "Satchmo"

At The Riverwalk:

3:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. The Bucktown All-Stars
4:30 p.m. – 5:45 p.m. Treme Brass Band
6:00 p.m. – 7:15 p.m. Amanda Shaw & The Cute Guys
7:30 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. The Mixed Nuts

Dueling Barges Fireworks Extravaganza at 9:00 pm

This unique salute to America's independence will feature a fireworks display from two barges over the Mighty Mississippi. Choreographed to stirring patriotic classics and beautiful strokes of radiant light.

Organgutan Baby born at Audubon Zoo

We have a new Orangutan at the Audubon Zoo. On June 10th, an endangered Sumatran Orangutan, named Menari, was born. Here is a picture of little Menair. Her name means "dance" in Indonesian.

Although Menari is active and thriving, Feliz, as a first-time mother, needs assistance caring for her newborn. Don't we all. Animal staff made the decision to relocate Menari to a nursery at Audubon's Animal Health Care Center, where the baby is cared for by keepers around-the-clock. Keepers also are running introduction sessions with Mom Feliz every day in hopes of re-introducing the baby to the orangutan group soon.

Her Mom, Feliz is twenty years old. She came to Audubon Zoo as a youngster from Brownsville, Texas. The father, Berani, is sixteen years old and came to Audubon from the Miami Zoo.

The most recent orangutan birth at Audubon Zoo was thirteen years ago - Blaze, born in 1996. Blaze shares the exhibit with Berani and Feliz.