Well, Karen did an awesome job of throwing together good food on her patio, with grilled stuffed mushrooms (stuffed with garlic and local sausage), awesome BBQ chicken legs, crackers and hummus, and awesome spinach salad with chopped walnuts, gold raisins, and caesar dressing.
We got to meet Jay,
After Karen's, we went on to Vaughan's, where Kermit Ruffins was playing as on most Thursdays. It was good jazz, and reminded me of amazing Merl Saunders shows at Key West. I finally got to try the Dixie beer that we'd seen a few times. Not as much body as the Abita Amber that was everywhere we went, but a very tasty, crisp lager.
Vanessa was really nice, and dropped us all off on her way home to Metaire, so we didn't have to deal with a cab or the slow streetcars before getting home and collapsing.