Good question. Since all the parishes have to have a blue law then it probably still exists. But maybe not.
Interesting. I believe that was one of the few laws that actually got rescinded here. I recall it being enforced when I was a kid.
At one time the men’s clothes thing was enforced but suddenly the unisex tourist shops came into being so who could tell what was being sold to whom and whether it was men’s clothes or women’s clothes or a tourist shirt for their pet. Outside the Quarter things were a little different but in the Quarter, just about anything was pretty much legal as long as ya didn’t pee on a cop’s boot. Note: You’d be surprised at how many people have been arrested for doing that very thing.
The Just-In-Time inventory system championed by Wal Mart and copied by others is part of the availability problem. Under that system, anytime the supply chain is stressed, things run out. @John Brunner you should be able to grow your own Romaine lettuce almost year 'round in Virginia. Blue laws were always a bit of hypocrisy. I remember almost being stuck in South Carolina once because I had a blow out while crossing the state and was told it was illegal to sell tires on Sunday in SC. I managed to persuade the garage people that it was a true emergency, and they sold me one tire to allow me to continue to my destination. In Pennsylvania where I grew up, the bars were closed on election days until the polls closed. I don't know if that is still the case. With the mail-in voting stuff, that would mean the bars would be closed for weeks.
I got get my arms around my critter issue and clear out the 2,400 ft² garden I plowed and tilled and that is now overgrown. I'm in USDA Zone 7a. My Annual Extreme Temp is 0°F-5°F. I'm not sure I can grow lettuce all year long...we still get frost in May. It seems that unless you can or have a large family, veggie gardens are tough to cost-justify. Regarding Just-In-Time inventory...it's funny how half truths can grab corporate America. That stuff was started in Japan (kanban), and it's generally untrue as understood in the states, although there are always improvements that can be had if the business has the mind to actually do the work rather than play with catch-phrases. In order for there to be no inventory in the supply chain, you would need perfect forecasts and perfect crisis-free availability of all raw materials & finished goods. In Japan, lots of businesses in a given industry are under a common owner (banks, generally.) So that "Zero Inventory" stance applies to the most visible link in the chain, usually the manufacturing floor where all the input materials converge. There's always inventory being kept...it's just been shoved upstream into the suppliers' warehouses...and they have no choice because the common owner demands they do it. American bosses don't want to hear the reality (nor do they want to hear your requests for perfect forecasts, or for any forecasts), they just tell you to "make it work." Unless you own your suppliers, or you're large enough to browbeat them into sitting on your inventory, it ain't gonna happen. Costs never get eliminated, they just get shifted. You'll go broke, but you'll get to say you [used to] sell to Walmart. Back to my romaine: managing the timing of produce delivery has got to be tough. It can't sit on the shelf like a pack of napkins.
Lettuce can take frost. I have had it survive down to 20 F. if it is shaded. The sun cannot hit it while it is frozen or the cells burst and the plant is ruined. If the lettuce thaws before the sun hits it, it can survive some serious frost/freeze conditions. A cold frame would make it a year 'round crop for you if you wish. Tailor the variety to the conditions. You wouldn't grow the same romaine in July that you would in November.
Went to make coffee this morning...dropped the canister and half of the coffee canister hit the floor. It was a new one.
After throwing my Dell laptop across the room... yes, I actually did that after the BSOD for the nth time... I reloaded the OS for the third time in 2 weeks. I'd like to drive up to Austin and throw it on Michael Dell's lawn. I imagine there's quite a pile of them for him to gaze out upon.
The Scallops Gratin recipe I tried last night sucked. All that wasted time and money making crème fraîche... So as I often do, I'm looking at other recipes to put their ingredients and quantities into a spreadsheet for comparison purposes to make my own hybrid. I also scan the comments for reader's suggestions. One Scallops Gratin recipe has scallops, prosciutto and Pernod (an anise liqueur.) Here is the comment in support of a 5 Start Rating for that recipe: Excellent! I didn't have scallops, nor prosciutto, so I used chicken breasts & bacon. Didn't use the Pernod either and it was still delicious! Perhaps this person has written a parody of such comments (because such comments are so commonplace), or perhaps the comment is real. What the heck is wrong with these people??????
I have run across many recipes that feature Pernod. To me, there are very few things I can readily think of that Pernod, Ouzo or any other licorice or anise based liquor can go into successfully and a scallop dish isn’t one of them. A manager once handed me a recipe for a table side prepared dish called “drunken Lobster”. I made it and allowed the cooks to taste it and after only seconds after the tasting we all agreed that the dish was terrible. I then made it without the Pernod but left the vodka and it made all the difference in the world. Lump Lobster shallots garlic salt and white pepper mushrooms sautéed in butter Flambe’d with vodka stir in sour cream, chives, lemon zest bring back up to heat and top with parm To me, it can easily do without the vodka but for a table side service flambe’, the show brings in an extra 10-20 beans plus tip.
Like lots of folks, I like using white wine to deglaze a pan when fish has been cooked in it. Vermouth makes a nice change for that. I one made roast chicken thighs with papaya, mango and rum. THAT was very good. I did a flambe once...I burned the vodka off of a shrimp ravioli Calabrian peppers sauce. It is impressive, and burned longer than I thought it would. I agree about putting anise in most dishes...what are they thinking? I did not like the alcohol in the scallop gratin I made because it only bakes for a few short minutes, so the alcohol does not burn off. I do like the concept of scallops in a gratin, I'll play with it and come up with something. Most likely I'll let the wine/vermouth sit out for the alcohol to evaporate (or maybe I'll heat it), and I'll cut the amount back. I also need to thicken up the sauce...it was very runny. Half creme fraiche and half wine--then baking it--is too thin.
I've done a lasagna with fennel in the sauce. It's pretty good. I think the acid of the tomatoes (and the mass of pasta) cuts the pungency of the fennel.