Elizabeth McKay Harriet Dress in Navy and White Pincord – Country Club Prep
Pincord Dresses
Every spring, there comes a warm day when Southern gentlemen and women head to the closet and pull out something seersucker. While Seersucker is considered classic “Old South”, I personally prefer pincord. There’s something about a pincord dress or suit that feels more New Orleans to me.
Pincord and the Uptown Girl
Brooks Stirling Sumner, “Silver” to her friends, is one of my characters in Trusted Talents, the second novel in the “Bayou Talents” series. Silver’s story is a fascinating one, and suffice to say, she’ll figure prominently as the series goes forward. Silver is a 28yo former queen of one of the “old-line” Carnival krewes. She comes from money and privilege.
Silver is a running-yoga-pilates person, She cycles when she can, leaving the car in the garage of her condo building. Her wardrobe is, for the most part, classic Preppy. So, pincord in the closet makes sense. Classic preppy pleases her mum and grand-mama. Silver’s wild streak conflicts with their ideas, however. Therefore, her pincord dress climbs up the knee. Mum thought she outgrew that stage after graduating from the Academy of the Sacred Heart, but Pilates creates nice legs!
Footwear
Last week, I threw out a question to my Zuckerd00d friends: do you prefer flip flops or sandals with a back? The responses were mixed. The big knock on flips was the sound of the shoe hitting the foot.
It surprised me that there were no remarks about driving in flip-flops. In the UK, most women opt for sandals with a back, lest the flip get tangled with the pedals when driving. Not a consideration in last week’s thread.
So, I’m still unsure about footwear for Silver and her pincord dress. Flips? Maybe when going someplace very casual, like meeting friends for happy hour. Maybe a nicer sandal for a date. Possibly a wedge to boost height.
Fr. Michael O’Donnell drives a Porsche 914 in the Talents Universe.
1971 Porsche 914 advertisement
Porsche 914
Porsche introduced the 914 model in 1969. The automaker partnered with Volkswagen on the 914. Porsche wanted an upgrade/update to their model 912. Volkswagen wanted something new to replace their Karmann Ghia. Production of the 914 ran from its introduction until 1976.
The Karmann Ghia
Karmann Ghia
Volkswagen introduced their Karmann Ghia coupe in 1955. They sought an update by the late 1960s. While their partnership with Porsche produced the 914 in 1969, Volkswagen continued production of the Karmann Ghia through 1974. Therefore, VW had (sort of) two coups in the 1970s
Personal experiences
I never rode in a Karmann Ghia, but my dad owned one for a brief time before I was born. So, he would see them go by later on and express his fondness for the sports car of his younger days. By the time I attended university, the Karmann Ghias were old news. They appealed to guys with an interest in older cars, but my friends with 2-seat sports cars opted for the Porsche, or the MGB. One friend even drove an Alfa Romeo
I had two direct encounters with the Porsche 914. The first was in my second and third years as an undergrad at University of New Orleans. A Student Government Association friend owned one. It was a fun little car. The center engine design took a bit of getting used to. As a kid, I found my dad’s rear-engine Beetle a curiosity. The vibration of the center-engine gave the 914 a different feel.
My second 914 encounter was as a student teacher in my fourth year at UNO. My supervising teacher at F. W. Gregory Junior High drove a Porsche 914. While I never got to drive either of those cars, the design, and the fun of riding in my friend’s car stayed with me.
After UNO, I bought a 1980 Plymouth Horizon, to get me to and from Redeemer High School. By all accounts, the Volkswagen transmission in that car behaved much like that of the Porsche 914.
Talents
Mike O’Donnell is a History professor. So, he naturally has an appreciation for older automobiles. While not an auto-repair type himself, Mike picked up the basic skills one needs when one owns an old car. He learned early on in his ownership of a 914 to network with people who can fix your old car. Mike’s Porsche 914 is white in Hidden Talents and Trusted Talents.
The Ad
This ad is from 1971. So, it’s a good representation of Mike’s car. I follow a number of folks on Tumblr who enjoy sharing older/vintage advertising. So, this one made me smile.
“Have a seat, Creole Princess. You’re an outlier,” her husband replied. “You want morning sex, Ren? It can be arranged,” Tara said, licking the rim of her cup....
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Marconi and Lakeshore Drives, 21-August-2018 (Edward Branley photo)Marconi and Lakeshore Drives under construction, 21-Aug-2018 (Edward Branley photo)
I went out to Marconi and Lakeshore yesterday, to sit, reflect, and let the water lapping up against the seawall relax me. Ran into a bit of a problem, though–fences! The area is undergoing a revamp from the Orleans Levee Board. I was disappointed, but understood. That seawall is a WPA project from the late 1930s. Erosion has always been a challenge. Not sure if the OLB is going to concrete the approach to the seawall, like they’ve done on other parts of the Lakefront. If they do, I’m OK with that. It’s about sitting and looking out at the lake, not back at the cops.
Marconi and Lakeshore is a thinking spot. It’s where dragons and angels come to visit. Father O’Donnell, who is also a Brother Martin alum, is quite familiar with the spot. The boys of the Trio, Joey Newfeld and David Williams, are certainly not surprised to encounter him at this spot. The power of Elemental Water is refreshing, even for a Fire Dragon of the Red Tribe. Come read the Talents and the Dragons, you’ll get the idea.
Marconi and Lakeshore Drives under construction, 21-Aug-2018 (Edward Branley photo)
I went out to Marconi and Lakeshore yesterday, to sit, reflect, and let the water lapping up against the seawall relax me. Ran into a bit of a problem, though–fences! The area is undergoing a revamp from the Orleans Levee Board. I was disappointed, but understood. That seawall is a WPA project from the late 1930s. Erosion has always been a challenge. Not sure if the OLB is going to concrete the approach to the seawall, like they’ve done on other parts of the Lakefront. If they do, I’m OK with that. It’s about sitting and looking out at the lake, not back at the cops.
Marconi and Lakeshore is a thinking spot. It’s where dragons and angels come to visit. Father O’Donnell, who is also a Brother Martin alum, is quite familiar with the spot. The boys of the Trio, Joey Newfeld and David Williams, are certainly not surprised to encounter him at this spot. The power of Elemental Water is refreshing, even for a Fire Dragon of the Red Tribe. Come read the Talents and the Dragons, you’ll get the idea.
But we always came back to Marconi and Lakeshore. After Brother Martin, it was a place to sit and think with my fraternity brothers. Beer was still the go-to then, but other substances came on the scene as well. The seawall at Marconi and Lakeshore was a good fifty yards back from the street and parking bay. That’s a long walk for a cop, and they weren’t going to run. One could finish consumption of just about any controlled substance in one’s possession.
Making out, “parking” in the vernacular, wasn’t something we did at Marconi and Lakeshore. Put simply, you never know who would show up. The girls as a rule weren’t going to get busy out on the seawall, so those activities were limited to the car. No, that’s where the Plaza parking lot came in.
Construction!
Marconi and Lakeshore Drives under construction, 21-Aug-2018 (Edward Branley photo)
I went out to Marconi and Lakeshore yesterday, to sit, reflect, and let the water lapping up against the seawall relax me. Ran into a bit of a problem, though–fences! The area is undergoing a revamp from the Orleans Levee Board. I was disappointed, but understood. That seawall is a WPA project from the late 1930s. Erosion has always been a challenge. Not sure if the OLB is going to concrete the approach to the seawall, like they’ve done on other parts of the Lakefront. If they do, I’m OK with that. It’s about sitting and looking out at the lake, not back at the cops.
Marconi and Lakeshore is a thinking spot. It’s where dragons and angels come to visit. Father O’Donnell, who is also a Brother Martin alum, is quite familiar with the spot. The boys of the Trio, Joey Newfeld and David Williams, are certainly not surprised to encounter him at this spot. The power of Elemental Water is refreshing, even for a Fire Dragon of the Red Tribe. Come read the Talents and the Dragons, you’ll get the idea.
Oh, we hung out at more places than Marconi and Lakeshore, mind you. The Resurrection guys took us out to this new construction at I-10 and Read in Da East. Was going to be a new shopping mall. Turned out, it was a much better place to “park” than the lakefront. Fewer cops out there.
But we always came back to Marconi and Lakeshore. After Brother Martin, it was a place to sit and think with my fraternity brothers. Beer was still the go-to then, but other substances came on the scene as well. The seawall at Marconi and Lakeshore was a good fifty yards back from the street and parking bay. That’s a long walk for a cop, and they weren’t going to run. One could finish consumption of just about any controlled substance in one’s possession.
Making out, “parking” in the vernacular, wasn’t something we did at Marconi and Lakeshore. Put simply, you never know who would show up. The girls as a rule weren’t going to get busy out on the seawall, so those activities were limited to the car. No, that’s where the Plaza parking lot came in.
Construction!
Marconi and Lakeshore Drives under construction, 21-Aug-2018 (Edward Branley photo)
I went out to Marconi and Lakeshore yesterday, to sit, reflect, and let the water lapping up against the seawall relax me. Ran into a bit of a problem, though–fences! The area is undergoing a revamp from the Orleans Levee Board. I was disappointed, but understood. That seawall is a WPA project from the late 1930s. Erosion has always been a challenge. Not sure if the OLB is going to concrete the approach to the seawall, like they’ve done on other parts of the Lakefront. If they do, I’m OK with that. It’s about sitting and looking out at the lake, not back at the cops.
Marconi and Lakeshore is a thinking spot. It’s where dragons and angels come to visit. Father O’Donnell, who is also a Brother Martin alum, is quite familiar with the spot. The boys of the Trio, Joey Newfeld and David Williams, are certainly not surprised to encounter him at this spot. The power of Elemental Water is refreshing, even for a Fire Dragon of the Red Tribe. Come read the Talents and the Dragons, you’ll get the idea.
Oh, we hung out at more places than Marconi and Lakeshore, mind you. The Resurrection guys took us out to this new construction at I-10 and Read in Da East. Was going to be a new shopping mall. Turned out, it was a much better place to “park” than the lakefront. Fewer cops out there.
But we always came back to Marconi and Lakeshore. After Brother Martin, it was a place to sit and think with my fraternity brothers. Beer was still the go-to then, but other substances came on the scene as well. The seawall at Marconi and Lakeshore was a good fifty yards back from the street and parking bay. That’s a long walk for a cop, and they weren’t going to run. One could finish consumption of just about any controlled substance in one’s possession.
Making out, “parking” in the vernacular, wasn’t something we did at Marconi and Lakeshore. Put simply, you never know who would show up. The girls as a rule weren’t going to get busy out on the seawall, so those activities were limited to the car. No, that’s where the Plaza parking lot came in.
Construction!
Marconi and Lakeshore Drives under construction, 21-Aug-2018 (Edward Branley photo)
I went out to Marconi and Lakeshore yesterday, to sit, reflect, and let the water lapping up against the seawall relax me. Ran into a bit of a problem, though–fences! The area is undergoing a revamp from the Orleans Levee Board. I was disappointed, but understood. That seawall is a WPA project from the late 1930s. Erosion has always been a challenge. Not sure if the OLB is going to concrete the approach to the seawall, like they’ve done on other parts of the Lakefront. If they do, I’m OK with that. It’s about sitting and looking out at the lake, not back at the cops.
Marconi and Lakeshore is a thinking spot. It’s where dragons and angels come to visit. Father O’Donnell, who is also a Brother Martin alum, is quite familiar with the spot. The boys of the Trio, Joey Newfeld and David Williams, are certainly not surprised to encounter him at this spot. The power of Elemental Water is refreshing, even for a Fire Dragon of the Red Tribe. Come read the Talents and the Dragons, you’ll get the idea.
Marconi and the Lakefront. Marconi Lakeshore. This has been my thinking spot since around 1973. That’s when my 14-year old freshman butt went out there with older guys who were on the Brother Martin High School Debate team. The beer of choice (or perhaps that was the beer of necessity?) was Schlitz. We had a solid cadre of seniors and just-graduated guys who were at Tulane or (then) LSUNO at that time who didn’t mind buying extra beer for us youngsters. We would sit on the seawall, shooting the shit. For the most part, if the older guys took notice of us chirren, it was on the receiving end of scathing critiques of our debate skills. For the most part, those critiques were intended to be positive. Harsh, but, the older guys wanted us to win.
So, Marconi and Lakeshore became our spot. Getting seriously drunk after dropping off the dates after Homecoming that year. And the next year. By then, we were juniors, taking freshmen under our wing.
Hanging out in High School
Oh, we hung out at more places than Marconi and Lakeshore, mind you. The Resurrection guys took us out to this new construction at I-10 and Read in Da East. Was going to be a new shopping mall. Turned out, it was a much better place to “park” than the lakefront. Fewer cops out there.
But we always came back to Marconi and Lakeshore. After Brother Martin, it was a place to sit and think with my fraternity brothers. Beer was still the go-to then, but other substances came on the scene as well. The seawall at Marconi and Lakeshore was a good fifty yards back from the street and parking bay. That’s a long walk for a cop, and they weren’t going to run. One could finish consumption of just about any controlled substance in one’s possession.
Making out, “parking” in the vernacular, wasn’t something we did at Marconi and Lakeshore. Put simply, you never know who would show up. The girls as a rule weren’t going to get busy out on the seawall, so those activities were limited to the car. No, that’s where the Plaza parking lot came in.
Construction!
Marconi and Lakeshore Drives under construction, 21-Aug-2018 (Edward Branley photo)
I went out to Marconi and Lakeshore yesterday, to sit, reflect, and let the water lapping up against the seawall relax me. Ran into a bit of a problem, though–fences! The area is undergoing a revamp from the Orleans Levee Board. I was disappointed, but understood. That seawall is a WPA project from the late 1930s. Erosion has always been a challenge. Not sure if the OLB is going to concrete the approach to the seawall, like they’ve done on other parts of the Lakefront. If they do, I’m OK with that. It’s about sitting and looking out at the lake, not back at the cops.
Marconi and Lakeshore is a thinking spot. It’s where dragons and angels come to visit. Father O’Donnell, who is also a Brother Martin alum, is quite familiar with the spot. The boys of the Trio, Joey Newfeld and David Williams, are certainly not surprised to encounter him at this spot. The power of Elemental Water is refreshing, even for a Fire Dragon of the Red Tribe. Come read the Talents and the Dragons, you’ll get the idea.
Strong Women are important to the Talents Universe
While the primary characters of Hidden Talents are Renard Alciatore and Michael O’Donnell, the story features several strong women. Ren’s interactions with women are important. I didn’t want the story to be a bromance. Consider two of the women in the story.
JJ
Janet Julianne Garrison is Ren’s best friend, and will defend him to the death if necessary. But JJ doesn’t have Talents, so she’s no match for Anita Delatorre. JJ is still important to the story and will always be to Ren. JJ is a bit older than Ren, and her family moved in different New Orleans circles than the Alciatores. Like most folks in the city, the families intersect at points. The “six degrees of separation” game rarely goes past two in New Orleans.
I’d love to hear from readers about the Ren-JJ dynamic, particularly as it continues in Trusted Talents
Anita
The “ambitious woman” in a man’s world! Such a trope. Thing is, in the world of Christian publishing isn’t all that different from other industries that rely on a lot of personal contact for marketing. It’s no coincidence that pharmaceutical companies use women as direct-marketing representatives. Physicians are overwhelmingly male. Put the gal in heels and a well-tailored business suit, and she’s a welcome sight to the overworked doctor.
It’s the same thing for publishing. The dynamics of marketing to booksellers has changed radically, because of the Internet. Publishers need to come up with more ideas for getting their authors in front of the public. While there are a still a number of brick-and-mortar stores that sell Christian fiction and non-fiction, the attractive, well-dressed, professional young woman has a limited reach.
Christian Publishing is a challenge
Christian authors know their path to success lies in “church tours” rather than traditional “book tours.” When a Christian author goes on the road, it looks more like a band on tour than a typical author. It’s all about the advance person. A woman with a charming personality who is, as they say, “easy on the eyes” works wonders in this world. If that woman has Talents, well, that makes things even easier.
Marcus-Kayson Publishing, located in the DFW Metroplex, knows how this works. Even though the average M-K employee isn’t aware of it, the company also knows how to use the Talents.
To be continued!
Trusted Talents by Edward J Branley
The cover of Trusted Talents features three women. That speaks volumes for this trend continuing!
Anita Delatorre is a junior executive for a publishing company specializing in Christian books and homeschooling materials. Anita’s assignment is to be her company’s liaison with a New Orleans-based radio preacher, whose books the company publishes. A group seeking to discredit their client is all too successful, and Anita must take steps to stop them, using any means at her disposal. And Anita’s means are formidable: She is a sorceress, whose psychic Talents extend well beyond those of most mortals.
Renard Alciatore is a thirty-four-year old photographer who enjoys using his computer skills to mock Anita’s client, the Reverend Jay Hadley. As Ren begins to receive information of financial and sexual improprieties from inside Jay Hadley Ministries, his life is threatened, and, in the process his own Talents are revealed. He is placed under the Protection of a shadowy organization known as The Assembly as he learns to use his Talents, to improve his photography, help others when he can, and defend his own life, when Challenged.
What were once Hidden Talents emerge in the hot New Orleans summer. Only one will walk away when the duel is joined!
Available in paperback ($13.99), hardcover, and Kindle.
Someone’s stealing magickal artifacts – in the middle of Mardi Gras!
The priests of the Ordo Archangelli keep their tools hidden until needed. New Orleans has kept some of their secrets well, until now. Daniel McCain is a Dark Adept of the same group that tried to kill Ren Alciatore at Samhain. Now, McCain comes close to acquiring a powerful set of tools. When all are in his possession, challenging and defeating him will cost lives.
And there’s no better time to hide these thefts than Carnival! The Ordo don’t know where the theives’ next target is. Ren wants to enlist the help of one of McCain’s cousins, Brooks Stirling Sumner, to learn more about the artifacts.
Renard Alciatore’s Talents are no longer hidden. Will the shadowy group known as the Assembly trust him? With the guidance of a Coven of Witches and knowledge from his new friend, Ren and The Assembly must protect their city from those who want to win at all costs. Bullets and magick are a strong combination to defeat!
Wednesday, 15-August, is the official drop date for my latest novel, “Trusted Talents“. Here’s the back-cover blurb:
Someone’s stealing magickal artifacts – in the middle of Mardi Gras The priests of the Ordo Archangelli keep their tools hidden until needed. New Orleans has kept some of their secrets well, until now. Daniel McCain is a Dark Adept of the same group that tried to kill Ren Alciatore at Samhain.
Now, McCain comes close to acquiring a powerful set of tools. When all are in his possession, challenging and defeating him will cost lives. And there’s no better time to hide these thefts than Carnival The Ordo don’t know where the theives’ next target is. Ren wants to enlist the help of one of McCain’s cousins, Brooks Stirling Sumner, to learn more about the artifacts.
Renard Alciatore’s Talents are no longer hidden. Will the shadowy group known as the Assembly trust him? With the guidance of a Coven of Witches and knowledge from his new friend, Ren and The Assembly must protect their city from those who want to win at all costs. Bullets and magick are a strong combination to defeat.
Trusted Talents picks up where my first contemporary sword-and-sorcery novel, Hidden Talents, leaves off. If you like magick, magickal duels, ritual, and extrasensory “Talents”, you’ll enjoy these two books.
Continuing the story of Renard Alciatore and his mentor, Fr. Michael O’Donnell, is so much fun. I’m always playing with little short scenes. I post those to my Facebook Author Page, as well as the Bayou Talents Book Group. Trusted Talents features three women on the cover, because this book is all about strong New Orleans women!
Trusted Talents is avaolable for pre-order at all the usual suspects!
