New Toulouse

At this time of the year, I always get an urge to discover spooky things. And this morning I hit the jackpot. The first thing I spotted was a mysterious corpse in the pigpen at Pazzo’s old Spanish stable. And the pigs looked fat. I wonder if we ever will see him again.

At Lin Laundry at the south end of Shotgun Row, the Halloween pumpkin was a kitty!

Next to the laundry is Missedabracket Salvage, where a nice Cthulhu was hanging on display. When I went to visit him, I swear someone threw pumpkins at me!

I ran for my life to hide in the Maison Rose, and then I saw that a new business, the Mud Bowl, had moved in there. The dead fish looked nice.

Quite calmed by the friendly skeletal fish, I strolled down the road and found a pair of cute, tiny skeletons hanging in the food stall at Carousel Park.

This made me hungry, so I went to Bijou Impromptu, where my spirit fed upon the short Frankenstein movie playing there. That put me in a romantic mood, so I went for a quick visit to the bayou to roll in the catnip, and at the Cloche du Chat, I found the cutest pumpkins I have ever seen.

Suddenly longing for the rooftop party that the Krewe of Bast (my krewe!) are throwing this weekend, I took my tubcopter to Gloryville and got myself a preview of the goodies.

Keep it spooky!

The Ghost of Liza Veliz fell in love with New Toulouse at first sight. She publishes books by various authors; find them at her reading cafe on Shotgun Row. She also operates a bookstore and tattoo parlor in Gloryville, at the corner of Royale and Rossignol.

Today I went on a walk in the city to view some art. At Miss Bee’s gallery at Red Drum Place, Maison de la Femme Impatient, I see that Lilyday Darkstone has brought her art back to New Toulouse. Her painting Heartstrings seems to be longing for the cemetery just outside the window. I really like Lilyday’s paintings. They are so soulful.

In this gallery there are also paintings by Miss Bee herself. She is accepting orders for custom paintings, and her gallery will show and sell other artists’ works on commission.

Galerie Wikifoo, on Rue de Woodget, also has several new pieces on the walls. Mr. Wikifoo has recently hung Trick Fell Asleep and others that I have never seen before. He has a pair of horses in the gallery garden. I wonder if he has them there for inspiration.

Across from the Ascension Cafe is Galerie Diabolik, highlighting risqué photographs and paintings from different eras. Miss Ulva Gloom specializes in the forbidden and is showing very special pieces. I found a marvelous octopus among the French postcards and vampire-themed art.

Just behind the gallery is Cinema Diabolik, now showing the surreal short film Ghosts Before Breakfast. New Toulouse’s other cinema, Bijou Impromptu, is showing The Musketeers of Pig Alley, starring Lillian Gish. Both of the cinemas in the city present films that really satisfy my eye for art.

Next to Bijou Impromptu is the Green-Eyed Fairy, which has the most secret art gallery in New Toulouse. I’m talking, of course, about the nudes in the “smoking lounge.” In the more public area upstairs, you can find art by Bryn Oh and several others, and in the main room downstairs there is a very impressive collection of photos of famous musicians. I am very fond of the art deco posters in there too.

Our lovely city is full of art. In fact, there are so many places with art here that you should definitely devote some time to an art stroll.

The Ghost of Liza Veliz fell in love with New Toulouse at first sight. She publishes books by various authors; find them at her reading cafe on Shotgun Row.