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Catahoula Zine

 

Catahoula Zine

Catahoula Zine

I’m excited to announce a project I’ve been working on called Catahoula; the first issue of this quarterly zine features words and photography by yours truly. I’ve toyed with the idea of creating a zine for several years, so I am ecstatic this project has finally come to fruition.

The first issue features “Allons,” a story I wrote this past summer about what it was like to grow up with a swamp for a backyard. I grew up in a typical Westbank subdivision, but my experience was slightly different than my neighbor’s thanks to the proximity of my parent’s house to the levee. Living next to the swamp was fun, but it wasn’t easy. Snakes, armadillos, wasps, and a slew of other animals constantly invaded our home and yard, and the threat of hurricanes was ever present. Growing up in this environment really shaped the person that I am today: someone who yearns for the outdoors and tries not to place too much value on material things since you never know when a storm might take them away. I haven’t lived on “the other side of the river” for 15 years, but I try to make it to Barataria Preserve, the location the essay centers around, at least twice a year. All but one of the photographs (the squirrel photo was shot at Audubon Park) were taken there.

Order a print or digital copy of Catahoula through MagCloud by clicking here. Print copies are $8.00 and digital is $2.00. I’m also giving away two digital copies of Catahoula to two lucky readers. Leave your email in the comments section for a chance to enter. I will pick two winners at random. Winners will be contacted early next week.

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animals

Flamingos at the Audubon Zoo

IMG_5946 IMG_6167 flamingos at the Audubon zoo

I feel like I’m cheating with these photos. I mean, it’s kind of hard to take a bad photo of a flamingo, am I right? The flamingo exhibits are some of my favorite exhibits at the Audubon Zoo. There are actually two of them, but the one nearest the entrance is the best; the birds are so close you can practically touch them. I used to volunteer at the zoo, and despite living a short bike ride away, it’s been years since my last visit. (Tip: students get $2 off admission with a student ID.) I’ve always been a big fan of the reptile house (see my snake tattoo for the proof) but on this past outing I realized that I really enjoy taking photos of birds.

Check out more photos from my day at the zoo on my Tumblr.