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rachael

Christian Radke: Son of a Preacher Man

christianradke
May 17, 2012 By In Local Spotlight, Music


When I first heard (and, let’s be honest, saw) Christian Radke in action it was hard for me to believe that he perfected his instrument growing up in his parent’s church. This sultry R&B singer is a  far cry from any alter boy I have ever seen and has the white boy swagger reminiscent of my high school crush. Jon B. Radke oozes sexuality on stage often gyrating and dancing provocatively with the random women he pulls up stage to swoon.

Hailing from the West Bank (what he and his friends call the “Best Bank”) he has a huge following and packs the house at all of his performances, which have included several shows at the Howling Wolf opening for national recording artists Stalley, Miguel, and Estelle on Valentine’s Day. Radke’s smooth soulful sound is much older than his 20-something years and is similar in tone to that of Usher or Donell Jones. His raw natural talent combined with the right team at Supreme Street has put him on the map as one of New Orleans best R&B acts with songs like “No Sleep” and “Lights Low”.

When Christian isn’t busy working on his music he is working towards his degree as a student at Delgado College. For booking information, to sample his songs which he says are mostly inspired by beautiful ladies, or to find out about upcoming performances check out his website.

(This review may or may not attract a lot of listeners but it is guaranteed to attract a lot of girls.)

Rachael is originally from Harrisburg, PA where she plans to be mayor one day. In the meantime she keeps busy cleaning the skeletons out of her closet, catering to the needs of a very spoiled Siberian Huskey, and hosting her own radio show, Plan DD: The morning after Rachael. Rachael can be reached for questions/comments at rkostel7@gmail.com.

Amelie G Magazine: New Orleans Fashion’s Finest

Amelie G
May 15, 2012 By In Fashion, Local Spotlight

If you didn’t get your New Orleans Fashion Week fix from InvadeNOLA (which I personally find preposterous), take a look at the Amelie G webzine and fashion magazine for full coverage of the events.

Amelie G is New Orleans’ premiere fashion mag with monthly updates to the webzine blog and a quarterly printed publication. The magazine combines the epitome of old world style with hipster trends unique to NOLA, where other larger fashion mags miss their mark.

Named after Parisian socialite Amelie Gautreau, Amelie G has been living up to its name by “highlighting beauty and intuitiveness of style and taste” since it got its start in 2009 and printed its first issue in the fall of 2010.

Madame X

Amelie Gautreau, the magazine’s namesake. 

Categorizing Fashion, Beauty, Shopping, Events, and Art I found many buried treasures while perusing their site including “The Mane Attraction” by Rebecca Marshburn from 11/2011 which spotlights FiFi Mahoney’s New Orleans answer to world class wigs and accessories, “Papier Dramatique” by Christy Levesque-Perron from 1/2012 informing readers of the latest trends in paper (yes, paper!) eyelashes, and “Dirty by Gorilla Perfume”, the latest and greatest in unisex scents.

For someone like me who needs constant instant gratification, I am disappointed in the quantity of current content, but the quality is right on point and the photography is brilliant and makes up where words may lack.

I have commitment issues that far exceed my relationships with the opposite sex, so I love trying out new trends that I can diss the second I get bored, and Amelie G is usually my source for fresh new products/styles to try. I am still waiting on them to “highlight” (pun intended) this new Ombre hairstyle I discovered before them, but perhaps they realized hair dye is too long term for my taste.

Rachael is originally from Harrisburg, PA where she plans to be mayor one day. In the meantime she keeps busy cleaning the skeletons out of her closet, catering to the needs of a very spoiled Siberian Huskey, and hosting the radio show “Dirty Dishes” on www.crescentcityradio.com every Wednesday from 7-10pm. Rachael can be reached for questions/comments at rkostel7@gmail.com or on twitter @therealplandd.

Don’t miss Maya’s

mayas
May 10, 2012 By In Food and Beverage

I like latin food almost as much as I like latin men and there is no place I would rather go for a steaming plate of paella or ropa vieja than Maya’s Latin Fusion Cuisine Restaurant and bar.

When I first moved to the city I was living two blocks away from this neighborhood spot (located in the 2000 block of Magazine Street across from Juan’s Flying Burrito) and was initially lured in by their $5 fresh margaritas, sangrias, and flavored mojitos. They are nothing like you would find across the street or further uptown at Superior Grill; these margaritas are hand crafted and delicious and there aren’t many cocktails I find as refreshing during a hot NOLA summer. After visiting several times for drinks sitting under the colorful umbrellas on the sidewalk out front I decided to stop in for lunch. Shocked by the wide selection, huge portions, and low price of their 3 course lunch for $13 I have been back many times since. It still shocks me when I talk to people who have never eaten at Maya’s (let alone heard of it), but I’ve been keeping this place a secret for too long.

Whether you decide to dine for lunch or dinner, I recommend starting off any meal with their guacamole and homemade tortilla chips. Both their avocado with mango and their blue cheese tomato salads are light options for vegetarians or perfect add on’s before your main course. For entree’s they have fresh seafood, tons of daily specials, and all the traditional staples you would expect on a latin menu.

The inside is quaint and adorned with antique treasures, perfect for a romantic date night or dinner out with friends. The service is exceptional and the staff is well versed with the menu, specials, and always offering up suggestions of their favorite dishes. The owners Trinity and Edgar are always on hand concocting drinks, delivering sizzling plates of food, and just stopping by to chat and making sure you are enjoying your meals.

Maya’s is located at 2027 Magazine Street in the lower garden district. For more information or to view the menu check out their site at www.mojitoland.com  Reservations can be made by calling (504)309-3401. Closed Monday’s.

 

Rachael is originally from Harrisburg, PA where she plans to be mayor one day. In the meantime she keeps busy cleaning the skeletons out of her closet, catering to the needs of a very spoiled Siberian Huskey, and hosting her own radio show, Plan DD: The morning after Rachael. Rachael can be reached for questions/comments at rkostel7@gmail.com.

Being an Extra on Treme

Treme
May 3, 2012 By In Jobs, Personal Narrative, TV and Film

Treme

As a kid dreaming of being a famous movie star, being an extra wasn’t exactly what I had in mind. However, as an adult with bills to pay and the desire to rub elbows with Hollywood elite it would have to do.

Before I arrived my first day on set I had no idea what to expect. I wasn’t delusional enough to think that my work as an extra would win me an academy award or even the slightest recognition, or that the actual stars would want to be best friends with me, but I also didn’t expect to be treated like cattle. It is bad enough that when you commit to working on a set for the day you have no idea how many hours it is you are committing or what ungodly hour of the morning you will have to show up, until probably the night before.

My first big role was as a Mari Gras reveler on the set of Treme. I was excited to be decked out in my favorite (a.k.a. most inappropriate) costume and hoped it (not me) would get the screen time it deserved. I had no idea that I would have to be there at 6 a.m. with no end time in sight, or that I would literally be standing for 14 hours on Frenchman Street on the hottest day of the year sweating my ass off. Not exactly what I had in mind for my big debut so after the first hour I actually started avoiding the cameras while others were trying to fight their way in to shots. Without the luxury of hair and makeup touch ups like the celebs were granted I knew I was looking ragged and wanted to save my family the embarrassment.

Of course being the only one there that didn’t want to be on camera, they hand picked me to stand directly behind the two main characters in the middle of the shot. Damn that Murphy and his law. To make things even worse I had a real life altercation with one of said actors at last years Barkus Parade (when he ran his bike into my dog) and I knew neither of us were thrilled to be running into each other again.

Despite the annoyances of my first day, I opted to go back hoping for a better experience. Since then I have worked on that set several more times as well as various movies. I have had the pleasure of seeing an Oscar winning actress scratch her crotch between takes (where the hell were you then, TMZ?), chowed down on some delicious free food, and met some rather interesting people. My favorite people are the ones that are professional extras or “regulars” that deem themselves way more important than they actually are. They brag about how many films they have worked on, boss you around like they are the director, and beg to be noticed in a faceless crowd. They can often times be overheard on their phones saying things like “Gotta go, my big scene is next” or “Oh yeah, Angelina is totally cool, we’re going to grab drinks together after we wrap” while they are simultaneously telling you how unprofessional it is to even have your phone out to check the time. Keep in mind I have never even worked on an Angelina film so that’s just how desperate these people are to sound cool.

All in all the money is good and some days you are lucky enough to be out of there in a couple hours (but still paid for a full day). It is definitely not something I could stand doing “professionally” but it is a nice change of pace every now and then for those with flexible schedules. I am thrilled that New Orleans has become such a hotbed for movie making (thank you Bobby Jindal for those tax breaks!) and glad that I can occasionally partake in the fun. If you are interested in being an extra in an upcoming film or TV series, join The Holding Tent  or Hollywood Dirty South on Facebook  for listings.

Rachael is originally from Harrisburg, PA where she plans to be mayor one day. In the meantime she keeps busy cleaning the skeletons out of her closet, catering to the needs of a very spoiled Siberian Husky, and hosting the radio show “Dirty Dishes” every Wednesday night from 7-10 pm CT on www.crescentcityradio.com. Rachael can be reached for questions/comments at rkostel7@gmail.com. You can follow her on twitter @therealplandd or her blog www.therealplandd.tumblr.com.

Lent Sucks!

personal-narrative-290x290
March 23, 2012 By In Personal Narrative

If Jesus could spend 40 days and nights alone in the desert without food and ignore the temptations of the devil then I should have no problem tapping into my self control (which is not frequently used) as well. Wrong.

Deciding what to give up for Lent is a big decision that should not be decided upon at 11:59pm on Fat Tuesday, but yet is  the exact time I make these life altering (literally) decisions. It was about that time when I realized I had run out of cigarettes and therefore, tada! I would give up smoking. I had also had a few unfortunate encounters with a handful of sexy latino men which I realized was becoming a habit and so I would be giving that up too. And gambling….

I like to keep my sacrifices realistic yet challenging. I’m not one of those people that is going to give up something stupid that I don’t like anyway (like nuts*) but I’m also not going to pretend that I think I could stop drinking for 40 days… let alone 1. I knew the not smoking would be a challenge but I had high hopes that I could live up to it. It wasn’t too hard while I was sober (I do take a three day break after Mardi Gras for my yearly detox) but once I started drinking again it was miserable. I made it until day 9 when I got so plastered I totally forgot I didn’t smoke anymore and killed a pack (that wasn’t mine) in a couple hours. I convinced myself that as long as I didn’t buy them it didn’t count but soon my friends got tired of my bumming and forced me to buy my own and I’ve been puffing away ever since.

I didn’t really see the former as a failure since I still had not taken on any new Latin lovers nor had I lost any of their money playing blackjack (FYI dreams don’t count). Enter day 23 my pre St. Patrick’s day partying and my new Honduran boyfriend. He actually doesn’t know hes my boyfriend yet and he may have been creeped out when I told him we couldn’t see each other again until Easter. Stay tuned…

*Family and friends that are under the misconception that I am allergic to nuts now know the truth. Every time my throat started “swelling shut” is just an example of my fab acting skills and an insurance policy that you would never make the mistake of “nutting” me again.

 

Rachael is originally from Harrisburg, PA where she plans to be mayor one day. In the meantime she keeps busy cleaning the skeletons out of her closet, catering to the needs of a very spoiled Siberian Huskey, and hosting her own radio show, Plan DD: The morning after Rachael. Rachael can be reached for questions/comments at rkostel7@gmail.com.