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This weekend I participated in far too much excitement for my own good. I spread it out over two cities, and I'm still recovering from all the festivities, but everything was fantastic. And all of it was oriented around Louisiana culture.

Thursday night I attended the Foundation for Historical Louisiana's annual gala. I've been to galas before, and most were pretentious and stuffy. Even though I know a few people with the Foundation and they are the furthest from pretentious and stuffy, I tend to worry that the crowd will be the same as it is for other galas. So I ended up going solo, holding my breath as I went in the door. As it turned out, I probably couldn't have had more fun. I ran into people I haven't seen for a while, and got to meet a lot of new people. This year's theme was the 1940s, and the music and costumes were perfect. The food was excellent with a little something for everyone. I even got to watch Mayor Holden jitterbugging with some of the attendees. And I won a lovely 80th birthday present for my grandma in the silent auction. I left wondering why I had never been before, and how many people I can convince to come with me next year.

The rest of the weekend was devoted to my favorite concert of the year: Voodoo Fest. Jazz Fest isn't really my thing, since I'm really an alternative rock girl at heart, and Voodoo Fest always has quite a diverse line-up. And everyone knows I'm all for the diversity. So once my bourbon stupor wore off from the previous night, I headed down to New Orleans to indulge in the music excitement. This was the first year I was able to go all three days. Friday I stayed in a church and stayed in a hotel on Saturday, thankfully staying out of the driver's seat for roughly 72 hours. I rediscovered that port-a-potties are most definitely an invention from the devil, and that concertgoers are not skilled at hygiene in said invention. I decided that even if it's sunny, rain boots are a must for Voodoo Fest. I really don't want to know what germy muck my Converse tracked into the house. And I realized that everywhere I go, even outside of Baton Rouge, I run into people I know.

The music, for the most part, was excellent and gave me a chance to discover some new bands and enjoy old favorites. Songs are promptly being downloaded into my iTunes from my festival favorites, Common, Fall Out Boy (who still performed despite Pete Wentz apparently breaking his foot during the set) and the Plain White Ts. And after seeing them live, there is still a special place in my heart for Rage Against the Machine. I do have to say that every single band I saw was praising New Orleans and grateful to be included in the concert this year. With few exceptions, the comments focused on the importance of celebrating the culture and rebuilding the city the way it needs to be. Common even performed an impromptu rap about his weekend in New Orleans. It was definitely nice to hear positive things about the city from people who live outside of it.

(You can read a full report of the festival from our resident music aficionado, Alex V. Cook, here. If don't like to read and just want to see everything, take a peek at these photos. All I have to say is God bless the press pass.)

While both events were vastly different, I woke up Monday morning remembering just how important it is to support our local culture. Whether it's giving money to an organization that works to support our Louisiana heritage or participating in bringing tourism back to a struggling city, every little bit helps.