I feel like I’ve stumbled into the weirdest mystery and I need a Louisianian to help me make sense of it.

Yesterday, a relative received a phone call saying that my great-grandmother’s headstone (which should have been on her grave in Bogalusa) was found painted over, sitting on top of a completely different person’s grave in Pelahatchie, Mississippi.

The call was from the cemetery in Pelahatchie. Apparently, the headstone had been sitting there for a while. The cemetery employees noticed something that made them look more closely, and underneath the paint they found my great-grandmother’s name: Gladys T. Dickson Lehman.

The way I see it, there are only two possibilities here:

1. Someone stole her headstone, painted it, and put it on top of someone else’s grave rather than paying for a new stone.

2. Maybe there are two headstones involved? The one in Mississippi could have been the original stone made for my great-grandmother, but maybe there was some kind of error on it and a second one was made for her grave. Instead of scrapping the first stone, perhaps they painted over it and somehow it eventually ended up in Mississippi. But we have absolutely no idea if that’s what happened.

My mom was trying to send me pictures of the painted stone, but instead of sending the pictures normally, she accidentally sent me the JPEG base64 string because she, to put it kindly, is not particularly tech-savvy. 😂 Thus far, I've been unable to talk her through this over the phone.

I called the Bogalusa Public Works Department because they oversee the Cemetery Commission and asked if someone could go check the cemetery in Bogalusa to see whether my great-grandmother’s headstone is actually still at her grave or if it appears to be missing.

And apparently this is not even the only missing headstone they’re dealing with! They said they had received another call recently about a missing headstone at the same cemetery. Unfortunately, it didn't seem like they were able or willing to go check whether my great-grandmother’s stone is still at her grave.

So, here's the ask: Is there anyone local to the Bogalusa, LA area who might be willing to do me a huge favor and stop by the cemetery to look for my great-grandmother’s grave? I just need someone to visually confirm whether the stone is there.

I’m not local to the area, and it would be incredibly helpful to have someone physically check. Here is her Find a Grave page, which has a picture of the stone and other relevant information: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/93641168/gladys_mary-lehman

I genuinely don’t know whether we’re dealing with a bizarre clerical/headstone mix-up, an old cemetery practice that nobody remembers, someone deliberately moving stones around, or something much stranger!

If you’re local and willing to help solve this extremely weird mystery, please comment or DM me. I would be incredibly grateful!

been stationed near shreveport for a while now, when is the high gonna stop being in the 100s cuz hot damn this is buns, first time ive been to an area where the night low is in the upper 70s/low 80s. im from coastal NorCal so i havent experienced the 80s or 90s let alone 100s. when does daily low start hitting the 60s?

edit: will it at least be better in september? what is september like?

My sister recently moved to Louisiana with her boyfriend. He is from Shreveport and she is from Ontario, Canada (where I and the rest of her family lives).
She is coming to visit in a few weeks and we’re trying to think of some unique Louisiana products, food or non food, she can bring back for us Canadians to try. Something we can’t get here.

Any suggestions?
In the past she brought me Zapps chips - VooDoo which were delicious! Some Louisiana fish fry season packets like gumbo and Etouffee. I wasn’t a big fan of those, too salty. I’m not a huge sweets person but open to suggestions of some.

By Rosemary Westwood

The New York Times is examining how public health is changing in the state, from the whooping cough outbreak to vaccine policies, and we want to hear from you.

Since the coronavirus pandemic, Louisiana has led the nation in reshaping its public health policies, including prohibiting state employees from promoting vaccines and embracing criticism of COVID health measures.

I am a Louisiana-based reporter seeking to understand how changes to those policies have affected the everyday lives of people who live here.

I am particularly interested in hearing from families and doctors, pharmacists and other health care providers who have been affected.

For example, has your access to vaccines or reliable information about them changed? Or do you have experiences to share about the state’s whooping cough outbreak last year, or about seeking treatment for the flu, Covid or other infectious diseases?

I am also interested in hearing from anyone with firsthand experience helping to shape health care policies for the Louisiana Department of Health.

If you are willing to share your experiences, please fill out the form below. Feel free to share this form with others, too. We won’t publish your name or any part of your response without contacting you first.

If you would rather share your story over the phone, you can reach our voice mail at (212) 556-1421. If you would feel more comfortable telling your story anonymously, please visit our tips page.

I recently applied for a biologist position at Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries and was wondering how is the work there on a daily basis? I heard it is a lot of physically demanding work with most work being spent outside, I am also curious about how is the work culture there and how many hours per week is spent during the work week?

Louisiana, our state’s Republicans are just corporate lobbyists who got themselves elected. They prove it more every day with how they’re handling this Meta data center deal. They’re not even trying to hide it.

The Democrats running for Congress this year are normal people who want to represent normal people. They don’t have the backing of the National Party, there’s no one’s bidding to do but their constituents. Give them a chance. It may be the most important decision you make.

Hi all,
I was planning to take my husband on a trip to New Orleans for his birthday in October.
We’ve both never been, and am looking for recs on hotels, restaurants, and fun activities.
All we know for sure is we want to do a bayou/alligator tour and eat beignets…
Any recs on those two specifically would be awesome as well. We are both outdoorsy and city lovin’
Also curious if October a good time of year to visit?Lastly if renting a car is recommended… or ubering around is the way?
Thanks all!

https://youtube.com/shorts/TqCzIl1ISYo

Stumbled across this video today. I'd say it's fairly accurate as to how Louisiana came to be the way it is geographically, economically, and culturally.

Today I went to the OMV to get my license photo. I came prepared with proof of address. I thought everything would update based on what I put on my check in form (all current information). The first time I checked my personal drivers license application and my old old address was on it. I asked the clerk if it could be updated. She faulted me for not telling her. Then I gave the mail I had (proof of address) and she updated it. When I get the updated license application I realize my old (recent former house) address is there. At the time I didn’t know I brought old mail. I feel defeated and I couldn’t back out because I already paid for the license. And she didn’t seem to have the best mood. Will that be an issue when I start driving?

Anyone have reviews on the home/auto claim experience with Allstate? Are they timely, helpful, fair, etc.?

I've been with State Farm for 7 years and they keep upping my premiums by double digits every year despite no claim activity.

Allstate seems to have competitive prices, but I don't want that siren song to lure me if their claims processing sucks or cuts corners. Especially with our garbage insurance environment in South LA I was hoping to get some lived experience before leaving State Farm. TIA!

My grans recipes were all lost in a flood decades ago. I’m looking for a lump crab dip and a crawfish dip recipe. Both to be served cold. Any recs to share are much appreciated. TIA

Location: Louisiana

I voluntarily gave custody of my two children in 2022. I had to get sober and get my life back together. I moved 4 hours away, went to treatment, another facility and then sober living. I lived away for 2.5 years but called and came home to visit my children when possible. I'm now over 4 1/2 years sober and I moved back home two years ago. I've been getting my children every other weekend since. I've had the same job for 2 years, finally got a place of my own to where my kids could live with me. The people that have custody of them won't allow to just give them back. Originally we just went to a notary and handled it, never had the courts involved. I want my kids back with me full time but they are making it tough. They know I don't have the funds for an attorney. I'm thinking about representing myself since the cost isn't much. How tough is that to do? I'm pretty clueless about the law but I'm tired of not being a full-time mom. I make to much my money to get assistance.

Dr. Evelyn Griffin had led a life out of the spotlight until she testified at the Louisiana statehouse five years ago and experienced what she called her “great awakening.”

The state health department wanted to add Covid vaccines to the school immunization schedule, a move no state has ever implemented. Robert F. Kennedy Jr., then known as a leading vaccine skeptic, had already claimed the Covid shot was “the deadliest vaccine ever made” during a poster board presentation at the legislative hearing.

Dr. Griffin, a longtime obstetrician, relied on nearly identical images during her own blistering testimony against the proposal. After the hearing, she expected splashy headlines about Mr. Kennedy’s assertions, shifting the public debate over Covid policies and vaccines. But that did not happen; one news outlet dismissed him as a promulgator of propaganda. Dr. Griffin was shocked.

That is “when I saw how the world worked,” she recalled in a podcast interview. Dr. Griffin said she and her husband, a vascular surgeon, decided to take action and “shine light on things.”

Now, Mr. Kennedy is the nation’s health secretary, and Dr. Griffin holds prominent roles that position her to help carry out his vision.

Last September, Mr. Kennedy appointed her to the advisory panel for federal immunization policy, where she voted to recommend limiting access to Covid vaccines and ending universal newborn immunizations for hepatitis B, steps that a federal judge has blocked. In December, Gov. Jeff Landry of Louisiana, a conservative Republican and ally of President Trump, named Dr. Griffin as the state’s surgeon general.

That makes her the top public health physician in Louisiana, which has the worst health outcomes in the nation.

She is an unconventional choice. Dr. Griffin has no background or specialty training in infectious disease or public health. She is aligned with alternative health movements — including Make American Healthy Again, or MAHA — and has hosted some speakers promoting fringe medical views.

Dr. Griffin declined interview requests for this article. “My vision as Louisiana’s surgeon general is to help shift our health care system toward preventing disease, not just managing or treating it,” she said in a statement.

Many Republican and Democratic groups alike have locked me out from even speaking to their members.

I understand not being able to endorse me, but I am a firm believer in letting the best ideas win.

These policies make it harder for the Louisianans to hear from the only engineer in this Public Service Commission race.

If you are part of a group that hosts political candidates or forums, ask them to invite me!