 DOUG GRAHAM | Staff writer Sometimes nature has a way of saying it's time for a new tradition. As wildfires spread across the state, including one of the largest fires Louisiana has ever seen, Gov. John Bel Edwards is urging residents to avoid cooking with open flames. That means the annual Labor Day barbecue will have to take a year off. Advice from State Fire Marshal Dan Wallis: Think of alternative ways to celebrate.
Robin Crawford of Tickfaw went to the Natalbany Fire Department on Saturday to warn firefighters he was going to set fire to a debris field despite the statewide burn ban. Firefighters called LDAF enforcement agents. When the agents and Tangipahoa Sheriff's deputies arrived at the scene, Crawford had set a large pile of debris on fire; he refused verbal commands to stop, then fled in his vehicle. The results: The fire was extinguished, and Crawford was arrested.
Sometimes, something that smells like home can mean everything: comfort, a feeling of love, and a tasty dessert. As Features editor Jan Risher reminds us: There is little in life that is as good as the crunch of the bottom of a pound cake when it's still warm from the oven. Read here to get the recipe for her great-grandmother's Mississippi Pound Cake. | 
