Take on a new hobby this summer with micro-gardening, a great way to grow a cost-effective and adaptable garden in a small space. Check out a few helpful tips to growing vegetables in small spaces. For those that enjoy nature and hunting, find out where you can hunt alligators in northwest and south Louisiana.

Whether you decide to celebrate Dad with a hunting trip or his favorite restaurant, here are ways to celebrate Father’s Day. And Miss Louisiana 2023 says goodbye to the crown.

Explore Outdoors: Gardening and hunting

Although a garden may feel like an impossible task due to limited outdoor space, the power of containers and small space strategies can help, according to an LSU AG Center news release.

This type of gardening is known as micro gardening — a way to maximize limited spaces. By optimizing small areas through sustainable practices, it’s possible to grow food and flowers on balconies, kitchen counters, patios, porches, small yards and even rooftops. Enjoy fresh produce and beautiful flowers regardless of their lot size with these helpful tips.

Read more about micro-gardening Grow a cost-effective and adaptable garden in a small space

Where can you hunt alligators in south Louisiana?

The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries will begin the alligator lottery harvest Aug. 28 and will last until Nov. 2. According to the LDWF, 22 LDWF Wildlife Management Areas, 28 public lakes and one U.S. Army Corp of Engineers lake will be on this list of properties to conduct the lottery.

Learn about fees, locations, and more Where can you hunt alligators in south Louisiana? LDWF releases list of locations

Best Father’s Day

Is your dad fashionable? Artistic? Sporty? Or a Foodie? This Father’s Day, plan the perfect day to appreciate the father figure in your life, even a the last minute. With so many great places in Lafayette, Father’s Day weekend can be celebrated right in the area with some of these local inspired gifts, outings, and eateries for Dad. 

Ways to celebrate Father’s Day Whether dad is a foodie, artistic, or sporty, here are ways to celebrate Father’s Day

Crowning the new Queen

Before the new Miss Louisiana was crowned Saturday night, outgoing Miss Louisiana 2023 Makenzie Scroggs reflected on her reign. Scroggs was crowned the 60th Miss Louisiana on June 18, 2023.

Following her crowning, she told The Times she planned to use her title as a tool to show that women can do anything they put their minds to. In the past year, Scroggs has traveled 25,000 miles across the state and has visited more than 25 schools talking about her program and confidence-building workshops.

Read more about Scroggs journey Miss Louisiana Makenzie Scroggs reflects as she gets ready to say goodbye to the crown

The next time you dine at your favorite Waffle House in Louisiana, it will cost you more to get those world-famous hashbrowns “scattered, smothered, and covered.”

Waffle House CEO Joe Rogers III recently said that the company is planning to raise menu prices soon.

Rogers told employees in a video message last month that plans are laid out to offset the cost of increased wages by raising menu prices at restaurants. He said the move was necessary to “pay for this journey.”

Of course, most would consider Waffle House a pretty inexpensive place to dine. (Last time I went there, it cost about $20 for me and my bride to eat.)

“Make no mistake, whatever that edge is that we currently have with menu pricing, that is going to shrink a little bit in a few years,” Rogers said. “But our bet is the prevailing talent and attitudes we have behind the counter will be our biggest competitive differentiator of the future.”

Waffle House will be strategic in its price increases. Rogers said that restaurants in major cities — like Dallas and Atlanta — will have more “room” to raise prices than restaurants in “suburban or rural” areas.

“Our menu prices in a rural town are relative to competitors’ menu prices in that rural town. So we may not have as much room to increase prices as we have in a large city.”

The bigger increases in larger cities are designed to offset the higher costs of living for employees working at those locations.

Regarding the exact price increases, Waffle House representatives weren’t ready to disclose that or provide additional details.

With rising prices, customers will have rising expectations, Rogers said.

“This means that our levels of hospitality and service, the cleanliness of our units, and the preparation and portion size of our food, among other things, all need to elevate to a new level if we are going to be successful,” he said.

This latest news piggybacks somewhat off of Waffle House’s announcement in May that it plans to raise workers’ wages via a system designed to begin increasing base pay, provide tenure-based bonus pay, and offer “premiums” for certain shifts.

The first wage increases went into effect in June, according to Rogers’ video message.

Waffle House is based in Norcross, Georgia, and currently operates over 1,900 locations in 25 states, mostly in the South and Midwest.

Louisiana currently has 102 Waffle House restaurants, which is the fourth-most in the country behind Texas, Tennessee, and Alabama.