One of the things we like to do on this show is introduce you to people who have businesses and occupations you might not be aware of. Or that are, shall we say “out of the ordinary.” In that regard, we may have outdone ourselves with this edition of Out to Lunch. 

Rusty Wilson is a vermiculturalist. Also known as a worm farmer. Yes, worms. Down on the Acadiana Worm Farm, Rusty has hundreds of thousands of Red Wigglers, African Nightcrawlers and European Night Crawlers.

Like a dairy farmer farms cows for milk, or a sheep farmer farms sheep for wool, Rusty’s worms themselves are not the crop. It’s the worm castings. Or poop. In horticultural circles, worm poop is a highly regarded fertilizer. And worm farming is, pound for pound, a pretty lucrative business.

You might be thinking, “Well that’s about as odd as it’s going to get. Aileen couldn’t find a business wackier than worm farming.” How about a business where you don’t have to do anything? Except show up and be yourself. Much as you’d be, say, in your own home. That’s what Joseph Vidrine  does for a living. Jo is a self-described “Freelance Cajun.”

Jo makes appearances at venues across the country and around the world, doing Cajun stuff. He speaks. Plays music. Cooks. And takes photos – which is not strictly Cajun but if a Cajun takes your photo in New England, it’s spicier. 

What happens when two of Acadiana’s most self-motivated and passion-driven entrepreneurs meet for lunch for the first time? It’s business, Acadiana style.

Photos over lunch at Cafe Vermilionville in Lafayette Louisiana.