Category: Mardi Gras

Let’s Pretend it’s Mardi Gras

Mardi Gras has been ruined for the 2nd year in a row. Thank God USA Today has a list of the 10 Best Ways to Celebrate Mardi Gras at Home.

1. Decorate in green, gold and purple.
Dare to be ugly.

2. Have a seafood boil.
Eew.

3. Eat a king cake.
Okay.

4. Mix a Mardi Gras martini.
Okay with that also. Oop, made a mistake. Let’s try another one.
Whoopsie. Did it again. Let’s make three and see which one is best. Then we’ll make that one.
Uh-oh…

5. Make a shoebox float.
Then look at it.

6. Learn some Cajun French.
Gitcha gitcha gris-gris gumbo yaya. Done.

7. Snack on some MoonPies.
Got it.

8. See some house floats.
Mardi Gras without the flashers, but a good excuse to keep your Christmas lights up.

9. Dress up your dog.
No. It embarrasses you and annoys the dog.

10. Take a virtual tour of Mardi Gras World.
It’s kinda cool in a 2nd grade field trip kinda way, but it’s virtual so it’s more like shopping for mattress covers online.

Enough of that nonsense. Let’s do this instead.

 

Laissez les Bons Temps Rouler! – It’s Mardi Gras!

King Oliver & His Creole Jazz Band – Sugar Foot Stomp (1926)
Louis Armstrong played 2nd cornet, married the piano player Lil Hardin.

Lil Armstrong & Buck Washington – Or Leave Me Alone (1936)
That’s Mrs. Louis Armstrong to you.

Al Hirt – When The Saints Go Marching In
Not sure what year, but I’m pretty sure that’s Pete Fountain on clarinet.

Might as well throw some Cajun into the mix while we’re at it. No idea who the artist is or what year, but the song is called Toot Toot.


Joyeux Mardi Gras!
J’espère que vous en avez un gros!

[Gator roast .gif found here.]

Beads, Beer, Booze, Boobs & Brass Bands = Heureux Mardi Gras!

Mardi Gras in New Orleans is a tradition that everyone should experience at least once. Click on each individual image above to see what you’re missing.

[All images found via Google Image Search. If anyone wishes to be credited, please leave us a comment and we’ll update with links. Related posts Heureux.]

Saturday Matinee – Jimbino Vegan, Tuba Skinny, & The Rebirth Brass Band

Apparently that’s Jimbino Vegan and someone or something known as Zugdidi with a decent backup band.

Tuba Skinny on the streets of NOLA. The dog gets it.

The Rebirth Brass Band are the real deal (but please, give us at least one chord change).

Have a great Mardis Gras and Do Watcha Wanna.

Saturday Matinee – Mardi Gras & St. Valentine’s Day Combined: Smoking Time Jazz Club, Grampa Eliot and Doreen’s Jazz

“Percolatin’ Blues” courtesy of Smoking Time Jazz Club.

Grampa Eliot sings the truth.

Doreen’s Jazz is entirely awesome.

Have a great weekend, folks, remember the Presidents who afforded us our freedoms and those who assist in taking them away, and be back here tomorrow for more stuff.

Oh, and this and this. Do it.

Fat Tuesday – Heureux Mardi Gras!

Mardi Gras: Treme Jazz Band

New Orleans’ Treme Brass Band kicks it.

“Treme Brass Band parade down Frenchman Street, New Orleans, during the Satchmo Fest 2011 Club Strutt.”

[Top image found here. More Mardi Gras here and here.]

Merde Mercredi

That’s a lotta Mardi Crap there. Bet it smells delightful as well, but I’d rather have to clean up that mess than several month’s worth of Occupoopage. Although Fat Tuesday’s Gone for another year, we’ve still got plenty of Gris Gris Gumbo Ya Ya left.
[Found here.]

Beads, Beer, Boobs & Blues = Heureux Mardi Gras!

Mardi Gras Indians are the Mardi Gras most people don’t see. Modern Day Indians came from a time when African Americans felt left out of the traditional Mardi Gras krewes and parades. Residents from wards around New Orleans formed their own sort of Krewe and named them after their streets or wards. The Indians created elaborate costumes and names themselves after Native Americans- as tribute to the Native American tribes’ role in freeing the slaves. They designated someone to be the Spy, the Flag boy and the Big Chief and these tribes led processions through the streets. In the past, Mardi Gras Indians were violent, but today most tribes simply act out a scene when passing other tribes. Indians do not follow any schedule or parade route and a rare thing to see on Mardi Gras.

Of course there are also a lot of beads, beer, boobs and blues:

Everyone should experience Mardi Gras in New Orleans at least once. The parades are awesome, the music is great, and there are uninhibited  and inebriated college girls. There are also pickpockets, drug dealers and people who will fight you over a plastic necklace. The beer/drinks are cheap (since they deal in volume) and the streets and sidewalks flow with unmentionable liquids so you’ll need to burn your shoes afterwards. Again, everyone should experience Mardi Gras in New Orleans at least once.

[Top image and story found here; 2nd image found here. There are hidden bonuses, too –  click a pic.]