Simon's Cat in 'Santa Claws'

Magazine Street Blues Festival this weekend

I went to this Uptown festival last year and it was really nice.

Uptown Flash Flood

This morning started out beautiful and clear. Sometime around 2:00 it started to rain. And it continued to rain. Then harder. And harder. Lots of thunder. I check the radar, and there was just a red dot sitting over Uptown not moving. I decide to stick my head out the door of my office and check on my car. Mine was OK but then a neighbor ran up saying my business partner should move hers. She couldn't open the driver's side door because water would get in if she did, so she crawled in through the hatchback. I ended up having to move my car a few feet because of the dip by the curb.

No wake zone please!

You could tell one the pumps were on because there was a current flowing down the street. You can sort of see it in the video.

Watching the water rise.

The kayaks might be a little over the top.

Details on all the hoopla going on tomorrow before the Saints game.

NFL ANNOUNCES LOCAL DETAILS FOR “NFL KICKOFF 2010”

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 9

The National Football League announced today event information for “NFL KICKOFF 2010 PRESENTED BY EA SPORTS” Thursday, September 9.

THE KREWE OF NFL KICKOFF PARADE travels through the heart of the French Quarter, stepping off at 5:00 p.m. (CT) on Esplanade Ave. and North Peters, heading downtown on Decatur and North Peters crossing Canal St. to Tchoupitoulas and ending at Julia Street.

There will be specialty NFL floats and throws (beads) in the parade. The Krewe of NFL Kickoff Parade will feature Blaine Kern Studios signature floats, the area’s finest marching bands, local residents, local chefs and former NFL greats from around the league. EMERIL LAGASSE, DICKIE BRENNAN, PAUL PRUDHOMME, FRANK BRIGSTEN, JOHN BESH, TORY McPHAIL & KATY CASBARIAN are among the local chefs and restaurateurs who will in the parade representing all members of the Louisiana Restaurant Association.

The floats of The Krewe Of NFL Kickoff Parade include:

• EA Madden To The People Float celebrates Madden NFL 11 and its cover-athlete DREW BREES and features chefs Haley Bittermann, Dooky Chase & John Besh, and EA throws.
• VISA Float showcases a variety of NFL teams, chefs from Brigtsen’s, Commander’s & Herbsaint/Cochon and Visa throws.
• Pepsi Max Float celebrates getting back to football and tailgating, featuring chefs from GW Fins & Café Giovanni, and Pepsi throws.
• Snickers Float, telling people to ‘Go Nuts for the NFL’ and featuring chefs from Dickie Brennan's Steakhouse, BACCO & Sucre and NFL throws.
• Orpheus Smokey Mary Train featuring local kids who are part of the NFL’s PLAY 60 campaign, committed to making the next generation of youth the most active and healthy. Chefs from Arnaud’s, The Rib Room, Mr. B’s Bistro, Commander’s, Café Adelaide & Galatoire’s Restaurant will ride the train as well and NFL and Kickoff beads will be thrown.
• Lombardi Riverboat Float commemorating the Saints Super Bowl XLIV championship, featuring chefs Emeril Lagasse, Dickie Brennan and Kickoff throws.
• Rex Streetcar Float, a New Orleans-themed float celebrating that night’s match-up between the Saints and the Minnesota Vikings, will feature New Orleans’ beloved Chef Paul Prudhomme and Kickoff throws.

The marching bands featured in The Krewe of NFL Kickoff Parade include:

• United States Marine Corps and Marine Forces Reserve Color Guard
• St. Augustine High School (New Orleans)
• Tulane University (New Orleans)
• McDonogh 35 High School (New Orleans)
• Warren Easton Charter High School (New Orleans)
• Eleanor McMain Secondary School (New Orleans)
• West Jefferson High School (New Orleans)
• Sophie B. Wright Charter Middle School (New Orleans)

There also will be 17 GMC vehicles featuring the NFL match-ups during Kickoff weekend in the parade.

PARADE ROUTE
The parade will begin at 5:00 pm on Elysian Fields Avenue between Royal and Dauphine Streets. The parade will proceed (with traffic) on Elysian Fields to North Peters and turn right (against traffic) on North Peters to Dumaine Street. The lead units of the parade will arrive at the intersection of North Peters and Dumaine Streets at approximately 5:40 pm. Upon arrival at North Peters and Dumaine Streets, the parade will be a part of the NBC live television program and will be cued by the producers. It is anticipated that the last float will pass Jackson Square on Decatur Street at approximately 7:00pm. Once passing Jackson Square, the parade will continue on Decatur and North Peters Streets to Canal Street. The parade will cross Canal Street on North Peters and Tchoupitoulas Streets to Julia Street, where it will disband at approximately 8:00 pm.

CONCERT

The Krewe of NFL Kickoff Parade kicks off "NFL KICKOFF 2010 PRESENTED BY EA SPORTS,” the NFL’s ninth annual football and music festival. DAVE MATTHEWS BAND and TAYLOR SWIFT are scheduled to perform. NFL Kickoff 2010 will be televised live, from 7:30-8:30 PM (ET)/6:30-7:30 PM (CT) on NBC and NFL Network, leading up to the season opener between the Saints and the Minnesota Vikings at the Superdome (NBC, Westwood One Radio Sports, 8:30 PM ET). This is the seventh consecutive year the NFL has saluted the Super Bowl champions with the opening game in their stadium on a Thursday in primetime.

TRANSPORTATION

Traffic and Street Closing Information

• Wilkinson Street will be closed Sunday, Sept. 5 through Friday, Sept. 10 at 4 PM.
• Decatur Street (from St. Louis to Dumaine) will be closed on Sunday, Sept. 5, 7 AM – 7 PM & Wednesday, Sept. 8 from 12 – 8 PM and on Thursday, Sept. 9 starting at 12 PM through 6 AM on Friday, Sept. 10.

• All of Decatur Street will be closed during the Parade.

No Parking Zone

• There is no parking on Decatur Street from Toulouse to Dumaine through Friday, Sept. 10.∙
• French Market Parking Lot is closed from St. Peter to Dumaine beginning Friday, Sept. 3. Beginning Tuesday, Sept. 7 at 6:00 AM, French Market Parking Lot is closed from St. Peter to exit through Thursday, Sept. 9. French Market Parking Lot will be fully open on Saturday, Sept. 11.

NFL Kickoff Fan Zone

Fans may access the kiosks at the Jackson Brewery Lot along Decatur Street.

They are open to the public Tuesday - Thursday, 10AM – 7PM.

The NFL Kickoff Fan Zone offers fans an opportunity to interact with a number of exciting football-themed attractions provided by NFL partners. The three-day event will feature player appearances, sponsor promotions and giveaways. Highlights include: GMC vehicle displays, Pepsi Max product sampling, Verizon's Rule the Air interactive display, and more. Several of the areas will feature player appearances. On Thursday, GMC will host former Saints RB Deuce McAllister from 1-2 PM, Jerome Bettis from 2-3 PM and Marcus Allen from 3-4 PM. Coors Light will host former Saints QB Bobby Hebert from 11:30 AM -12:30 PM and Ron Jaworski from 3-5 PM.

K+5 and Rising Tide

Sunday will be the 5 year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina making landfall in Louisiana and Mississippi. Wow. 5 years. All week there's been TV specials and articles devoted to the anniversary. Chris Rose wrote an article asking "What if Katrina Never Happened?" which is something I can't wrap my head around.

For book club we are reading two Katrina related books, City of Refuge by Tom Piazza and Nine Lives by Dan Baum. I'm halfway through City of Refuge. I loved Piazza's book Why New Orleans Matters but I'm just not connecting to City. I think it would be a very good book for someone who doesn't live in New Orleans to read. It's a novel but very true to life, following two families Katrina experiences. Their stories are ones we New Orleanians have heard many times. I have yet to start Nine Lives.

I have learned that rituals are a good thing to help get through a difficult anniversary. Every year to remember my mother's passing (August 23rd-I hate August), I cook a special meal while listening to some of her favorite music, then watch one of her favorite movies. The first year after Katrina, G and I didn't do anything special. We tried to pretend it was just another day, went to work, didn't go to any wreath layings or bell ringings, but it wasn't a normal day and it felt off. The 2 year mark we drank a bottle of wine we had picked up in Sonoma and was saving for a special occasion. Every year around this time is the Rising Tide Conference. To me it's a great way to mark the anniversary. I started blogging because of Katrina and have met a whole host of wonderful people after the storm through our blogs. I don't post as often and I have not been keeping up on others' blogs because of Facebook. I'm looking forward to the group FYYFF shout out.

The artwork is a revised design from the t-shirts I put on CafePress after Katrina. Occasionally someone still buys stuff. I had to do something to keep from going crazy.

Please vote!

Markham Vineyards "Mark of Distinction" is a $25,000 grant awarded to an individual or organization making a difference in their community. TheNewFreret.com aka Freret Business & Property Owner Association is one of ten finalist. Please click here to vote for TheNewFreret.com. You can vote once a day. All you need to do is enter your name and email. It takes a few seconds. Please and thank you!

WHO DAT?!


Today's the first pre-season game for The Saints. Normally I pay no attention to pre-season because it doesn't count. But I find myself in a strangly good and euphoric mood today inspite of the fact it's been storming for two days thanks to TS #5 and work is sooooo slow and our bank balance is really low. I'm looking forward to seeing my game watching posse at Rendezvous tonight and watching our boys in black and gold do their thing.

Drew Brees' pre-game chant:

When I say 1, you say 2. When I say win, you say for you. ...
1! 2! Win! For you!

When I say 3, you say 4. When I say win, you say some more. ...
3! 4! Win! Some more!

When I say 5, you say 6. When I say win, you say for kicks. ...
5! 6! Win! For kicks!

When I say 7, you say 8. When I say win, you say it's great. ...
7! 8! Win! It's great!

When I say 9, you say 10. When I say win, you say again. ...
9! 10! Win! Again!

Win! Again! Win! Again! Win! Again! Win! Again!

Happy Birthday Harold!

Our little kitten is now a year old. My how he has grown!

And so it begins...

Tropical Storm Bonnie is off the coast of Florida and the current forecast has it coming right to New Orleans. A friend in Miami said it wasn't too bad for them.

I was already to leave the office early when I got an email from a client who wanted a contingency plan for his company's website (a shopping mall) due to the storm, to let people know whether they are open or not. Which made me realize that I am totally unprepared for hurricane season. Now I have an iPhone, there's got to be a way to update web page from my phone. If the power is out I wouldn't be able to use a computer. I downloaded an HTML editing app and will have to test it to see how well it works. I know there's a way to update this blog from my phone because I did it during hurricane Gustav, I'm just not sure I remember how.

Bonnie is one of those wake-up calls. August is right around the corner and that's when hurricane season really picks up. Everyone realizes they better get on the stick.

Hopefully this won't be a big deal. My biggest concern is the oil and dispersant that will probably get pushed ashore and into the fragile wetlands, lakes and inlets. Ugh. It could get even messier. We'll just have to wait and see.

I always refer to Bob Breck's Blog and Weather Underground.
Pay no attention to CNN and the Weather Channel.

Rising Tide V

It is my duty as a NOLA blogger to promote RT, though not sure anyone reads my blog any more. Hello? Anyone out there?

Rising Tide is a conference for bloggers put on by bloggers. I attended II and IV and have been very impressed. So here's the 411:

Rising Tide 5
Saturday, August 28, 2010
9:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.
The Howlin’ Wolf
907 South Peters Street
New Orleans, Louisiana

www.risingtidenola.com

Rising Tide NOLA, Inc. will present its 5th annual new media conference centered on the recovery and future of New Orleans and the Gulf Coast on Saturday, August 28, 2010, 9:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m., at The Howlin’ Wolf, 907 South Peters St., in New Orleans.

The one-day conference features speakers and panel discussions on the status and future of the culture, politics, criminal justice system, environment, and flood protection of New Orleans and the Gulf Coast. Past speakers have included actor and outspoken champion of New Orleans Harry Shearer, and authors Dave Zirin, John Barry, Christopher Cooper and Robert Block.

Rising Tide NOLA, Inc. is a non-profit organization formed by New Orleans bloggers in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and the failure of the federally-built levees. After the disaster, the internet became a vital connection among dispersed New Orleanians, former New Orleanians, and friends of the city and of the Gulf Coast region. A surge of new blogs erupted and, combined with those that were already online, a community of bloggers with a shared interest in New Orleans and the Gulf Coast developed. In the summer of 2006, to mark the anniversary of the flood, the bloggers of New Orleans organized the first Rising Tide Conference, taking their shared interest in technology, the arts, the internet and social media and turning advocacy for the city into action.

Conference registration is open at http://www.risingtidenola.com and at the Rising Tide blog: http://www.risingtideblog.blogspot.com

Rising Tide 5 is sponsored by The Canary Collective, a media publishing agency, and by Levees.org.

Rising Tide’s featured artwork, available as a poster and t-shirt, is once again produced by the award-wining editorial cartoonist and artist Greg Peters of Suspect Device.

puss·y·foot
1. To move stealthily or cautiously.
2. Informal To act or proceed cautiously or timidly to avoid committing oneself.

Tonight I'm going to my first Pussyfooter's meeting. I'm very excited. The Pussyfooters are an all female dancing/marching group. There are several of these groups in New Orleans. This article does a nice synopsis about the groups.

You don't have to be crazy to live here but it helps.

I survived my trip, but just barely. Day two I went on a rafting trip. The river was running high, fast and very cold due to all the snow melt. We hit a rapid the wrong way and everyone got thrown from the raft except the guide. Two manged to swim to shore, me and another guy got pulled back into the raft. Never been so cold in my life. Scared the shit out of me and I got some lovely bruises. One guy twisted his ankle really bad. But we all were OK and we only lost 3 baseball caps and one paddle.

That white stuff is snow, my friends. Up to our knees in some places.

It's always interesting to travel-you realize just how dysfunctional yet unique New Orleans really is. The first week of my trip was small spent in small, charming mountain towns in the southern half of Colorado. One day were were so high up in the mountains that the snow still hadn't melted. The second week I was in Denver for a conference. Denver is huge and flat. Who knew? It's very clean and there's a good mix of older buildings and new ones. I thought "this is what it's like to live in a town with a robust tax base." I like the funk of New Orleans though, and Denver seems like it tries too hard. My friend and I visited Pearl Street, billed as "unique shops, excellent dining and community minded businesses nestled in a delightful, pedestrian and pet friendly setting." All three blocks of it. Whatever. It pales compared to Magazine Street which is 6 miles long full of shops, restaurants, bars and galleries.

Cute, mountain town of Silverton.

I did have an interesting experience. I have friends in Denver and they picked me up from my downtown hotel and took me to their house for dinner. I was there for about 5 minutes when the power went out. It was a very hot day so we all assumed it was a brownout. But it stayed out. Thankfully they lived within walking distance of some restaurants so we headed out. This was no brownout, traffic lights were also out. My friend pulled up the news on her Blackberry - an electrical substation had exploded and thousands of people were out of power! We were lucky there was an area near by that had power and we were able to have dinner. They took me back to my hotel around 9pm and it was creepy. It was dark, no lights, no traffic lights - very reminiscent of parts of New Orleans after Katrina - plus smoke. Thankfully downtown had power so my hotel wasn't affected.

Getting back to crazy; I come home to extreme heat and humidity, the start of hurricane season and the on-going oil "spill" in the gulf. I won't lie, it was a relief to be away from all the bad news for a while. As well as away from the humidity. But we do find ways to distract ourselves and make it worth it to live here: incredible food, amazing music, copious amount of booze available 24/7, the laissez faire attitude, Mardi Gras, festivals and other crazy things. For example, I just found out today I got accepted into the Pussyfooters, one of the female dance troupes. There are others; Camel Toes Steppers, Bearded Oysters and The Muffalottas. I also play on a Skee Ball team every Thursday. Excuse me, it's a skee ball and drinking league. The guy who formed the league just made this great video. I'm a member of two Mardi Gras krewes, so I get to dress up in costumes and parade through the street with a drink in my hand, throwing stuff at people-it's really a hoot. If you are thinking "grow up" then you don't have the right attitude to live here. Yes, people do have jobs, pay bills, own homes and raise families. We just like to have fun while being all grown up and responsible.

Heading West

Time for my annual hiking/camping trip. Going to Colorado this time. 2 weeks. Can't wait.

No posts about the BP oil disaster. Just too overwhelming. Just plug the damn thing up and clean our coast and gulf up.

Keep eating Louisiana seafood please, there are still some not impacted fishing zones as of now. Keep the fishermen who can work in business.

If you want to donate money, here are a few good organizations:

These help the ecosystem:

Gulf Restoration Network: http://www.healthygulf.org/

Tri-state Bird Rescue: http://www.tristatebird.org/

Voice of the Wetlands: http://www.voiceofthewetlands.org/

These help the people impacted on the Louisiana coast:

Gulf Aid: http://www.gulfaid.org/

Second Harvest: http://no-hunger.org/

Catholic Archdiocese of New Orleans: http://www.arch-no.org/

The Greater New Orleans Foundation: http://www.gnof.org/

Ups and Downs

Another JazzFest has come and gone. I only went two days this year - the first Saturday and Thursday. The Thursday has always been my favorite day. "Locals Day" much smaller crowds, no lines for anything.

Saturday we saw: Bonerama, Papa Grows Funk, Big Sam's Funky Nation,Terence Blanchard, Treme Brass Band, Dr. Michael White. We saw the first half of Simon and Garfunkle but were somewhat dissapointed so we scooted over to the Blues tent to catch the second half of Tab Benoit's set. He was tearing it up! We also saw the parade " Kirk Joseph & the Sousaphone Symphony Parade honoring Anthony “Tuba Fats” Lacen" with 15 tubas!

Thursday the weather was perfect. I saw Dumpstafunk, Sunpie Barnes, Steve Martin w/ Steep Canyon Rangers (yes that Steve Martin), Soul Rebles, 101 Runners and Elvis Costello. The day was more laid back in all ways.

Soul Rebels - the nice thing about Thursday you can get up closer to the stages.

We were up front for Dumpstafunk. This is looking back at the crowd.

The down was the BP Deepwater Horizon oil rig explosion and the oil leak (leak? geyser is more like it) that followed. 11 men lost their lives, hundreds of fishermen will lose their livelihood and thousands of marine animals and bird are suffering not to mention the damage to the coastlines and beaches of 4 states. And BP is hemmoraging money for the clean up. As of this time still waiting to hear why this happen. Here in New Orleans people are eating and buying up seafood for the very real fear it will be in short supply for years, which of course will drive up the cost. It remains to be seen how this will affect shipping in the ports of New Orleans and Mobile and the price of gas.

Another Up - New Orleans has a new mayor! Mayor Mitch Landrieu was sworn in to day. Can I get an amen?! I'm more excited about the departure of Ray Nagin but I do hope Landrieu can turn things around and actually get things done and be accountable. It's pretty easy for him to look better and accomplish more than Nagin.

Super Sunday 2010

I went to my first Super Sunday yesterday. No, it’s not a sporting event. It’s a day when various Mardi Gras Indian tribes meet up, show off their suits, and parade. There is drumming, chanting and call and response. The suits are incredibly elaborate, covered in feathers, beading and rhinestones and can weigh over 100 pounds. It’s a generational thing and it’s great to see the kids out in suits as well.

Here’s an overview of the Mardi Gras Indians
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mardi_Gras_Indians

More detail information and history:
http://www.mardigrasneworleans.com/mardigrasindians.html

Click here for my photos from Super Sunday 2010.

Saints Update

610 Stompers

The Saints have been Superbowl Champions for one month and about 14 hours, 16 minutes. The feel good after glow has not warn off. I heard "Halftime" (aka Get Crunk) for the first time since Mardi Gras at the Big Easy Roller Girls bout Saturday. I had grown sick of the song after hearing it over and over. The 610 Stompers were half time entertainment and did part of their routine to the song. The whole crowd on the New Orleans side jumped up and started singing and dancing along, myself included. My friends and I yelled ourselves hoarse. I hope the fans from Arkansas (the opposing team was the Arkansas Killbillies) were amused by our Stompers and the crowd's reaction.

CityBusiness reports on the "Saintsaintional Impact" the win has had on New Orleans. (Thanks to Humid Being for having the whole article.)

Of course now is the NFL draft and everyone is waiting to see who is staying with the Saints and who is going. A surprise was Scott Fujita signing with the Cleveland Browns. Going from the Superbowl winners to a team who went 5-11 last year. Wow. A surprise since Fujita always talks about how much he loves New Orleans. But of course, money talks louder. Maybe he hopes he can help the Cleveland become a turn around team/city, sort of like NOLA.

Some guy named Mike Polk made two videos, self proclaimed "hastily made Cleveland tourism videos." They are hilarious. I was going to embed them, but the maker's comments are priceless.

Attempt #1
Attempt #2

Lombardi Gras

Some people have started calling this year's carnival season "Lombardi Gras" instead of Mardi Gras because of the black and gold bleed over. The crowds are huge this year. Cell phone service (at least with AT&T) is spotty and even text messages aren't going through. We are definitly back to pre-K levels of crowds.

This has definitely been the best Mardi Gras ever for me. Joining the Krewe of PAN and marching in Krewe du Vieux was amazing. I went to my first Blush ball - fantastic - and my first AMUSEment Muses's ball with the B52s performing - outstanding. I almost had the opportunity to ride in the Muses parade for the first time as a sub. I tried but no too hard to ride. Got to save something to look forward to! In between these experiences was also the first of seeing the Saints win the NFC Championship and the Superbowl. Saturday night we took a break from parades and watched the Superbowl again. I've never watched the Superbowl twice. I've been on such a high for weeks now. Wednesday is Ash Wednesday, Mardi Gras will be over. Catholics observe Lent and I'm going to join them in Flexi-lent. No drinking except for my birthday and the St. Patrick's Day parade party we have every year.

The video of Wynton Marsalis "The Spirit of New Orleans" is finally on-line, posted on Facebook by the man himself (or his representatives). So perfect.

I'm paraded and partied out and am ready to get back to "Normal." Of course, like after Katrina, there's a new normal around here. For so long New Orleans, like the Saints, have been looked down upon. New Orleans is back baby! The Who Dat! Nation is alive and well. Ya you rite.

One last New Orleans video, just as perfect as Wynton's but this one is funny and funky. "New Orleans: Love it or Leave it."

Super Bowl part deaux

I've been at work for several and very little actual work has been done. I just ordered DVDs of the Superbowl game and the NFC championship game. I watched them but want to see them again. Especially some of the pre- and post-game stuff that the sound was turned off at the bar we were at. For example, I missed this poem by Wynton Marsalis "The Spirit of New Orleans," I was hoping to find it on-line but haven't found it yet. I'm sure the NLF have clammed down on this stuff. All I can find are the ads.

Some did this wonderful little video of Magazine Street after the Superbowl. This is where we were.

More to come...

New Orleans Saints win Super Bowl XLIV

Speechless.

Anticipation....

Superbowl kick-off is less than 24 hours away now and I can hardly stand it! I've been doing weekend chores all day because nothing productive will get done tomorrow. I voted this morning and tonight will watch the returns. Will Mitch Landrieu pull off a landslide without a run-off? Hey, the Saints are in the Superbowl ANYTHING is possible. Elections here are crazy (like everything else). The primaries are open and there were 11 names on the ballot:

Mayor City of New Orleans 1 18 Jonah Bascle No Party
Mayor City of New Orleans 1 19 'Manny' Chevrolet-Bruno Other
Mayor City of New Orleans 1 20 Robert 'Rob' Couhig Republican
Mayor City of New Orleans 1 21 John Georges Democrat
Mayor City of New Orleans 1 22 Troy Henry Democrat
Mayor City of New Orleans 1 23 'Jerry' Jacobs No Party
Mayor City of New Orleans 1 25 Thomas A. Lambert Republican
Mayor City of New Orleans 1 26 Mitchell 'Mitch' Landrieu Democrat
Mayor City of New Orleans 1 28 James Perry Democrat
Mayor City of New Orleans 1 29 Nadine Ramsey Democrat
Mayor City of New Orleans 1 30 Norbert P. Rome No Party

Also on the ballot were spots for city council, various judges and coroner. Who elects their coroner??? The challenger to the incumbent ran this ad.

I can't even think straight anymore. My head is a buzz. All I can say is WHO DAT!

30 years of Super Bowl Commercials

Super Bowl TM©® ads used to be highly anticipated and offered a resite from those who didnt' care for football. They've been ho-gum that last few years after the tech bust. Here's a site where you can watch the ads from the past. Heck they even have some 2110 ads posted already.

The New Orleans Saints Superbowl Drinking Game

1. Every time they mention hurricane Katrina, drink 1
2. If they show pictures of the City of New Orleans right after Katrina, drink 1
3. Every time they say how much the Saints mean to the City of New Orleans, drink 1
4. Every time the words “tragedy”, “flood”, or “devastation” are used, drink 1
5. Every time they talk about how good Reggie Bush was in college, drink 3
6. If they show Kim Kardashian in the stands, drink 5
7. Every time they show a picture of Reggie Bush with a bat or say “bringing the wood” drink for 5 seconds.
8. Every time Reggie Bush gets negative yardage trying to run around in the backfield a bunch and outrun the defense, drink 1 and turn to the person next to you and say “I told you Vince Young should have won the Heisman”
9. Every time Reggie Bush gets up and flexes his arms in that pose he likes to do, drink 1
10. If they mention Tim Tebow for any reason, funnel a beer
11. Every time they say that “it’s destiny for the Saints to win” drink 1
12. If they show footage of Katrina survivors at the Superdome, take a shot of cheap liquor
13. If they call Saints fans the most passionate fans in football, drink 1
14. If they say that the Saints, Saints fans, or the City of New Orleans “deserve” a Superbowl victory, drink 1 and yell Who dat!
15. Every time they say how good of a story the Saints are, drink 1
16. If Jeremy Shockey pretends to be hurt after dropping a pass, drink 2
17. If they mention the Saints beating the Falcons in 2006 in the first game after Katrina in the Superdome, drink 5
18. Every time they compare hurricane Katrina to the Haiti earthquake, funnel a beer and yell “bullshit!”
19. Every time they mention Drew Brees as the Mardi Gras king, drink
20. Every time they show Archie Manning, drink 1. If they show old footage of him with the Saints, drink 5. If they mention how tough of a decision it was for him as for whom to cheer for, drink 10.
21. Every time they show a saints fan yelling "Who dat!" Or a sign/shirt saying the same, drink 1 and yell Who dat!
22. If they show Chris Paul at the game, drink 1 and mention to someone how much better he is than Marvin Williams.
23. If they show former Mayor Ray Nagin, drink 5 and then do a little dance since he'll be gone after May.

Other Rules not involving the Saints:
1. Every time they show Eli Manning in the press box, drink 1
2. Every time Pierre Garcon is mentioned with Haiti, drink 1
3. If Brett Favre is mentioned for any reason, drink 1

If I play this game I'm going to be passed out on the floor by the end of the first quarter!

A letter to the Who Dat! Nation



The T-P did a funny letter: "Dear Miami: Get ready for the Who Dat Nation coming for the SuperBowl"

I offer my letter to the Who Dat! Nation. My father lives in South Florida, so I feel qualified to offer some advice to those New Orleanians making the trek to Miami.

1. Leave the heavy clothes at home. This is South Florida where it’s always beautiful and balmy. There might be some rain but it will be over before you know it. You might need something light for the freezing cold restaurants.
2. Speaking of restaurants, don’t expect to find TabascoTM on the tables. Bring your own hot sauce and Tony C’s. You’ll thank me.
3. South Florida has some fantastic seafood so enjoy. Just don’t expect everything to be fried. They like to eat "healthy" down there. Remember the “South Beach Diet?”
4. If you want food with a kick, try some Cuban cuisine. You won't be sorry.
   
5. If you are driving to Miami, you might want to pack your own booze – I bet they run out. But make sure none of the bottles in your car are open. They are very strict about drinking and driving and a bottle of wine with the cork stuck back in, under the driver’s seat, may land you in jail.
6. The Florida Highway Patrol officers do not have a sense of humor.
7. Be prepared to be carded. Keep your ID handy.
8. It’s snowbird season, which means there are retirees from the north everywhere. Be prepared to follow slow moving cars with their turn signal going.
9. Pack the sunscreen, sunglasses and a hat. You’ll need them.
10. Be prepared to drive. A lot. Kind of like visiting Houston or Dallas.
11. If you have a day or two, drive down and see the Keys. Key West, at the very end, has a New Orleans vibe with a tropical twist.
    

Anything I missed?

UPDATE: ESPN posts "Here are the 20 reasons you should be in New Orleans instead of Miami for the Super Bowl" (Thanks Jim!)

The morning after...


We had SO much fun with Krewe du Vieux and all the wonderful people of Krewe of PAN. Can't wait to do it again next year. However, today I am sore all over from walking, dancing and lugging a gym bag full of beads and throws. These photos were taken from a balcony on Royal street by G's cousin. I have a whole host of photos I took here.

The local rag, the T-P has a nice slide show of image from the parade. Our float made the front cover of the paper! Nice! VOO DAT!

Krewe du Vieux gets FIRED UP tonight!

After living in New Orleans for 17 years I am finally participating in my first Mardi Gras parade. G and I were invited to join the Krewe of PAN, a sub-Krewe of Krewe du Vieux, 2 weeks ago by Adrastos and Dr. A. It's been a very busy 2 weeks as we helped with the float (well, we mostly stood around, drank beer and held things when needed), created gris gris bags for throws and ran around town buying throws and parts for our costumes. Our Krewe's theme is VOO DAT and I will be dressed as a Miami Dophin voo doo doll. I'm glad I didn't decide to be a Saintsation cause it's gonna be bone chilling cold tonight! Therefore, you can be guarenteed the parade will move fast like last year. It's been fun getting to know the other krewe members and using our creative juices for some fun stuff. I'll post pics tomorrow.

Who Dat?!©®TM owns Who dat?!

There's been an uproar over the NFL sending cease and desist letters to small businesses who have printed shirts using the phrase "Who Dat," fleur di lis and the colors black and gold. The uproar has been as loud as the joyous yells just after the Saints won the NFC Championship against the Vikings. New Orleanians don't like corporations trying to capitalize on our coloquialisms. About 10 different groups have popped up on Facebook in protest, and people are tweeting like mad. The debate about who owes the right to the phrase is on going.

What's next? "Geaux Saints"? People in So. Louisiana love to give things a Cajun twist like spelling Go Geaux (dat's French cher). We can't use "Superbowl" or "The New Orleans Saints" all owned by the NFL. Here's an alternate: It's a black and geauxld, whoux dat supahbowl!

"Who might that be who claims they can beat the football team from New Orleans." just doesn't have the same power as the Who dat chant.



Then Senator Vitter, of all people, jumps in the fray and pens a letter to the NFL telling them to drop the suit or sue him.

Will the NFL back down?

UPDATE: "Who Dat Nation 1, NFL 0 in merchandise fight"

"The Soul of New Orleans"
A beautiful and moving video.

Highlights from the NFC championship game.

Saints 31, Vikings 28 and the Saints advance to the Superbowl.
"Pig have flown. Hell has frozen over."

UPDATE: Another great video of highlights with audio of what players and coaches were saying on the field.

Hell hath frozen over.

The Saints are going to the Superbowl, first time ever. Everyone has Who dat!! fever. Work isn't getting done. Black and Gold is every where. All everyone can talk about is the Saints. I too am guilty of all of this. I'm sure the Facebook friends of all of us Saints fans are probably sick of all the video postings, fleur de lis and and Who Dat! But the energy here in New Orleans is amazing.

Sports announcers kept saying "Mardi Gras has come early." I hate to tell them technically it's BEEN Mardi Gras since Twelfth Night. But we'll forgive them. Normally this time of year houses are decked out in purple green and gold, like the one below, but there seem fewer than usual this year.

Others have gone black and gold:

And others have mixed it up:
We watched the game at our usual spot, the Rendezvous. I was half deaf by the end of the game from all the hooting and hollering. It was loud in there, I can't even imagine how loud the Dome was. When the winning kick was good, everyone was jumping up and down yelling and hugging each other. We spilled out on the the side walk. Cars were driving by, honking. People were hanging out of their car windows, hi-fiving people standing along the street. We moved down a block to where there was a bigger crowd. People were dancing in the street, traffic was at a stand still. A city bus came by. The driver stopped to high-five people then made the bus "dance" by making it kneel. He finally moved on and a cop car with the lights going pulls up. Over the loud speaker "Stay out of the street please. The sidewalk works much better. The Saints are going to the Superbowl." And this was happening all over the city. This was probably the first night that Bourbon Street was actually full of locals. We have two weeks to bask in this. Going to the Superbowl was the prize. Winning? Would be lagniappe. The Superbowl maybe in Miami, but the party to be at will be the City of New Orleans.

Saints Video: Bourbon Street

I've got Saints fever and the prescription is a Super Bowl win!

I'm not used to having to juggle football and Mardi Gras. In the past football, pro and college, was over for me about the first week in January. But not this year. Da Saints are marching in, with a play-off match up in the Dome Saturday. Everyone was excited about the game, but it got bumped up when it was announced the Saints had resigned Deuce McAllister. He didn't play but he was team captain. I watch the game at the Rendezvous on Magazine street and while there were two rounds of "Reggie! Reggie! Reggie!" there were at least two if not three "Deuuuuuuuuuuce!"

Football. It allows men to hug and women to curse like a drunken sailor. I wish I had a dollar for every f bomb one girl dropped. It was her birthday, as she liked to keep reminding everyone, over and over, so I'll forgive her. Football allows me to get in touch with my inner dude. By the end of the game, my throat hurts from yelling, hands hurt from clapping and hi-fiving.

Friday night I went to the Pussyfooter's Blush Ball which was a total blast. Great party and I loved the 610 Stompers. Saturday before the game went to the den of Krewe de Vieux to work on the Krewe of Pan's float. Looking forward to the parade. It will be a first for me being in a parade.

WHO DAT?!

Happy New Year! And boy am I happy the holidays are over. Or are they? I took down the Christmas decorations yesterday. In a couple of days the Mardi Gras season kick-off on Twelfth Night so up will go the purple, green and gold. Or should the black and gold for the Saints go up first? The city is so pumped that the team has made it to the play-offs. The end of the season has seen a slide in their performance. Today was their last regular season game with a final record of 13-3 with a loss to the Carolina Panthers. Several Carnival krewes have canceled their parades become they fall on the same night as the Super Bowl. Saints players will be riding on floats, Tom Benson will be Grand Marshal of the super krewe Endymion.



For me an end of a football era has passed. Bobby Bowden has at long last retired from FSU football. They won his final game in the Gator Bowl against West Virginia. Since FSU isn't in the SEC they don't get much press coverage around here. This fall, a Seminole Club was started so I've had other alumni to watch the games with. It was bitter sweet as we watched the FSU victory. When it was all over, you would have expected us to all be hooping and hollering with the win, but it was mellow with the sadness of the leaving of The Bobby. Part of the sadness was that he wasn't ready to leave yet. He wanted 400 wins before retiring. But the team hadn't be performing as well as they once did and it was awkward to have a head coach you didn't know when he was retiring and a "head coach in waiting."

I was only 9 when he became coach; some of the people in the Club weren't even born! It's going to be weird next year to not see him on the sidelines. He was a great coach and a class act. To bad CBS sucks in their coverage and the audio dropped out during Bobby final comments. I'm sorry we missed the half time tribute to him. But I found a video on YouTube. And I loved him planting the spear.