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.

More happy articles about New Orleans!

New Orleans in state of grace over Saints by USA Today.

Also a study that ranked Louisiana the happiest state. Who would have thunk it?

Good grief. 2009 is almost over. I have a lot of catching up to do. But first I have to share this article about New Orleans and the Saints football team. It's not about football but about the team and the citizens and the "soul of the city." Very well written and spot on. No tired clichés. This guy gets New Orleans. Make sure to have a few kleenex handy.

I will admit I never cared about the Saints before Katrina. But that first game at home at the Dome, the energy, electricity and hope in the city was incredible. The Saints were back home. I cried during the Green Day U2 opening performance. I still tear up when I hear "The Saints are Coming" or "Wake me up when September Ends." I've watched every game since that one. I am now a total Saints fan. For the last two years we walk over to our neighborhood bar to watch the games. It's usually packed, especially during away games. We yell, scream, curse and Who Dat?! until we are hoarse. It's a blast. Better than Mardi Gras. And you know what? The Saints team are a class act. Sean Payton is not going throw his head set in a tantrum because of a call he didn't like (though he will murmur "bullsh*t" behind his play card). The players are a team and respect each other. They have a job to do and they do it. I loved one moment during one game the commentators were talking about the team during half time. One guy said "They aren't your father's Saints." Ditka chimed in "They aren't MY Saints." He got that right.