Mardi Gras #2 - February

When the magic Sunday came, it seems that all of us were nervously waiting for the five o'clock witching hour to get here. The church service was well attended but you could tell that all were wondering what would be done about half past nine on that same night. I could only listen on the radio, but I think all of Louisiana went silent around that PM time. I had a window partially open and I was not surprised to hear next to no sound from the street or subdivision when the game started.

The first quarter kept things quiet but things got better by halftime. When it became obvious that the Saints might go marching in this time, you could hear saved up fireworks from January first going off. Monday was a confused bedlam because the miracle had happened. The Saints had come in from marching forty three years in the NFL wilderness. Then the weather closed in again and we had snow. Can you imagine that? Snow in Louisiana and in the outskirts of New Orleans.

Then we had a weekend that contained Valentine's Day. A Mardi Gras parade, a church Mardi Gras cook out before the parade, then Mardi Gras Tuesday and now Lent beginning with ash Wednesday. What a turbulent ten days or so that was. I guess that for most of LA, that was the week that was. Now we must settle down and get on with the daily living that is before us. I don’t know what the sports shows will find to talk about but I imagine that they will come up with something.

And then we have the bubbling political pot of the nation to keep us interested. From what I have been hearing, we won't lack important topics to think about and try to assimilate into something that passes for responsible thinking and acting.

The Scotties have been very proud today because the big dog show in NY was won and wowed by a Scottie. Now how about that. They are out of the room now enjoying their new status so I will have to get Anita to feed them a fancy supper. I don’t think an all meat frank will get the job done today. Let us hear it for the Scotties!
In their new found glory, they did not find any sheriff cars to turn over and torch; they also didn’t run off to the nearest shopping center to break out windows, and they didn’t steal any gourmet dog food or HD TVs. I though they handled themselves rather well for their new found canine position. They have stepped back into some of their unrepentant ways by really throwing a barking fit at the guy who rides his skate board down our street, the UPS truck whether it stops by or merely passes by on the street, snarls at FED Express, ignores the beagle next door and still are quite reluctant to go potty outside when it is raining. Oh well. Maybe they are feeling some entitlement and there is enough of that attitude going around in the country that we should expect some dogs to apply for it. I am going to attempt to sign up for additional entitlement next Friday.

Mardi Gras #1 - February

The first week of Mardi Gras month was taken up in a mixture of excitement combining the Saints and Mardi Gras. The whole state was buzzing about the Saints going to the big bowl for the first time. New songs were written; sports talk shows were filled with pomp and prophecy; fantasy and doubt were a steady mixture that drugged the whole area. The "who dat" controversy got going and that created enough of a stir to get our two senators involved with the NFL and for national news shows to take notice.

If there are football gods then how could they not be for a football team carrying the name Saints. Also how could these same gods not favor a team that had been wandering in the NFL wilderness for forty three years. It just had to be that they would inherit the promised land this time. I was not a pro fan but I still hoped that the wandering in the wilderness of ineptness, embarrassment, mental fringe coaches, an owner from the far side, and a ruined and ravaged city would finally catch the magic ring. That week before the big bowl was unique in weather also. It was cold; it was rainy; it was foggy; there were rumors of a winter mix showing up; there was also a rumor of snow. It seems that even the weather was getting in on the confusion and that Mardi Gras would have to fend for itself.