A little Mardi Gras

 

Throw me Something, Mister!

Mardi Gras was something I never knew existed until my college years.  Raised in a rural area with a Baptist church at every crossroads, and no Catholics to speak of within a hundred miles, it wasn’t a part of our lives.  Terms like Fat Tuesday, Ash Wednesday, and Lent had no meaning, whatsoever.

The biggest Mardi Gras in the Country happens every year in New Orleans.  Even though Mobile held the first Mardi Gras back around 1700, and still does today, their celebration can’t compare with the ones in South Louisiana.

Nowadays, New Orleans has become a family destination for the viewing of many of their parades.  Most of these happen during the early afternoon or evening, and folks line up all along the route to enjoy the show.

It didn’t take long for other communities to get in on the action.  Parades bring people, and people bring money.  Most every town in south Louisiana now has a parade or two.  You will even find Mardi Gras parades in our corner of the World. 

Natchez, MS has celebrated Mardi Gras for a number of years.  We thought we would join our kids there, and attend the evening parade.  It was to be my “first” Mardi Gras parade.

Getting ready on the bluff above the river.

                       

White, black, young, old; everyone appeared to be in a happy mood.

Oil is still a driving force in the area, hence the name.

Sign of past parades.

                          

Waiting on the show.

Here they come!

The parade lasted about an hour.  It was fun watching all the people.  Most of what I caught was in self defense.  It’s difficult to see things coming toward your head while looking up into the night.

We had a pile that included hundreds of strings of beads, cups, footballs, moonpies, and assorted other things.  We gave most to the surrounding kids, and made an early exit to a nearby restaurant.  I enjoyed my first Mardi Gras parade, but the dinner was my favorite part….jc

The Winter that Wasn’t!

 

This is another short post to see if I can still use Livewriter with blogger.  A number of bloggers have expressed frustration with the program the past few weeks.  As I had very little to post about, I tried one photo a few weeks ago.  All seemed well, but now, we’ll see.

Very little worth writing about has happened since our unscheduled return home from Arizona.  As for that, Wanda’s mom spent 15 days in the hospital, 10 days back at her residence, and another four days in the hospital.  Thankfully, she is on the mend, and back to being her “old self”.

It’s supposed to be Winter, even in Mississippi.  As of today, we have had three mornings below freezing this entire season.  Average highs the past six weeks have been in the seventies.  Our first signs of Spring, which usually appear around the end of February, happened a month ago.  Most all our azeleas started blooming then, and are now past their prime.  Here’s a few shots from around our yard. See the Casita hiding in the background?

The pine trees are loaded with blooms, and their pollen is already beginning to cover things.

Sally is so excited that Winter is behind us, she’s running around the yard like a pup.

We took a drive to Natchez yesterday and saw Wisteria, Dogwood, and many other plants in bloom that one wouldn’t expect to see till near the end of March.  One can debate the issues of global warming forever, but I think the facts speak for themselves.  SOMETHING is going on…..jc

Test Post

 Attempting to post a photo using Livewriter.


Al, of the Bayfield Bunch, is having problems posting photos to his blog while using Livewriter.  I thought I would give it a try, and see if I received the same error.  Appears it works the same as always for me.