Mardi Gras...The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
As a resident of the French Quarter for many years, I have mixed feelings about Mardi Gras.
The Good: The parades and costumes are the best thing about Mardi Gras to me. The parades are fun (most times) to go to watch, and the costumes are really beautiful. On Mardi Gras day, most of the parade watchers also costume, and it is fun to "people watch".
The Bad:
At the very top of my "Bad" list is the public urination that happens from Friday (today) through Mardi Gras day.
The city provides portable toilets in the downtown area and French Quarter area, but you have to know where to find them. Folks don't take the time to find these facilities, so they just decide to urinate anywhere, at anytime. GROSS, GROSS, GROSS.
The police can't keep up with it, but if they catch someone in the act, the person will be carted off to jail for __________________ in public.
I will go the market tomorrow to buy a few gallon sized bottles of bleach to disinfect the sidewalks where people (Men and Women) have been relieving themselves all night.
Noise is second on the "Bad" list...I live one street from Bourbon, so we get the overflow from the crowds. Tonight when the parades end, the masses will once again flow into the heart of the FQ to party. The noise will be a mixture of loud muisc, and people yelling (why do they always yell??) etc, ususally lasting until about 4am.
The Ugly: Trash is the tops on this list. This is how we guage how successful Mardi Gras is, by the tonnage of trash collected during Carnival. Fortunately for us here in the French Quarter, the garbage is collected 6 days a week.
The city is trying it's best to keep things clean, but with the masses of people at Mardi Gras, it is quite a task.
On today's news, they were showing how busy our airport is... People were coming in for Carnival and locals were leaving as they do every year, to escape the "madness".
I won't be celebrating Mardi Gras here at home either...I will be in a truck float parade, in Metairie, LA... We will be the first truck float parade following Argus, the main parade in Metairie on Mardi Gras afternoon.
So, if you're going to be in the area, look for truck #19 (first truck parade) Our truck theme is "The Mardi Gras Express" and is decorated like a railroad train. I'll be the third person on the driver's side. Just yell, "Throw Me Something, Camelot !
:sohappy: :sohappy: :sohappy:
The weather sounds like it will be nice on Tuesday...we have been worried, because several parades were canceled and rescheduled due to rain this season....but it's a one-time shot for us.
And hopefully, I won't get hit again with a can of beer, as happened last year...talk about hurt. It really took the spirit out of me, so I just sat it out for a while...Then I got mad at how stupid and cruel some people are.
But then I figured, why should I let some jerk spoil my fun, and got back into action, throwing my beads and stuff. :king: :king:
Happy Mardi Gras (March 4, 2003)
Goodness, what next??
