On Saturday, Kimberly, Jonathan and I went to our favorite Metairie Mardi Gras parade – Caesar. We like it because it is kid friendly and they always throw lots of beads and stuff.
We knew that a “Who Dat?” poster would be a big hit, so Jonathan and I made one Saturday afternoon. Everyone is Saints crazy. The “Who Dat?” poster was effective … we raked in the beads and footballs and doubloons. One guy threw me a black and gold Nerf … about a 25-yard pass and … I caught it. Jonathan got a Who Dat t-shirt and a big stuffed tiger.
Unfortunately, things went too well. Float riders began throwing whole bags of beads. One guy on the top tier of a float caught me off guard. I saw the bag coming at the last minute and I “attempted to catch the beads with my face.” In other words, he hit me right in the face and all I could do was watch. My glasses snapped near the hinge. A bit stunned by the blow and shocked by my dangling ear piece, I shook it off and enjoyed the rest of the parade. (Notice that Jonathan has a helmet on in the photo. Maybe I need a helmet too.)
Price of admission: Free. New frames: $36. Hanging out with the Who Dats on the day before the Super Bowl: Priceless.
I went to EyeMasters today to get new frames. They replaced them for half price and they had my style in stock. We were in and out in 15 minutes. According to the employees at the store, I’m not the first person to have my glasses broken at a Mardi Gras parade. That made me feel a little less stupid … a very little.
*By the way, every year after parades we go home and sort the beads. We keep the unique ones and bag the others to give away. Lots of beads are used over and over again year after year. If any of you want beads for a Mardi Gras party, I have plenty. I’ll mail you a box if you pay the postage.
garydmyers.com 