Two Celebrations

Last year’s Mardi Gras was an act of defiance. Despite—or maybe because of—the desperate, post-Katrina life we were all living at the time, New Orleanians stubbornly embraced their most identifiable tradition. Last year, most parades had only a handful of floats with few riders. The school bands were pitifully small, wearing windbreakers instead of uniforms, with three schools sometimes joining together their musicians to form one heartbreakingly small group. Crowds were determined, but thin.

This year, “they” say the crowds were almost up to pre-Katrina strength. More Krewes rolled, and they had more riders. More school bands were back, and some even had uniforms. Both my sister and oldest daughter flew into town for the celebration. It’s been a good Carnival.

Then, tonight, Steve and I went to the Vietnamese New Year’s celebration. Yes, the Year of the Pig officially started a week ago, but this is New Orleans, and you can’t expect anyone to try to celebrate anything in the middle of Carnival. So they had the dragon dance and fireworks tonight, and the turnout was incredible. According to the event’s organizers, 85% of the city’s Vietnamese community has returned. These are almost all people who came to this city as refugees, who worked hard to make a new life for themselves only to suffer again beneath Katrina. Now they’re back, and working hard to rebuild their lives, again. It formed an inspiring end to an emotional week.

The Mystic Krewe of Barkus

This Mardi Gras parade is for the dogs. Literally. Actually, it’s for cats and other critters, too, but only dogs (and their people) are allowed to parade. The Mystic Krewe of Barkus is a fundraiser for the Louisiana Humane Society. First there’s a get-together (with music and food) in Armstrong Park, then a parade through the French Quarter. This year they had 1,000 dog entrants—so many they finally had to say, Sorry! We’re full! The event raised tens of thousands of dollars for the local Humane Society.

The King and Queen of Barkus are always “rescue dogs.” This year’s royalty were both Katrina dogs—the King was rescued only two months ago. Their Highnesses were treated to the traditional dinner of oysters Rockefeller and pork chops at Galatoire’s the Friday night before the parade.




The theme for this year’s parade was A Street Dog Named Desire, which inspired some wonderful costumes. The weather was chilly but sunny, the music and food were great, and a good time was had by all.

The New Orleans shelter was destroyed by Katrina, and as almost everyone must know, we’re still dealing with animals lost or orphaned by the storm. So if you want to donate, stop by their website here, or call 1-888-6-HUMANE to donate by phone.

Gone Parading

Carnival is always a hectic time, and with two family members coming into town this year, the time crunch is really on. So I probably won't be posting much until next week. Cheers!

ARCHANGEL Attracts More Hollywood Attention

Jason Anthony mentions THE ARCHANGEL PROJECT in his column, The Hollywood Reader, in this week's PW. So far, we've had five more production companies express interest.

That makes the refrigerator thing a lot easier to take.

The LG Blues

I used to have nice, reliable appliances. Before Katrina drowned them, I had Amana, Kitchen Aid, and Bosch, and I never had any trouble with any of them. But choices were slim in Post-K New Orleans, and LG looked and sounded good. So I swallowed the bait, hook, line and sinker. Now, I have a collection of LG headaches.

You may remember my washing machine tirade last July/August, when it took me an entire month to get my new LG washing machine running again. Now my 13-month-old (of course it’s off warranty) LG refrigerator is on the blink. Steve called LG. They gave him the number of the local repairman.

The first step is to get them to answer their %#@&* phone. Gggrrrr.