Category Archives: Festival

Hurrication

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Hurrication

“The time one spends at home with friends and massive quantities of alcohol.  This is usually preceded by a hurricane that one did not evacuate from.  Usually accompanied by a lack of electrical power. “

In some parts of the country, kids wake up on winter mornings dreaming for blizzards to turn into snow days.  Well, down here in the tropics, we don’t get snow days, so our school children pray for hurricane days.  To them, it’s no coincidence that the first few weeks of school coincide with the most active days of hurricane season.

For the rest of us not so lucky to be in school, preparing for an incoming hurricane can be costly and a time suck.  Fill the car with gas, pull cash from the ATM, monitor the weather channel, secure loose items in the yard, find high ground to park the car, pull office files from bottom cabinets, secure windows and doors, stock up on water, batteries, flashlights, candles, canned food, toilet paper, beer, wine, liquor, beer, wine, liquor, beer, wine, liquor … oh look, m&ms!

Phew, that was exhausting.  After all the preparations, if you are lucky enough to have work and school called off, the decision must be made to ride it out or evacuate.  One way or the other, you are in for a hurrication.  The preparations are complete and now there is nothing left to do but wait.  For some of us, the first few hours of this are excruciating.  Your usually busy lifestyle has skidded to a startling halt and you find yourself with a clean house, all of your errands complete and nothing else to do but…well, relax!

As strange as it may seem, hurricane season in New Orleans is a gift.  It causes us to slow down our pace, relax and have a cocktail.  You spend hours upon hours with family and friends, passing the time and doing nothing else but playing cards and drinking booze, because what else do you do once the power goes out?

This quality time is essential for our community solidarity and without it, we wouldn’t be able to relive those ridiculous stories from high school or have dance parties to ace of base in the living room.  When there is no internet, no power and no TV, the creativity and bonding are endless and it is one of the reasons that NOLA-ites are such a close knit community.   So, hunker down with your favorite peeps NOLA…time to ride out this storm NOLA style.

Hurricane Party

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Hurricane Party
Cowboy Mouth

(Paul) A little piano from John Thomas Griffith. He’s usually grippin’ and rippin’ the lead guitar. Give it up for John over there. This is what we call in New Orleans a hurricane party. Kick it Freddy!
(Fred) Ah one! Ah Two! Ah one two three four!

 

My hurricane party got outta control
I’m lying in the gutter eatin’ tootsie rolls
With red ant bites all over my ass
Beating on my buddies with a baseball bat

 

We had a little party me and my friends
A hurricane was coming to New Orleans again
somebody brought scotch somebody brought beer
I shoulda’ kept the hooch and thrown’em outta here

 

A friendly game a penny a hand
Smoke a cigar act like a man
Waintin’ for the gale force winds to blow
Shuffle up the cards and let the liquor flow

 

My hurricane party got outta control
I’m lying in the gutter eatin’ tootsie rolls
With red ant bites all over my ass
Beating on my buddies with a baseball bat

 

Somebody’s girlfriend showed up by surprise
With cookies in her hands and dollar signs in her eyes
I started dipping her cookies in scotch
Well she won all my money and my pocket watch

 

Well I passed out and I woke up
The house was empty and so was my cup
From out on the front porch I heard them shout
I wish they’d come in so I could throw them out

 

My hurricane party got outta control
I’m lying in the gutter eatin’ tootsie rolls
With red ant bites all over my ass
Beating on my buddies with a baseball bat JTG!

 

Everybody’s wrestling out in the dirt
I laughed so hard till my stomach hurt
They saw me clean they heard me laugh
They started charging at me and I grabbed the bat

 

My hurricane party got outta control
I’m lying in the gutter eatin’ tootsie rolls
With red ant bites all over my ass
Beating on my buddies with a baseball bat
Beating on my buddies with a baseball bat
Beating on my buddies with a baseball bat

You Need a Little Lent in Your Life

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Springtime in New Orleans arrives fast and early each year almost simultaneously with the Lenten season.  Lent is that time of year after carnival has come to a close and before festival season begins.  It is the only time in the New Orleanian’s cyclical calendar that is reserved for detox and rejuvenation, for the body, mind and spirit.

It is during this time of year that the weather begins to shift, the azaleas start to bloom, the Japanese plums sprout their fruit and the oak trees cover every surface of the city in a layer of yellow powder.  While your allergies may be going haywire, your taste buds are experiencing a revelation sent from Proteus himself-crawfish, shrimp, oysters and crabs flood the restaurants and find their way to every residents table.

As the Catholics abstain from eating meat on Fridays they join together in a shellfish feast that brings families and friends together in a celebration of the creatures of the sea and the abundant maritime resources from the waters that surround the crescent.  The ritual serves as a binder that reaffirms existing relationships and forms new connections, connections that are essential to the heart and soul of the city. There is nothing like a crawfish boil on a sunny 75 degree afternoon filled with quality people and good conversation – it is all that is needed to replenish the spirit of a NOLA-ite and just in time for the festival season that is rapidly approaching.

Snapping out of the post-Mardi Gras Daze

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In the weeks following carnival, the entire city falls into a post Mardi Gras daze. It is a daze that takes weeks of rest and relaxation combined with health food and non-alcoholic beverages to recover from the weeks of excess consumption. The result is a mini pre-spring hibernation where we nurture our bodies and cleanse our system in preparation for the warm weather that brings outdoor music, front porch sitting and riverside afternoons.

It’s a slow transition from the high energy of carnival into the long, lazy afternoons passed with friends on the water. The pre-spring hibernation is essential to making the transition between the two mentalities, but can render you helpless without a taste of the New Orleans spirit to snap you out of your post-Mardi Gras funk. The spirit can be found anywhere around the city-it’s in the Irish Channel parade, the opening of the snoball stands, the start of Wednesdays at the Square’s spring concert series or the Saint Joseph’s Day traditions.

Last night, as I was going through my post-Mardi Gras cleansing rituals, I was interrupted by a noise down the street. As the noise slowly grew louder, I could make out drums and chanting and finally as I peered out the window I saw them marching down the street. The Mardi Gras Indians were marching the city for Saint Joseph’s Day in the last show of their carnival costumes before they put them away for the season. And just like that, the charm of New Orleans found its way back to me, snapping me out of my post-Mardi Gras Daze and back into the New Orleanian mentality necessary to enjoy the city’s spring activities. Hibernation is over, time to get ready for a NOLA-licious spring in the Big Easy!