Jan

Men in Dresses Parade

By Tess

I just don’t know about Mardi Gras this year; it seems so…well, so small next to the Superbowl.

Think about it: we have Carnival every year, but this is our first Superbowl in 43 years. To call things ‘a bit crazy here right now’ might be the understatement of the century. Add to that next week’s election where no matter who wins their last name will NOT be Nagin? Forget it. Might as well leave an Out-of-Office message for the entire city, telling people we’ll be back…oh, say around French Quarter Fest.

Today’s insanity was the Buddy D parade. Buddy was a legendary sportscaster in the city, as long suffering a fan as ever there was, and he once said that if the Saints made it to the Superbowl he’d dance in the streets in a dress. Buddy died in 2005, but his memory lives on and so today, one week before the big game we held a parade. Several thousand people showed up in the cold, almost all of the men in drag, everybody thrilled.

More photo & video at the T-P here, including a great shot of the crowd- it really was massive.

Schools are closing the Monday after the game, on the assumption that the parents aren’t going to be mobile, one way or the other. A judge has postponed a trial because he can’t seat a jury due to Saintsmania (his word- apparently now an official legal term?). Of course, win or lose, we’ll have a post-game parade, too, not to mention who-knows-how-many impromptu parades over the week.

Okay, so we’re a little…um…overly enthusiastic. But tell the truth… don’t you wish you were here?