Les Bons Temps                                              March 26, 2008

“Laissez les bons temps rouler!!”  is a Cajun expression for, “Let the good times roll!!”  And we have certainly been doing that since arriving in “Nawlins” three weeks ago!  After a short stay in San Antonio, we were anxious to see Texas in our rearview mirror and slip across the border into Louisiana.   We stopped for a couple of days in Lake Charles, LA where my Bride immediately set about invading the privacy of the local bird population in the surrounding marshlands…

Not content with pestering only one species, she also spent several hours annoying the fish and her fellow diners at a restaurant inside the local Bass Pro Shop with a “light show” emanating from a seemingly never ending stream of flash photography…

Just imagine trying to enjoy a meal while a tall blonde woman is precariously perched atop the next table with 2 cameras and a hand held flash directing other customers and servers so no one walks or stands between her and her finny photographic subjects.  Bass Pro Shop is very similar to Cabella’s except that they seem to specialize more in fishing than hunting.  But, even at that, they still have a pretty impressive wildlife display… 



We wasted little time getting to the various parades that were going on in and around New Orleans in celebration of St. Paddy’s Day and my Bride soon found herself in possession of, not only beads, but a significant assortment of various veggies, bags of brown sugar, rice, Ramen, Moon Pies, paper flowers and stuffed animals… 

 

The sheer enormity of this collection was not without inherent perplexities in that there was a “sorting” process that was now required… 
  

Watching my Bride struggle with arranging hundreds of strands of beads by color, length and quality has long been my favorite part of any parade.  You are probably asking yourself about now, “What happened to all of that cabbage?”  This is a legitimate question.  We simply piled it up on the side of the road, along with potatoes, onions, carrots and garlic, and awaited the arrival of one of the trucks from the senior center to come by and collect it.  This simple action could go a long way toward explaining why we elder statesmen are often referred to as old “farts.”   Two of our girls flew in from California to join us in the St. Paddy festivities and soon found themselves besieged by men in kilts and tuxedos offering to trade flowers for kisses…

My traveling companion, a seasoned parade attendee, had little difficulty amassing a pretty impressive floral arrangement of her own.  The parade floats are another aspect of the various celebrations which are unique to this specific holiday… 

    

    

The girls soon discovered that attending various parades all day and French Quarter hot spots all night required something close to super human endurance.  The Bride and I, having paced ourselves the day/night before, quietly crept out and enjoyed a wonderful breakfast at Brennan’s while they recuperated…

 

I believe they would have been alright had they not decided to run off and party with a trio of leprechauns on Bourbon Street…

 

But St. Paddy’s Day is not just a time for mindless partying here in Nawlins.  The St. Baldrick’s Foundation sponsors events at several of the area watering holes to raise money for young cancer victims.  This particular spectacle was held at Parasol’s Pub in the Irish Channel and saw many of their patrons sign up, obtain sponsors and have their heads shaved toward this worthy end…

Each of the participants received complimentary cocktails and condoms for their donations and I assisted in distributing the latter…

At my age, I consider myself very lucky to have a full head of hair and I certainly don’t want God to think I am so ungrateful as to shave it off!   We participated by way of sponsoring a couple of the more daring souls…

I only wish I could be there when this guy gets home and has to explain to his wife how stopping by the neighborhood pub for a beer resulted in this.  But even freshly shaved he still has more hair than my brother-in-law!  A bit over $2,000 was raised for St. Baldrick at Parasol’s this year.   We somehow survived St. Pat’s and suddenly it was Easter!  And another holiday in New Orleans means…another round of PARADES!!!!!  This one, sponsored by Chris Owens, is probably the most spectacular…

But no trip to New Orleans would be complete without some mention of the tremendous food for which this part of the world is unparalleled.  This is about the only place that I ever eat seafood and the barbecue shrimp, prepared in a rich and spicy butter sauce, are at the top of the list…

Although a lot of people attempt eating this dish with a knife and fork, the best way is to simply dig in with both hands churning while allowing the sauce and shells to fall where they will!   This is definitely not a meal for the timid!   And a large tray of oysters, washed down with Abita Amber, is not a bad start or finish to any New Orleans meal… 

    

We’ll end this edition of the “Gobbling Geezers” with a promise to return soon for yet another assault on your patience and good humor.  Hugs until then,  Chuck and Kalyn