Mardi Gras Galveston...

You probably know by now that we like Mardi Gras. Mine and Cathy's second date was to the New Orleans Mardi Gras. I think we were on our first date and we are not sure who brought it up but some one mentioned they were going to Mardi Gras. Someone else said, "me too, let's go together." We have lost count of the Mardi Gras we have attended and through the years we just go the whatever is handy, New Orleans, Lake Charles, or Galveston. Although Fat Tuesday is more than a week away the parades are rolling and we have found the first weekend of Galveston to be uncrowded at the parade routes along the seawall and a perfect place to introduce granddaughter Parker to her first Mardi Gras. 

Parker and Ali display the Bead Baby necklace Cathy caught from a float. Cathy only whimpered a little bit when we made her give it up to the real baby. Parker wears ear protection to save her hearing from blaring tubas. Probably should have wore some sunscreen because even thought the Gulf was shrouded in fog UV rays reddened her little fair cheeks. 

I'll get up some tuba player photos to my facebook tuba player photo album shortly. It has turned into my life's master work, taking photos of tuba players. I did not notice the lexan mouthpiece when I snapped this. I have recently began using these which are made by the Kelly Company.  I like them better than brass and have one like this model this guy has which is patterned after the Hellborg mouthpiece used by John Phillips Sousa's tuba player. You can get most any color you like including sparkles. I discovered if you took pot luck on the color they were about half price. Mine is baby poo green. It's my second favorite, nothing on the color but I have one with a deep cup, clear that I favor.   

Cathy likes beads. Very therapeutic, going crazy grabbing beads which signify nothing at all. 

Cathy and Parker all serious about the next float coming. 

After I ripped my shirt out reaching for beads Cathy offered her shirt and she would just wear beads. It would have looked something like this. 

Mardi Gras in America dates to a small celebration held when French Explorers landed near New Orleans in 1699. It actually has pagan roots as a Spring Fertility festival dating back thousands of years. When Christianity came along it was easy to roll all that celebrating into a prelude to the Lenten customs of fasting and penance. Parades as we know them started up about 1837 in New Orleans and 1871 in Galveston. Mardi Gras in Galveston stalled out during the hard times of WW2 and only resumed in the mid 1980s. 

Hopefully you can enjoy your Mardi Gras as much as Parker did. As someone at church told me "Lent lasts a long damn time."