Happy Mardi Gras!

Or: Down, But Not Out

The first part of this week was already going to be hectic for me, but I fell ill Friday on top of everything. I'm better, but have a weekend's worth of chores and errands to catch up on, and, if my improved health holds up, a Mardi Gras parade ride to do Tuesday.

That opportunity comes courtesy of a relative who is a member of one of the krewes that put on the parades. That will have me busy from the wee hours until the end of that parade Tuesday. And then there's a ball, which my wife is looking forward to.

While I am happy to learn even more about this new-to-me local holiday, and am grateful for the chance to participate in this way, I can't help but remember a parting comment I wrote comparing Christmas to Mardi Gras:

I forgot to mention in my analogy to Christmas, the lack of social pressure to stress out with gift-purchasing (along with outdoing the neighbors on decor). That's a great feature, so far, although I am not so sure the members of the Krewes -- the folks who plan all the parades, balls, and social gatherings -- share that luxury.

It is astounding how much time and effort go into these festivities -- as one can say about almost any field of endeavor one hasn't given much thought about in the past. I'll enjoy tomorrow, but would I want to do something like that every year? I have no idea, but lean to no as I am pretty introverted.

But the beauty is that there is no pressure to do anything, as far as I can tell. It's up to everyone to take it as far as they want or to leave it altogether, aside from the matter of joining a krewe, which I understand, can be an inscrutable process.

As I also said then:

I'm more than happy to have a new reminder to celebrate being alive, and I hope this holiday long outlives the unhappy circumstances of its birth.

Happy Mardi Gras, and I'll be back here Wednesday.

-- CAV