• After two weeks of pre-Mardi Gras activities, I...

After two weeks of pre-Mardi Gras activities, I don’t understand why the rest of the country doesn’t celebrate this holiday they way people from Louisiana do. While the rest of the country gets to participate in time-hallowed winter activities like depression and giving up on new year’s resolutions, people from Louisiana begin celebrating for an event that isn’t going to happen until February 21st.

That means that for almost 40 days there is something going on, every weekend, in relation to Mardi Gras; a holiday meant to compensate for a presumed 40-day period of prayer, repentance, almsgiving and self-denial.

Here are a few photographs from two children’s parades and a tableau, which is essentially an extravagant ball for a Mardi Gras “Krewe,” or organization that sponsors a parade together. As the weeks move on, I expect things to get slightly less “family friendly” as people are killed by floats or maimed by flying beads.