Bourbon Street Stories

As I wrote over at Pobble Thoughts, Mardi Gras on Bourbon Street was a little insane. However, it is possible to get beads while walking down the street other nights of Carnival. Okay, I suppose it's possible to get them on Mardi Gras, too, but dear Lord, I didn't try.Perhaps the fact that I was sober had something to do with it, but I think, more likely, it had more to do with the fact that I am me. Cheering at a parade is one thing. Bead begging on Bourbon is another. Mostly, I made eye contact with people up on the balconies, they smiled, and threw me beads. But a few other times, the story was a little more interesting. Here are the stories I liked best...


1. There was a masked woman who was trying to throw to me. The first time, someone else caught them (I'm short). The second time, they went behind me and by the time I thought to turn around and pick them up, someone else had them. I held up my finger to say "one more time." She repeated the motion and threw very carefully. I caught them and blew her kisses. By the time I had looked back up from putting them around my neck, she was gone.

2. A woman wanted me to throw her a set of my beads first, only I couldn't get one untangled in a timely fashion. I shrugged and assured her I was sorry and moved on. Only behind me, she was throwing beads to Lithus anyway. Once he caught back up with me, we untangled one of my beads and went back. She couldn't believe we'd come back to pay our debt, so to speak. Biggest sober grin I saw all night.

3. A set of really good beads landed right in front of me, so I picked them up. But I could tell by that they had been meant for the woman ahead of me. I doubled checked with the guy on the balcony who had thrown them and, yes, they had been meant for her. So, I gave them to her. The guy on the balcony threw me a set of even better beads "for being so cool."

4. A man on a balcony had a huge armful of beads and was trying to get people to do crazy things for them. I held my arms out, to tell him I wanted some. He aped the position as if to say "what will you do for them?" I blew him kisses. Laughing, he threw me beads. Not as many as if I had gone crazy, but beads nonetheless.

5. My favorite ~ We were getting near the end of the street, the craziness was dying down a bit, when we noticed a group of college-aged guys on a balcony, and they noticed us, noticing them. One yelled down "Show us your tits!" To which I yelled back, "Oh, baby, you don't want to see these tits. They are 42 years old!" They all laughed so hard and threw me two sets of their best beads. For not showing my tits. :)
*note ~ the man far closer to my age down on the street with us said "I'd like to see them" which, I admit, was nice in a drunken, Mardi Gras kind of way. But no, I didn't.