Northside Skull & Bones Gang Waking Up Treme
Hello Everyone! It’s been a busy week of celebrating Mardi Gras here in Washington with plenty of eating, drinking, music and good times. It was a great weekend to stay in and let the good times roll since it was so cold and windy and icy out. Mardi Gras has definitely been the name of our game this week, but I’ve still been hanging out with Mason and we continue to spend time outside despite the cold weather. His parents have bought a house, which everyone is very excited about, and while that would definitely qualify as the best news of the week, my folks also got their second vaccine shot this week which comes in a very close second.
The weather has been the big topic of conversation this week, as snowstorms have dumped their loads across the country. We haven’t seen our share yet, but it’s supposed to hit overnight tonight and leave us with 6 inches covered by a layer of ice. We’ll see what comes, but we’re ready for it whatever does. We got a shipment of firewood in today, we’re stocked up on salt for the sidewalks, our shovels are at the ready and Mason has a brand new sled to enjoy it with. In contrast to what’s supposedly coming, today has been an absolutely brilliant day out, despite the cold, so at least we got a little sunshine to lift our spirits.
Mason and I have been on a woodpecker kick this week as there have been a few flying around Whitehaven Park near his house. We will wait and listen for them and then try and follow the sound and spot them. We’ve only managed to see one this week, but I think it’s an interesting experience for him. He has wonderfully perceptive hearing and will often hear ambulances and helicopters at quite a distance, and that has helped in our woodpecker quest. We have also found some wonderful groves of mushrooms this week due to all of the moisture which we’ve both really gotten a kick out of. The buds are starting to blossom on some of the trees and we spotted some cherry blossoms pushing their way out today which was really special. We’ve started talking about his new house, which he’s excited about. I’m thrilled there are some good parks nearby for us to explore and am looking forward to a change of scenery myself. His sentences are getting longer and more complete and he’s a really neat little kid to spend time with. It has its challenges sometimes, but he’s a wonderful little companion and I enjoy our adventures together as much as he does.
This past Friday, we kicked off our Mardi Gras weekend with Happy Hour in the basement. There was music, a variety of Abita beer, and a fun game of dominoes. Then we moved our celebration back to the living room so we could enjoy the fireplace and shifted our theme to the Lunar New Year. I cooked up some longevity noodles and some spring rolls and then we played a few rounds of the board game Lattice Hawaii. It was a nice evening as usual, and a great end to the week.
Saturday morning we started the day with some freshly baked bagels made by my stepfather and delicious lox and cream cheese. We tied it into the weekend with some Cajun bloody marys and started the day off right. In the afternoon, I braved the ice storm to go to New Orleans Live Crawfish and Seafood in Falls Church for 5 pounds of delicious fresh-boiled crawfish. We ate the whole lot of them with corn and sausage and washed it all down with a few cold beers.
We continued our celebration on Sunday with a Mardi Gras breakfast quiche and mimosas and in the evening cooked up a wonderful catfish courtbouillon and some Valentine’s Day cupcakes for dessert. Monday was President’s Day, so Mason’s parents were home and so was I, so I made some beautiful, scratch-made buttermilk biscuits and some oyster omelets to go with them. We took a break in the celebration to go down to Howard University and get my folks their second vaccine shot. It was very quick and painless, and we’re all grateful to everyone who made it possible. While I don’t want to get Covid at all and will be very happy when I get my vaccines, my biggest fear has been catching it and passing it along to the oldies, so this is a huge relief for us all. To celebrate, we cooked up a fantastic shrimp etoufee and played some more games.
On Mardi Gras day I spent the morning with Mason chasing woodpeckers and smashing ice, then came home to cook up a big pot of gumbo and another of jambalaya. Mason and his parents came over after work to celebrate with us which was really great. Mardi Gras is definitely one of those holidays that doesn’t get enough attention in many parts of the country (although there’s always somebody celebrating, no matter where you find yourself), so I want to share my love for it with everyone I can. It’s always been a reminder to me that life is to be celebrated whenever possible. I’m including some photos from my last couple of years at Mardi Gras with this post, but you can see more photos from years past here, here and here.
Today, Mason and I were both pretty tired from all the excitement last night so we spent a lot of the morning building a blanket and pillow fort in the living room big enough for both of us (and a couple of big trucks as well). We read some of his new books and played some tag before going outside for a little while to get some fresh air and enjoy the sunshine while it lasted. We didn’t go far today, but as I mentioned earlier it was great to see some cherry blossoms starting to bloom. Then I came home to some leftover jambalaya and a nice long nap. When I’m done writing this post, I’m looking forward to some home-cooked pizza and a quiet night. We’re expecting the snow to start around 4 a.m. tomorrow and go through much of the day.
Tomorrow we will have our weekly Dinner and a Movie night and I think we’re going to watch the classic horseracing film Seabiscuit. I have no plans for this weekend, but it will definitely be quieter than last weekend. I want to get my room cleaned up, order some more things for my van and hopefully do some writing as well. Other than that, we’re in the downhill race towards March and springtime. I hope y’all are keeping safe and warm out there wherever you are. I really appreciate you still reading these posts and I’m still hoping to take this project back on the road by Memorial Day Weekend. Then we’ll have some real fun! Have a great week and we’ll see you right back here, same time next week.
-Mike