Laissez Les Bon Temps Rouler

Some Wild And Crazy Guys!

It was wet ............

It was cold .................

It was FUN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thanks to all leaders who drove, cooked, and herded Scouts all weekend.... Thanks to you; we had a safe and enjoyable Mardi Gras 2008!

What To Pack and Other Information

What To Bring:

Dinner for Friday Night.

CASH and extra cash to buy supper Saturday at/after the parades... there are junk vendors walking the parade route if you plan on buying from them bring money for it do not spend your food money on this junk I don't want you hungry!

Sleeping Bags and/or linens for beds

Towels if you plan on taking a shower etc... tolietries (toothpaste/brush/soap/shampoo etc)....

Snacks if you want them.....

Backpack/bookbag(please make these the old worn out ones you don't mind messing up... (beads can get rather NASTY (esp when wet)) to hold 'loot' during parades.

LADIES/MOMS............Do NOT carry a purse to the parades, get a fanny pack or book bag.

Do NOT take anything to the parades you don't mind losing or having walk off we are not there to watch your stuff and there are alot of folks wandering around!

STAY TOGETHER this is after all New Orleans (we are in the safer parts of the city but......) Buddy system is REQUIRED and do not wander out of site and hollering range of the tailgate site.... I want to be able to count heads at all times......

If I forgot anything please let me know so I can add it to the blog thanks!

Newest Weather Forecast From Weather Channel... BRING RAIN GEAR.....

Friday January 25
Scattered T-Storms
60° High / 50° Low
40% Chance of Storms
Saturday January 26
Showers
69° High / 53° Low
40% Chance of Showers
Sunday January 27
Few Showers
68° High / 52° Low
30% Chance of Showers

Let It Snow

We woke up at 7:30 am to a winter wonderland here in Vtown today

We collected some snow and enjoyed SNOW ICE CREAM tonight... This brings back alot of memories for me of being a little girl at my grandmothers! Here is a recipe for you to enjoy next time you encounter the white stuff!

Snow Ice Cream
Recipe courtesy Paula Deen

8 cups snow, or shaved ice (we had maybe around 2 of 3 cups of icy snow to use)

1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk (I substituted 2% milk and splenda)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Place snow or shaved ice into a large bowl.

Pour condensed milk over and add vanilla.

Mix to combine.

Serve immediately in bowls.

Snow facts

Did you know that no two snow flakes are the same... Each has an unique design (Just like you; you are unique too). check out the photos of actual magnified snowflakes at this cool website. http://www.its.caltech.edu/~atomic/snowcrystals/

Each year an average of 105 snow-producing storms affect the continental United States. A typical storm will have a snow-producing lifetime of two to five days and will bring snow to portions of several states.

Practically every location in the United States has seen snowfall. Even most portions of southern Florida have seen a few snow flurries

Based on National Weather Service records for 1961 through 1990, Rochester, New York averages 94 inches of snow annually and is the snowiest large city in the United States.



I hope you all enjoyed our brief and elusive visitor from the arctic today it is a rarity in the south.

Updated Mardi Gras Weekend Forecast

Friday January 25
Few Showers 30%
56° high
56° low
Saturday January 26
Showers 60%
55°high
48° low
Sunday January 27
AM Clouds / PM Sun 10%
60° high
50° low

Why We Eat Pancakes On Fat Tuesday

The reason that pancakes are associated with the day preceding Lent is that the 40 days of Lent form a period of liturgical fasting, during which only the plainest foodstuffs may be eaten. Therefore, rich ingredients such as eggs, milk, and sugar are disposed of immediately prior to the commencement of the fast. Pancakes and doughnuts were therefore an efficient way of using up these perishable goods, besides providing a minor celebratory feast prior to the fast itself.

Origins
Pancake Day, or Shrove Tuesday, is the traditional feast day before the start of Lent on Ash Wednesday. Lent - the 40 days leading up to Easter - was traditionally a time of fasting and on Shrove Tuesday Christians went to confession and were "shriven" (absolved from their sins). It was the last opportunity to use eggs and fats before embarking on the Lenten fast and pancakes are the perfect way of using up these ingredients.
Pancake tradition
The pancake has a very long history and featured in cookbooks as far back as 1439
A thin, flat cake, made of batter and baked on a griddle or fried in a pan, the pancake has a very long history and featured in cookbooks as far back as 1439. The tradition of tossing or flipping them is almost as old: "And every man and maide doe take their turne, And tosse their Pancakes up for feare they burne." (Pasquil's Palin, 1619).

The ingredients for pancakes can be seen to symbolise four points of significance at this time of year:

Eggs ~ Creation

Flour ~ The staff of life

Salt ~ Wholesomeness

Milk ~ Purity

Basic Pancake or Crêpe Batter Recipe

1 cup all purpose flour

4 large eggs

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup water

pinch of salt

For frying

1 tbsp corn oil

1 tbsp melted butter

Sift the flour into a mixing bowl

add pinch of salt

beat the eggs lightly

add to the flour and mix well in

leave to rest for at least 1 hour or even overnight

heat all the oil and butter in a small frying pan

pour it into a cup and keep aside

with a ladle add a little of the batter to make a thin pancake

fry one side until it turns slightly brown then turn and do the same on the other side

brushing the pan after each pancake with the oil mixture

keep pancakes warm while making the rest

will make approx 10-14 pancakes

serve with freshly squeezed lemon juice and a dusting of sugar.

"It is good to have an end to journey toward; but it is the journey that matters, in the end."

-- Ursula K. LeGuin

BRING RAIN GEAR

Bring your long johns and rain gear on the Mardi Gras trip

Friday night looks like a 60 % chance of rain!

I will post a full forecast for the weekend as soon as I can get one from the weather channel

Les Laissez Bon Temps Rouler Itinerary

Mardi Gras 2008 Trip

Friday January 25
4:00 Leave Vicksburg
8:00 Arrive in Mandeville, see Eve Parade
11:00 Check-in at Tickfaw

Saturday January 26
9:00 Breakfast
10:00 Leave for New Orleans
11:30 Park near Napoleon and St. Charles
1:00 Ponchatrain Parade Starts (should be at
Napoleon and St. Charles by 2:00)
2:00 Shangra-La parade Starts (Follows Ponchatrain)
Between parades setup and cook hotdogs for lunch in neutral ground.
6:00 Sparta parade starts Ceaser Starts in Metarie
8:00 Leave downtown and travel to Metarie for Ceaser Parade
11:00 Return to Tickfaw EAT Dinner somewhere before leaving Metarie/Kenner

Sunday February 25
8:00 Breakfast
11:00 Leave for Vicksburg

What To Bring: Dinner for Friday Night, extra cash to buy supper Saturday at the parades, Sleeping Bags. Backpack/bookbag to hold 'loot' during parades. Do not carry a purse to the parades, get a fanny pack or book bag.

Cost: At Tickfaw State Park we will be staying in Cabins 7, 8, 9 (8 beds per cabin with bathroom in each cabin). The cost is $90/night ($540).

Meals:
Breakfast on Saturday and Sunday will be provided. Saturday Lunch will be provided.
Friday Supper and Saturday Supper will be at a restaurant.

Thought For The Day

Thinking makes progress from one place to another; worry remains static. The problem of life is to change worry into thinking and anxiety into creative action.

Harold B. Walker

How To Catch The Good Stuff

How to Catch a Lot:
Passive parade-watching has gone the way of the dinosaur: Your enjoyment of Carnival can be assessed by how much you catch from passing floats (or balconies in the French Quarter). We've gathered these tried-and-true tips for enlarging your haul from diehard parade-watchers - and catchers.
First, the basics:
DON'T ever bend over to pick up a doubloon or strand of beads. You'll get your head stomped.
DO quickly place your foot firmly on a doubloon or bead. Then, after the float passes by and things calm down, you can reach down and free the loot from underfoot.
DON'T throw things at float riders. This is really ugly behavior, and Miss Manners, for one, would be most displeased by such a crass and uncaring attitude.
DO hang on with a vengeance if you jointly catch a string of beads with the person standing next to you. Most catchers will break the strand of beads before letting the other person have it. Unless, of course, it's a nun or a Marine.
DON'T beg float riders to throw you something when the float is stopped. They're not supposed to, and begging is so declasse, don't you think?
DO make friends with people who live on parade routes and might open a bathroom to you.
DON'T chase a float for two blocks down the street. You might be the next person knocked down by the thundering horde desperate for that strand of pearls held aloft.
Catching Throws: Advanced Lesson:
Tips for enticing riders to cast their loot your way
Showing your anatomy is becoming a little passe (though it still seems to work). Other ploys that have worked for us:
Yell "Throw me something, Mister!" (Or, "Throw me something, Lady!" at female riders). This is the mainstay of the paradegoer's lexicon, learned by New Orleans' babies at their parents' knees. Join in, with gusto.
Use a bullhorn to yell "Throw me something, Mister!" People really do this. We're not kidding.
Make eye contact with a rider. This is basic and a must, but doesn't always work. Making eye contact and looking sad helps.
Carry a fish net or upside-down umbrella to snag everything around. Can make you unpopular with the crowd, especially when you stick it in someone's eye.
Wear tacky headwear, or a cap with an out-of-town insignia on it.
Hold aloft a giant sign with someone's name on it (even better if you actually know a "John" or "Sue" who will be on board).
Hold aloft a sign that says "We came all the way from Australia," even though you're from Houston. The more exotic the location, the better.
Point to the cute kid next to you like you only want to give her whatever you catch (hah!).
Bag your loot as you catch it. Many riders won't throw to someone whose neck bulges with fancy long beads.
Put a friend on your shoulders. Works best if your friend is smaller than you. And neither of you is drunk.
Get a ladder - this one has become an entire local industry in itself. Newly popular in recent years are folding footstools for adults.

Mardi Gras Trip 08

Leave Vicksburg Friday January 25
Arrive back in Vicksburg Sunday January 27

We need a head count no later than our meeting time on January 07 (for reservation purposes)

If you are not going to be at the meeting Monday please PLEASE let Mr Mike or Mrs Sherri know ASAP if you are going...

Laissez Les Bon Temps Rouler