Wednesday, February 25, 2009 By ROY HOFFMAN, VIRGINIA BRIDGES, CONNIE BAGGETT and JILLIAN KRAMER Staff Reporters
As the first drums sounded along the parade route Tuesday morning, and masked riders appeared, the Carnival crowd knew Fat Tuesday 2009 was under way.
Misty Davis, of Chatom, held her purple umbrella fashioned with a purple boa. Snowbirds Rocky and Barbara Rockwell, of Rochester, N.Y., wore funny hats they had purchased in town. Kathy Smith, from Chunchula, rocked granddaughter Rachel, 16 months, in her arms to the beat of the music.
Some were first-timers, like the Rockwells, who had traveled to Mobile just to experience Mardi Gras because "it originated in Mobile." Others, like Kasie Irby and her circle of family and friends, were reliving a yearly ritual, having parked their truck near Bienville Square on Monday night and set up chairs for all-day revelry.
"I want to catch some beads for my Daddy," said Reanna Vlasic, 5, whose mom, Donna Vlasic, had traveled with Reanna and other family from Baker, Fla., for the event.
"We just say it's for the kids," said Reanna's aunt, Jaclyn, laughing.
On the other side of Mobile Bay, at the Gulf Shores and Orange Beach parades, locals, tourists and snowbirds came together in search of revelry, big beads, and chocolate and peanut butter Moon Pies.
Apparently, snowbirds have had little trouble figuring out how to earn Mardi Gras loot. Some stood up front yelling that they were "Mardi Gras virgins," while others stood behind the crowd flaunting their undergarments, worn over their clothes.
And as Mobile's frenzied reveling rose to a crescendo with the sun setting in the west, streets around downtown filled with traffic as latecomers searched for parking in a city already gridlocked with merriment.
Hundreds have apparently adopted the parking theory "they can't tow all of us" as streets jammed with parked cars even as the Order of Myths began the closing act of Mardi Gras 2009.
True to form, there was Folly chasing Death around the broken column of life, and a string of floats following a regal theme for their 142nd annual parade: "Of Kings and Emperors."
Even in the hysteria of flying candy and toys, there was chivalry. A group of teens that had racked up on throws turned to a mother with a small child in a stroller and loaded the youngster up with Moon Pies and trinkets as the grateful woman thanked them.
Parade highlights
Weather: As Deborah DeGuire, owner of A&M Peanut Shop on Dauphin Street said while serving customers in her jam-packed store at noon, "So far, so good. The weather is perfect!" In the morning, shortly before 11, when Athena reached Bienville Square, the temperature on the sign on Regions Bank at the corner read 56 degrees. When the Knights of Revelry were there, about 1 o'clock, it was 63 degrees. Clear, pleasant, blue-skied during the day, the weather seemed made for Fat Tuesday revelry. In the evening, the weather was cool and clear, with a temperature in the middle 50s by the time the floats rolled.
Gulf Shores/Orange Beach - Conditions here were chilly when revelers started to line the parade route Tuesday morning, but many shed their jackets after standing in the warm sun. When the Gulf Shores parade started at 10 a.m., it was about 54 degrees, but by the 1:30 p.m. Orange Beach procession, the temperature had jumped nearly 10 degrees, according to the National Weather Service.
Best float: Athena - The theme of "An Affair to Remember" was beautifully played out in famous couples, real and imagined. The older generation enjoyed the float dedicated to that cowboy couple of yesteryear, Roy Rogers and Dale Evans. The kids, and oldsters, too, thrilled to Mickey and Minnie.
KOR - "Got Milk," as a theme, made for a delectable cavalcade. Tony the Tiger, on the front of "Frosted Flakes," was bold and colorful; Snap, Crackle and Pop were hard to resist on the sides of "Rice Krispies." Also by popular acclaim, Ivan's Edifices had plenty of color and sparkle.
Gulf Shores/Orange Beach - The Gulf Shores emblem float, decorated like a cabana bar that landed in Mardi Gras, set the beach tone for the many fish, pirate and other nautical floats that followed. Orange Beach's first significant float, a Marlin with the banner "Hooked on Orange Beach," also set an impressive tone for that parade.
Best Marching Band: KOR - Jackson-Olin High School from Birmingham came south to show their Mobile counterparts they could blow the house down, and they did. The most stirring sounds came from the bagpipes of the Virginia Military Institute band, as they marched with beautiful precision in advance of the MCA King Felix III parade.
OOM - Selma High, for high-spirited dancing for most of the route.
Gulf Shores/Orange Beach - Gulf Shores High School rocked the streets during both parades.
Best Truck Band: Athena - The Bay Blasters, knocking out "Old Time Rock and Roll."
Gulf Shores/Orange Beach - Adam Holt. Nothing fancy, just good music.
Stingy or Generous: Athena - Fat Tuesday's first mystic society to roll put everybody in a happy mood with their plentiful throws.
KOR - These guys poured out the treats, with a good number of stuffed animals as part of the bounty.
OOM - Throws were generous, with revelers barely able to carry their bountiful booty home without resorting to bags.
Gulf Shores/Orange Beach - Gener ous. Plenty of stuffed animals, beads and other useless stuff for everyone.
Best Throw: Athena - The beautiful, sought-after beads with the OOA emblem on them, of who else but golden Athena.
KOR - Small cereal boxes from the cereal-themed floats seem like a good idea, in fact, an edible and healthy idea, too, at least to those who can only down so many Moon Pies.
OOM - A plush football was highly prized by those along the barricades. The strangest throw was a set of car keys, which could explain at least one of the hundreds of cars abandoned along the streets of Mobile.
Gulf Shores/Orange Beach - A small, pink stuffed shrimp with a Mardi Gras hat. It sounds pretty simple, but it inspired a heck of a celebration scream when Kattie Ksiazek, 27, of Foley caught it.
Best Little-Seen Umbrella Dance: On Government Street, on a stretch of grass near Royal, Heather Covert from Theodore watched her children, nieces and nephews spinning umbrellas and marching back and forth while waiting on parades as her little son, Preston, blasted his toy horn.
Best Tourist Use of Loot After Mar di Gras: One Pennsylvania woman said she wasn't going to bother buying souvenirs; she would just bring everyone beads and stuffed animals.
Most Appropriate Mardi Gras Beach Parade Costume: How could anyone go wrong with the long T-shirt that sports a svelte body in a two-piece bikini for the women and a buff body in a Speedo for the men?
Best Multi-Tasking Mom: Skating with the Mobile Roller Derby women, leading off the Order of Athena parade, was Robin Martin, wearing a vest emblazoned with her game name: "Southern Belle From Hell." After the parade, Martin referred to herself as a "stay-at-home mom," as she and her husband, Chris, watched over their two kids, Madison, 6, and Zephyn, 19 months.
