“Intergalactic Krewe of Chewbacchus featuring Wonder Women”
Diana started the week with a couple of things she doesn’t care for – early morning starts and cold weather. It was a bit cold on Monday morning before 8am when she headed out for pickleball.
Slow learner – she had pickleball again on Tuesday morning – this time not until 11am though. Diana met me for lunch at Juan’s Flying Burrito after pickleball. We snoozed until the meal was almost over before realizing that this was our official inspection prior to Tim’s visit in a few weeks, hence the almost empty plates and drinks – he really loves Juan’s.
I had walked over to lunch, Diana got dropped off, and so we walked to Aquila Bistro for an after lunch coffee.
We went home for a while, and then were off to “Craft Time” at Kara’s home, in preparation for the Intergalactic Krewe of Chewbacchus on Saturday night. Diana had done a good job on bracelets, and now they were going to make bandoliers. They used Jenga blocks and decorated them, with Velcro on one side. Apparently some of the nerdy types that attend this parade, wear Velcro sashes and stick their bandoliers on right away.
We left the ladies to their crafting and went over to Tuesday night trivia. There were only five of us : the Ogan twins, Kenny, Pepperoni and me.
An early round question was about an early movie star associated with horror movies who also wrote cookbooks. I flashed back to the Neighborhood Services restaurants in Dallas that played an old horror movie star reading recipes in the restroom. I was convinced it was Bela Lugosi and convinced the team to submit that answer. Wrong! Vincent Price – which I can completely hear now that I know. Ugh!
In the lead going into the final question, we needed to avoid our typically over confident betting regime. We all felt good that we were close enough on the 4 questions to get full points for the win. Here are the questions and the correct answers:
I had 36 as the correct answer. Other members of our five-top thought the answer should be a few points higher. I think we submitted 38. That was within the band and netted us first place, with a score of 109, I think one of our highest. Phlat Phil, our nemeses, came in 2 points behind.
You might not know this, but Tuesday was also penguin awareness day. BE AWARE!
Finn traveled to Honolulu, Hawaii this week. He and Holly went for a short vacation. Here are some pictures. Finn wanted to make sure he could go wherever he wanted, hence the Rubicon Jeep.
Wednesday began with the standard Diana yoga session (inside this time of year, and with no pre-run due to the “frigid conditions.”) After that Diana had a medical appointment, and so Kenny picked me up for lunch. He had suggested El Pavo Real. I had only been once before and enjoyed it. We both had enchiladas and they were delicious, with plenty of leftovers. We agreed that hats with “Make America Go Away” were not a good idea for the girls group traveling abroad to Europe over Mardi Gras. It’s good to feel accomplishment over a lunch.
Diana and I went to see David Torkanowsky (I believe the best living pianist in New Orleans, with Oscar Rossignoli a close second) on Thursday night. This was part of the weekly “Booker Sessions” at the Maple Leaf.
Such a great left hand:
David knows how to play to the crowd during Carnivale:
Speaking of Carnivale – here’s McD from 2 years ago on Mardi Gras day – one of my all time favourites.
McD had some leggings hemmed at Lulu Lemon (apparently a free service.) We picked those up and then I had planned to surprise Diana with a quick stop in the 21st Amendment (Repealing Prohibition) for some music and a drink.
Lulu Lemon was a tad too efficient and we were a bit early for the 21st Amendment. No worries, I see Felix’s Oyster house right ahead, and without a line out the door like Acme across the street. We had great service and a very nice experience in Felix’s. I loved my chargrilled half dozen and Diana thought her dozen on the half shell worked out well.
After oysters, the 21st Amendment was a treat. Big Joe Kennedy and brother entertaining from start to finish.
I had planned to watch Alex Honnold’s free climb of the Taipei 101 on Friday night. Rain caused this to be delayed until Saturday evening.
That’s a video that we saw well after the fact – it certainly makes me feel woozy.
In between, Frank stopped by with oysters, a jar that he had shucked and a bunch that he was happy to open up for Diana. She hasn’t had a personal in home oyster shucker before.
The Intergalactic Krewe of Chewbacchus rolled on Saturday evening. Kenny picked us up with the Ogan twins already loaded. We enjoyed pizza and drinks at Margot’s before walking over to the route. Diana always loves being sandwiched between the two young men.
We walked down St Claude to Franklin to find the Wonder Woman troupe. Mission accomplished:
Here’s a sample of the walking Krewes:
We bought tickets for “You Got Gold”, a movie about John Prine with a Q&A with his widow, Fiona, and got an update on Saturday that Fiona would not be able to make the Sunday show due to a family emergency – I suspect related to the massive winter storm.
This movie was outstanding but will have a limited audience – those that love the music of John Prine. I thought “Hello in There” and “Storm Windows” were excellent.
We’ve been watching the NFL playoff games and didn’t like any of the results. I think the SuperBowl will have light viewership this year. We got the final results after the John Prine movie and gave up…
Both of our teams lost. Oh well. On to the Super Bowl.
After the challenges last week, 3 books started and ditched, I found an ok, and I mean just “ok” book. I read “The Irish Goodbye” this week and enjoyed it all right. Especially after all those that I started and couldn’t’ finish. The online plot summary:
“It’s been years since the three Ryan sisters were all together at their beloved family home. Two decades ago, their lives were upended by a fatal accident on their brother Topher’s boat. Now the Ryan women are back and eager to reconnect, but each carries a heavy secret. The eldest, Cait, still holding guilt for the role no one knows she played in the boat accident, rekindles a flame with her high school crush. Middle sister Alice has been thrown a curveball that threatens the career she’s restarting and faces a difficult decision that may doom her marriage. And the youngest, Maggie, is finally taking the risk of bringing the woman she loves home to meet her devoutly Catholic mother.
When Cait invites a guest from their shared past to dinner, old tensions boil over and new truths surface, nearly overpowering the flickering light of their family bond. Far more than a family reunion will be ruined unless the sisters can find a way to forgive one another―and themselves.”
Here’s a nice little treat that I found this week. So many things to enjoy – the organ riff at the beginning, the brass section, and the New Orleans piano. All underpinning a great song featuring Anders. I didn’t check but I’m guessing he produced this album for Kara.
How about this version of John Lennon’s classic “Jealous Guy”? I heard the Bryan Ferry version recently and went looking for other covers.
This duet between piano and balafon really caught my attention. The balafon is one of a few diatonic instruments, meaning that it is designed to play notes from a set key or scale (usually a 7 note major or minor scale), rather than all 12 semitones of the chromatic scale available on the piano. Both are considered percussive instruments – notes made by striking a slat or string with a hammer.
Some more about the balafon: A balafon is a traditional West African percussion instrument similar to a xylophone, featuring wooden keys (slats) arranged over gourd resonators (calabashes) that amplify the sound, often with a buzzing membrane. Played with mallets, it’s an ancient instrument used in Griot traditions for storytelling, ceremonies, and celebrations, with roots in the Malian Empire and variations found across West Africa and beyond, even influencing instruments like the marimba.
Let’s finish with this enjoyable collaboration between New Orleans Naughty Professor, Jelly Joseph and Marcus King on guitar and backing vocals: