Judging the Greasing of the Poles

Last year, I was asked to be a “Celebrity Pole Greaser” at the Royal Sonesta’s 43rd Greasing of the Poles to kick off Carnival weekend. The person who recommended me to the Sonesta was a fan of this blog and a member of the Pussyfooters – who performed with me that day. While we were lining up to go out to the crowd, another Pussyfooter suggested I should join their group. I’ve loved watching them since my first full Mardi Gras season in 2010. Just seeing their pink power dancing my way made me smile and made me proud of my own brand of pink-corset-and-combat-boots femininity.  

Greasing of the Poles

For over 3 years, this blog has mostly been a long love letter to New Orleans as I move from longtime visitor to citizen of the Who Dat Nation and part of the gumbo of this city. I’ve attended concerts, parades, festivals and more and shared the events with you readers. But when I participated in the Royal Sonesta‘s 43rd annual Greasing of the Poles, like Alice Through the Looking Glass, I stepped into the story.  In order to keep revelers off the balcony during Mardi Gras, the Sonesta greases the poles on Bourbon Street with a celebrity-studded event and contest with fans spanning from locals on balconies dressed in wigs and costumes to the Greasing of the Poles Fan Club from Germany.

Krewe of Morpheus

Founded in 2000 and named for the god of dreams, Krewe of Morpheus is a quickly growing co-ed krewe that caps the 3 parade Friday night extravaganza like a climactic burst of fireworks. The theme this year was, “Morpheus Sings a Tune,” and featured floats of Elton John, Elvis and Michael Jackson among others. Membership is open and the 500 or so members get together several times throughout the year for social gatherings and fundraisers.

Throw me somethin’ mister!

Been too busy parading to write about parades, but it’s Lundi Gras (AKA Shrove Monday for you practicing Catholics) so there aren’t any parades until after 5 pm.

The city wide love fest continued through last week. People are still pinching themselves over the Super Bowl victory and, though “Who Dat” is still a legitimate greeting, we’ve added new answer backs.  “We Dat!” and “Believe Dat!” are the most popular.