Monday, February 08, 2010
WHO DAT!?! HELUVA WEEKEND!!
Oh my God, the Saints won the superbowl!!
I'll tell you, there was emotion dripping in the air throughout New Orleans yesterday - as thick as the humidity in July: joy, fear, anticipation, love, optimism, glee, pride, bliss, enthusiasm, and of course apprehension, nervousness, and tension. Tension enough to make stomachs tight and throats, although eventually hoarse, very dry. Alcohol does help - not only w/the dry, but also w/the unrelenting tension.
To put this game into perspective: 2 other MAJOR events were taking place this weekend:
1. the mayoral election
2. the beginning of Mardi Gras
As a segue from my last post, it would seem appropriate that the city would be passionately enthusiastic in attempting to find a suitable successor to Mr Nagin - he's been the subject of MANY heated discussions with acres of stickers on legions of bumpers/back windshields depicting the specific date of his last day in office. The need to elect someone to office to accomplish the still critical work required to re-establishing the city after 4 years of relative ineptitude, is not a small charge.
But.....
Not when the Saints - the truly, incredibly beloved Saints - are in the Superbowl...
I have never heard as few election advertisements on the radio, which I listen to all day at work, as I encountered this season. (thank God - they're 99% BS anyway!) The Who Dat Nation was busy trying to "stand up and get crunk" - absorbing and simultaneously providing the passion that we share with, as well as receive, from our team. We, as the Who Dat Nation, along with the boys in black and gold, do not take our jobs lightly. But amazingly, the election was so dwarfed by the huge events taking place, that even people I am associated with who are oriented to arguing vociferously at the drop of a political hat, were somehow caught up in the thrill of potential, and then eventual victory.
As it turns out, the mayoral race was neatly tied up with no need for a run-off election with Mitch Landrieu, the favored candidate, winning in an outstanding tour de force. No racial divide - the first white mayor in over 30 years. People voted to have a man substantially connected get the job done.
Now one of the largest attractions to dear NOLA, and by far the biggest party of each year is, of course, Mardi Gras. The reaction to this annual event is generally staggering and after Katrina, there was a prospect that it would not roll which was construed as a potential national, cultural, calamity. When it did run, that first post-apocalyptical year, it was the symbolic, proverbial light at the end of the tunnel, which gave the city hope and a degree of faith that the city would indeed rebuild and rebound.
But that was not a Saints Superbowl year. And that was not a Saints Superbowl week. But THIS year IS indeed Superbowl year, and Mardi Gras has been largely eclipsed by a power that has promised the faithful an attraction which will create even greater goodwill for the city. And the faithful were provided for last night. The Saints and Colts were viewed by the largest audience ever on TV. The Who Dat Nation was expanded many fold (joined by a new large segment of Saints lovers across the land) and Mardi Gras paled this week in comparison. But New Orleanians, ever the finest party people of the land had devised a way to incorporate football and Mardi Gras. The winners will be heading the krewes/floats as they parade through the streets of the city. And although the fun and madness will visit the streets of New Orleans, the overwhelming joy of so many fans who waited 43 years for a superbowl trip (and unbelievably, victory!!) has been THE defining moment right here in the midst of Mardi Gras season. Grown men weeping all over the place?!?!?!
No, Carnival, as loved as it is, couldnt compete with the thrilling emotion the Saints provided this year. The Saints victory parade brought an estimated 1 million people in one day - the estimate for the entire 2009 season and those folks, by and large, and vastly unlike Mardi Gras, were essentially "local" - gulf coast people driven far and wide by the devastation of Katrina and now all brought together by the unselfish love of a team for it's fans.
Rumor has it that eleven people showed up to greet the Colts when they returned after losing the Superbowl. That never would have happened here!! The connection between the team and the people is real. Real love - real fun - real people!
