Mardi Gras Fail: When Things Don't Go as Planned

When you’re traveling by the seat of your pants — as our campground neighbor from Ontario called it — you’re in for curve balls.

This photo of Lake Palourde, Louisiana best captures the essence of our recent moods

We were driving on a dark, dirt road alongside a levee in the middle of nowhere when we finally got to Lake Fausse Pointe State Park, about three hours west of New Orleans.

“How can I help y’all?” said the gal at the check-in window. We couldn’t believe the office was still open at 8pm.

“We’re looking for a tent site for the night, please,” Chris and I said.

“Sure, just one night? Y’all leaving Monday? I meant Sunday — I keep thinking today’s Sunday.”

“We keep thinking it’s Friday, so between us we have the right day! [She chuckles appreciatively.] Yes, just one night, leaving Sunday.”

“Oh shoot. It’s Saturday. We’re full Saturday. Tonight.”

Noooooo! It was the first time we’d hit a full campground. Then, we thought about it: it’s a three-day weekend…before Mardi Gras…in Louisiana. Of course it was full! We were at least an hour away from civilization, let alone any other parks. We made the trek back to the interstate and booked a motel.

The next day, we came to a realization: we’ll be in New Orleans during Mardi Gras. We hadn’t planned it, but we had a campsite just 20 minutes outside the city.

How exciting!

Actually, how frustrating. Festive and interesting…

A cute little home gets in the spirit

Beads galore!

Not sure how we feel about this float

Holly flashed her teats and I got the spoils — just kidding, this is a daytime, family parade, people!

…but frustrating. Because we kept wanting to visit different places, only to be thwarted by Mardi Gras festivities.

I suppose it would have been OK if we had more than just a couple days. (Have we mentioned we’re on a timeline to make it to Gainesville, Florida next week?) We even thought about leaving and then coming back a few days later, but our schedule — and already-paid-for campsite — begged to differ.

We could have also just embraced the debauchery by buying pasties and doing shots. But Chris and I don’t like debauchery; we like charming walks through the city and beignets.

Nearly thwarted as well: we drove out of town to Metarie for these after seeing lines around the block in Jackson Square

I couldn’t help but hear my friend Caroline’s voice in my head, telling me to stop being such a hater and to get in the spirit.

But what was funny was we’d also just had a Skype date with our friends Ben and Dee who made a point to warn us about spring break while we’re in Florida. Because the crowds can really ruin your fun.

Restaurants we wanted to try: closed. Neighborhoods we wanted to visit: congested. And to top it off, weather while we were camping: freezing.

Left out to dry at night, we awoke to frozen cookware

OK, but here’s where we take a deep breath, quit bitching, and show some gratitude that we were at Mardi Gras instead of slaving away in cubicles. Perspective.

So while it was frustrating — we are both Js, after all, challenging ourselves to find our inner Ps — we still managed to have a good time. And I’m cringing as I type this, because this is so beyond #firstworldproblems. It’s is a whole new level: #nomadproblems. Which are not really problems at all — just different experiences, some more fun and some less.

(Although we are researching a real #nomadproblem: where to pay taxes when you technically aren’t domiciled in any state. We’ll report back on this later.)

Chris and I were talking over dinner tonight and we asked each other, “So, what is the lesson here?” When living a nomadic life, it’s best to remain open to possibility and loosen up, but it’s also important to do a little planning.

Another friend of mine, Erin, told me before we left that we’re going to have fun because we’ve decided we’re going to have fun. So we’ll quit whining now and have decided to go back to having fun.