When we lived in New Orleans, I learned that Carnival is more than just a couple of weeks of parades. The season actually begins on Twelfth Night with the small parade thrown by the Phunny Phorty Phellows. The season runs all the way until Mardi Gras or Fat Tuesday. While Twelfth Night is always on January 6, and Mardi Gras is always on the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday, the actual date of that Fat Tuesday changes. It’s based on the date of Easter, which is the first Sunday after the first full moon after the Spring Equinox – a date ranging from 22 March to 25 April. This means that Mardi Gras falls between 3 February and 9 March, which means that Carnival can be as few as 28 days or as many as 62 days. (Clear as mud?)
I tell you all of this because I think that the giant pity party I just threw was kind of a Reverse Carnival – Lavinrac. I’d say that it easily lasted 28 days; however, it didn’t go on as long as 62 days.
Mardi Gras is a period of Big Time Celebrations, followed by Lent – a period of Big Time Introspective Repentance. Mine was backwards. My Carnival was dark, morose, introspective – more buzz kill than party. If we’d had parades, cries of, “Throw me something, mister!” would have resulted in showers of prozac, wellbutrin, and cymbalta rather than doubloons, beads and plastic dog poop. Happily, I seem to have reached my equivalent of Ash Wednesday, ending the Morticia Addams themed holiday.
Thank goodness.
Now, where’s that King Cake?
The Daily Doty 
Jon Anne,
Whatever else you may have aspired to become with varying degrees of success; there is no doubt that you are a writer and a very good one. Some of us who are fairly articulate and able to string a few words or sentences together are unfortunately, from a real writers’ perspective just too fat (excuse my slipping that adjective in), dumb and happy and lacking in internal demons to be motivated, indeed driven, to get our thoughts down. Just a thought, which you probably have already considered and rejected for any number of reasons; but, perhaps you need to find some fairly mindless job to keep body and soul together that will also allow you the time to pursue the really important work of writing.
Exploit those internal demons!
Thanks, Sam. I wish it were easier; but, I suspect that the rain in my soul waters the flowers of my imagination. I appreciate your encouragement.
Sam, I have tried for years to get her to write a book with Southern Humor. Not only does she have a brillant mind, she is a wordsmith. Such a joy to read.
Some people want to be the person their dog already believes they are. I want to be the one you already believe I am. I love you.