Mardi Gras 2014: Mor-pheus Frenzy Before the Parade

LOGO MEDALLIONS: THE CURE FOR BEAD AMNESIA

Picking Up My Morpheus Booty!

Picking Up My Morpheus Booty!

While my brother Jerry was visiting a couple of weeks ago, I dragged him along to play photo journalist during Morpheus ‘pick-up’ day at Plush Appeal. I’d decided to forego the $360 package, but still spent well over $200 piecing together logo novelties and extra plush throws. I could have gotten generic plush toys and beads for cheaper, but for me a lot of the fun is catching a specialty souvenir from each parade. It’s a ton of fun catching big and elaborate beads, and I still cherish the Saints beads I caught one year, but couldn’t tell you at which parade. Over time you forget even where the gargantuan beads came from, but a logo and date will bring a smile to your face and flush of memories every time. Still I’d saved money by ordering only 3 bags of the specialty Morpheus beads with blue and silver moons and stars, and no medallions were available for ala carte, which was a bummer.

LIKE A LITTLE PIRATE ON CHARRRRISTMAS EVE!

W/Kim Morgan: World's Greatest Float Lieutenant

W/Kim Morgan:
World’s Greatest Float Lieutenant

As I pulled up in front of Plush Appeal, I was as excited as a kid on Christmas Eve. There was already a large line snaking through the warehouse next door where distribution was occurring, though I hopped out of place to greet Kim, my awesome float lieutenant. As I waited for the krewe to piece together my order she instructed me to grab my hat from her silver SUV. I walked into the parking lot and looked around.  Every third car was a silver SUV! Doh! I’ve come to realize that that is sooo Kim.

2014-02-15 11.37.42After a little detective work I found the correct car and returned to find five heavy Morpheus bags and a giant Plush Appeal shopping bag waiting. And this was a modest package which I still needed to supplement! Yikes!

2014-02-15 11.41.06After I lugged my haul to the truck, Jerry and I wandered next door to the actual store, which he observed was [Read more…]

. . . Or Mor-pheus Fun To Shop For Your Mardi Gras Throws?!

KITSCH CRACK FOR A MARDI GRAS JUNKIE
Krewe Dat!

Krewe Dat!

Our January Morpheus meeting, like the October meeting mentioned previously, was held at Plush Appeal—a Mardi Gras warehouse that supplies the costumes and throws for Morpheus and other krewes. Imagine those corner party stores that have a tiny section for every holiday imaginable but come to life for Halloween, only expanded to the size of a warehouse and dedicated solely to all things Mardi Gras. Yikes! A Mardi Gras junkie like me could go broke here in a hurry. No wonder riders spend thousands of dollars every year on throws. There are beads of every theme imaginable, stuffed toys, plastic instruments and novelties, decorative eye glasses, hats, masks, cups, goblets, light-up and bouncy balls, Saints cowbells, LSU plush footballs, Frisbees, whistles, penis whistles, boobs in any form that can accommodate two mounds, signs, decorations, and anything else you can imagine in a Mardi Gras theme.

While it’s a blast making your own throws, I must admit that I’m a sucker for the plush and plastic kitsch that flows like Abita Springs during Carnival. Any other time of year I’d decry such mass-produced Chinese trinkets as [Read more…]