Red Dress Run '11

Where else (besides maybe San Fran) do men dress in drag by the thousands? Only in New Orleans. Gay, straight, transgender, whatever...doesn't matter. People gather by the thousands to walk the streets in a red dress. It's become international.

Why, you might ask? Well, if you actually pay the $60 or $70 bucks to register yourself then congrats, you're helping out quite a few charities. But if you're part of the vast majority who didn't, you are literally just walking the streets in drag to say you did. I was one of those, but hey, wearing a dress is actually comfortable.

A little Red Hot Chili Peppers for ya. Hit play and scroll.

This was Spear's day.

The mullet!

The gang.

Another classic pose.

Lot of nip slips throughout the day.

Eggs hangin' on a nail.

"What. The. Hell?"

You gotta enjoy your consciousness while it lasts.

Twins. His hair was real though.

Brian Spear +20 years? Anyone else see it?

Seriously, buy stock in Jansport. It's makin' a comeback.

A little uneven.

Love the dude's glaze in the background.

Empty stare.

Mike McKenzie. Just can't leave...

Chance in escape mode, right after he smoked some chick with that shopping cart.

A perfect ending point.

Trombone Shorty "Do To Me"

A preview of Shorty's new album For True, which drops September 13th. Looks like its gonna be a good one.

Hey Mama

Cool music video from Mat Kearney. Shot in New Orleans, it features a lot of local culture and some great dancin'. Great shots of Mardi Gras Indians and the Treme brass band. The Joy Theatre also gets a little cameo. I'd never heard of this guy until I saw this music video but his new album Young Love is great, definitely worth checking out.

The JOY Theatre

Finally! It has been far too long since I've been in some damp, old, soggy, foul smelling place. As I write this I can feel the toxic mold spreading in my lungs. Oh well. Got some cool photos to show for it.

I've been wanting to get into one of these old theaters for quite some time now. The Orpheum or Loews State Theatre would have been ideal, but I'll take the JOY for now. It was a bit disappointing- upon seeing the interior you can immediately tell that it looked like crap for far before any storm came through. Anything cool or ornate (if there ever was such an interior) had been covered up long ago. It had been split into 3 different screens. One large one as you will see below and two smaller ones that were too dark to take pictures in. Oh well, it was still cool to be inside an old decrepit theater.

The JOY on opening night, February 8, 1947.

The JOY opened it's doors in 1947 and closed in 2003. It is currently undergoing a $5 million dollar renovation to turn it into a live music venue, which it will be absolutely perfect for. I'm excited. You can read a Times Picayune article about it here.

It's great to see the comeback of Canal Street. Hopefully with the new life given to both the Saenger and the JOY, it won't be long before the Orpheum and Loews State Theatre follow, but who knows in this economy.

As it appears today.

I'm assuming this is the famous "Crying Room"- a sound proof room where you could take you crying kid and still watch the movie. Why don't they still have these?

Looks like it still had about 4 feet of water in the basement.

Old film trailers. Each roll is approx. 2 minutes. Imagine how big an entire movie must be.

From the projection room.

Making a comeback!

Spiny Orb Weaver Spider

These little crabby looking spiders are all over our backyard. Anyone who knows me knows I have a major problem with all spiders, but surprisingly this kind doesn't even freak me out as much as a daddy long leg. They look too cool.