EWOK

Another dog dressed as a movie character. It certainly has the right face. I don't think earthly pups or their interstellar cousins drink Busch beer, though. 

The big Mardi Gras parade is scheduled for tomorrow but it's supposed to rain most of the  day. Don't know how the organizers will handle that.       

WOOF AND STITCH

 

I get to the occasional kid movie with my granddaughter so I know some of the characters. This pup is wearing (quite uncomfortably, I think) a costume for the character Stitch, a horrible little alien monster who turns out to be lovable and cute in the end. (Was there an option?) And the owner is a little out there, too.                          

DOG'S BEST FRIEND

 

It has been noted in these pages that St. Louis likes an excuse to drink in public. That pastime was clearly on display on Sunday during the dog parade. It won't come close, though, to what you will see on the street next Saturday during the main Mardi Gras parade. Hoping the rain holds off.                     

SILLY DOGGIE

And owners. I dress in dark colors when I'm shooting on the street to blend in. People in the dog parade tend to go in the opposite direction. I guess I'm more of a observer than a participant (and besides, we just have a cat). Somebody has to make the record.                     

DOG PARADE!

 

Moving on from outdoor sculpture for a while. Lots of different material coming up because it's silly season in St. Louis (not that people take us very seriously). Mardi Gras is a big deal here. I think it started with community organizations but it's all commercialized now-still fairly crazy but orderly enough. Yesterday was the traditional dog parade, sponsored by Purina, the pet food company that is headquartered here. Lots of wacky puppies with owners to match.                  

BULL-DOG

A clever visual pun at the dog parade. S/he doesn't look at all cheerful but maybe that's just anthropomorphising. Still, I wouldn't want to make a close inspection of that jaw and lower lip.            

RETURN OF THE SOULARD DOG PARADE

St. Louis claims to have the second largest Mardi Gras celebration in the U.S. after New Orleans (which is several orders of magnitude bigger and better). Events start well before Fat Tuesday. The dog parade resumed yesterday after a Covid absence in our Soulard neighborhood. Thousands of people and pooches dress up and march through the streets. It was pretty crowded on a spring-like day.       

Chihauhua With a Margarita

It seemed like everyone except aging photographers was imbibing at mid-day during the dog parade. (I had an excuse: my hands were full of equipment.) And while you're at it, why not put a tiny sombrero on your tiny dog and give it a sip of the essence of agave? Dogs just wanna have fun.

Our big Mardi Gras parade is today, the Saturday before the date itself. I'll go shoot it if we are not getting freezing rain. Of course this Wednesday is both Ash Wednesday and Valentine's Day.  Might create a conflict for the more devout. We're planning a Valentine's dinner at a Cuban restaurant in Miami's Little Havana during a one-night stop before points beyond.        

Everything You Need

It is common to see street vendors at public events selling all sorts of junk roughly related to the occasion. It's all overpriced, tacky, and most of it will be gone in days or weeks. I wonder about the people, men and women, who sell the trinkets. Where do they come from? Why do they want this job? This ruggedly handsome man has perfect clothing for the weather. He is not impoverished.

There will be dozens of these people on the street for our official Mardi Gras parade tomorrow. I'll shoot it if the weather is not too bad. The forecast is for cold, although not extremely so. The prospect of freezing rain could keep me away.    

Where Do These People Come From?

 

St. Louis, I guess. What does that say about our character? Probably something good. Eccentrics and silly people are a welcome change from the daily grind.           

Late post today. Too much work.   

Weirdos And Law Abiding Citizens

Okay, so it's sort of pre Mardi Gras and people dress strangely and start drinking by late morning. (Breakfast of champions, as Kurt Vonnegut said.) But zombie Santas in February? À chacun ses goûts. 

Others tread a more narrow path. $100 fine for no dog leash? No contribution to the municipal coffers here.         

Dogs In Costumes

It must be silly season. Lots of people in the Soulard Dog Parade had their pets in costumes, one crazier than the next. (Some of the people were pretty out there, too.) These are just a couple of examples. Lots more to edit as time permits.       

Cold Dog

We have a bit of Mardi Gras here, not that big but fun. It is, of course, commercialized, with several different sponsored events. Yesterday brought the annual dog parade, sponsored by Purina, the pet food maker, which is headquartered here. 

It was cold and windy, leading to the lowest turnout I've seen in some time. The smaller animals needed coats, hats and a place to cuddle up. More to come.  

Dog Patrol

You wouldn't think all those fierce canines would require a motorcycle police escort. I think these officers and their bikes were there just for show. They lead the way in any significant parade in town. And they help get loiterers out of the street.        

King Of The Beasts And Batdog

Pets and people in the dog parade. I'd like to see a psychological analysis of this event. Is it just spontaneous fun or do the pooch costumes say something about the makeup of the owners? Maybe some of both. We haven't had a dog in forty years so I can only speculate.

 

The Return Of Gratuitous Cuteness

As seen here for many years, we have a pretty big Mardi Gras for a temperate climate city. It's all commercial and for-profit now but, as I have often noted, St. Louis likes an excuse to drink in public. The big parade is on Saturday. Bacchus will be in attendance. So will I.

However, the Sunday before has the annual dog parade. It gets really silly. The event was terribly crowded this year with the exceptionally warm weather.  These two could have been the parade marshals for visitors from Lilliput.    

Condiments

This thing just gets weirder every year at this event. Wiener dogs are a running joke but I have not seen them so fully garnished before.

Below, the Cardinals ubiquitous idiot mascot, Fredbird. If you live in St. Louis you can't escape him. He's like death and taxes.

The Grand Parade is today. I expect to be there with shutters popping.