Taking on New Adventures

Mardi Gras balls in New Orleans are big. From the men in tuxedos to the ladies in their long ballgowns, makeup perfectly painted on and “prom” hair, the evening of a Mardi Gras ball is one that many of us in the city look forward to all year long.

This past Saturday night was the Krewe of Nyx ball, Nyx Myx Masquerade. The evening is always a fun and interesting one since we have to wear masks throughout the presentation and then the lights dim, the music cranks up and the dancing commences.

This year, I was pretty excited to wear a dress I bought a couple of years ago. Last year, about a month after I bought this dress, the Krewe made the decision to go all black and white on the attire. And since my dress was a cross between light blue and gray, it wouldn’t work. I was also kind of ticked because I didn’t have a long black dress. So had to go out and spend more money on that! But I ended up having a great time and liking my look, even thought the dress wasn’t my first choice.

Now back to 2020. After a few weeks of struggles at work and just generally being exhausted, I woke up on Saturday morning pretty excited about the ball. After a tough workout, I grabbed some breakfast and hit the nail salon for a little pampering before getting ready. My dress fit (which was very good!) and I made my way to the Convention Center for the ball.

With around 7000 or so people there, the evening started as usual — all of the attendees immaculately dressed and masked, ready to start the party. Only for Nyx, the party doesn’t start until a little later. In a way, it’s kind of nice. You have the opportunity to walk around, see people you maybe haven’t seen since the last ride, catch up on life and take photos.

The presentation of the float lieutenants, board, Captain and Goddess Nyx takes a little over an hour. It’s nice to cheer on Kara, our float lieutenant and show her a little love for the massive amount of work she does year round for the float.

After a meal that was relatively quiet and getting to know our table mates, the music started. This year’s featured performer was a violinist who went viral a few months ago playing the New Orleans favorite, Choppa Style, at a wedding. When he was introduced, I knew it’d be an amazing show. However, I was ill prepared for how talented Dominique Hammons is! My camera on my phone stayed closed as I sat in awe of his amazing talent.

When he belted out Stairway to Heaven, my jaw dropped. As much as I wanted to video this moment, I also wanted to soak it all in. You can check it out here, and trust me, you want to!

After he finished, the band started and the dancing commenced. I made it until 12:45 am and then had to bolt. The food, the drinks, the dancing all got to me. And I had a blast!!!

Now, on to the next ball in a few weeks — Endymion Extravaganza.