NOLA Irish Parade

Marching in its 62nd year, the Irish Channel St. Patrick’s Day Committee boasted a record participation for 2011, with more than 1,400 members.

Amid the roaming face-painters and cotton-candy vendors, the crowd of thousands presented a proud blur of green. Whether displayed by a hat, a wig, a crown, body paint or an entire elaborate costume, the Irish spirit was out in full force.

Cheered on by the sunshine and pleasant breeze of a perfect March day, the streets along the Irish Channel St. Patrick's Day Parade route provided evidence Saturday that, even though Mardi Gras was just four days earlier, New Orleans most definitely had one more parade left in it.

And those who stayed home this year because they had worn themselves out during Carnival can take heart in knowing that Mardi Gras will not fall this close to St. Patrick’s Day again until 2038, when Fat Tuesday is on March 9.

Annual parade route is along Magazine St. around New Orleans' Irish Channel.

Parade goers will be able to grab cabbages and other vegetables from Mardi Gras-style floats and trucks, as well as beads and flowers.

Lady Gaga's Japan Earthquake Relief Wristband

I DONATED!!

Show your support for Japan with this "We Pray For Japan" wristband! Choose your price to add an additional donation with your wristband. All proceeds go directly to Japan relief efforts.

6.6 in Niigata

Powerful Quakes Hit Japan's Nagano Prefecture

Two powerful earthquakes hit an inland area northwest of Tokyo early Saturday, each measuring 6 on the Japanese seismic intensity scale of 7 in Nagano Prefecture, the Japan Meteorological Agency said. The agency did not issue a tsunami warning. The 3:59 a.m. and 4:32 a.m. quakes, with preliminary magnitudes of 6.6 and 5.8 respectively, hit areas including Niigata Prefecture on the Sea of Japan coast, which is far from the Pacific coastal area jolted by a magnitude 8.8 quake the previous day. The focus of both predawn quakes was in central Niigata at a depth of 10 kilometers, the agency said. The first quake measured lower 6 in Niigata but Tokyo Electric Power Co. said it was continuing to operate its Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear plant in the prefecture. Niigata police said they have received a report of mudslide in Tokamachi city as well as avalanches in Tokamachi and Tsunan town, following the early morning quakes.

Magnitude 8.9 Offshore Quake

The quake was the largest ever to hit Japan, the fifth strongest tremor worldwide since 1900 and the seventh strongest in history, according to the US Geological Survey and Japanese seismologists.

The biggest earthquake to hit Japan in 140 years struck the northeast coast, triggering a 33-foot tsunami that swept away everything in its path, including houses, cars and farm buildings. Dozens of cities and villages along a 1,300-mile (2,100-kilometer) stretch of coastline were shaken by violent tremors that reached as far away as Tokyo, hundreds of miles (kilometers) from the epicenter. Luckily my friends seem to be doing okay since no one was hurt, but homes are another factor right now. Until better communication open ups and the chaos of it all begins to settle, we'll have to wait a bit to get a clearer image of this tragic disaster.

My heart goes out to Japan!!!

Until Next Year . . .

Massive Mardi Gras mop-up in New Orleans

Happy Mardi Gras

By the King Himself