Trixie La Femme: Seeing signs cheering for the Big Easy Rollergirls -- I saw one that said, "Forget Heels, We Want Wheels!" YAY!!! We have such dedicated fans! Oh, yes, they were loaded up with the goods by BERG.
It was so cool to see people's faces I recognized emerge from the crowds! I saw old friends I hadn't seen in years out there. (OK... weeks.)
Oh, and I've perfected my one knee slide into the sidelines to give little kids beads. I may patent this move, but you can pay me royalties to use it.
Scabby: My favorite moment was reaching the end and realizing we had skated the entire way through all the debris and cracked streets and turmoil (thanks in large part to Mel's efforts, of course). I was so proud of us. When I saw a friend on Canal Street he said, "You guys made it! You're still rolling!" and I realized how rad it was.
We are t3h r0xx0rs!
CHEAP THR!LL: Near the beginning of the parade route a little girl (9 maybe?) ran out of the crowd towards me yelling, "CHEAP THR!LL, CHEAP THR!LL...I love you and follow all the news about you! I'm so sorry about your leg. I hope you get better soon!”
I was so touched. I gave her a wheel and a smile as I willed myself not to shed a few tears of happiness. I love this city for loving us!
Also, all of the people who took turns pushing me in the wheelchair! I was never aware of the switch, but every time I turned around there was someone different back there. Thanks! (really, though, it was a great way to roll!)
Plus, Bessie deserves a medal for convincing the float in front of us to let me use their bathroom. I love that she's not afraid to play the gimp card.
Bessie: "Seriously, dude, the girl in the chair really has to pee!"
PS I was aMUSEd (haha, I'm so funny) by the fact that people in the crowd were throwing things to me. Every time I thought I was running out of throws, people would start throwing me beads. I also got the 40 and someone ran up and handed a wheel to me. It wasn't decorated and he might have thought it fell off of someone's skate! Ah, hilarity!
The Countess: The LOOK of us, from the banner and the truck decor, to the outfits (way to go derby, newbies/new refs), to the smooth line-up and roll, to the music, to the skaters, to the way we were still rocking and rolling at the end of it all.
Exchanging stuff with a D.C roller girl on Napoleon -- I got a sticker, she got a hunk of BERG beads. All the people who were saying "look, they're on skates!" (Proving that New Orleanians can still be surprised and astounded) Having skaters run to tell me: "your husband is dancing with that broom; he looks awesome!"”
Crusty McKnuckle: I can't say I have a Favorite Moment, the whole thing was just such an amazing experience for me! Thanks to Mel we made it through without falling on our asses/faces so he's my FAVORITE too!
Kelkat: I loved that Sophie Nuke-em had her groove on! That girl danced and looked like she was having the time of her life the entire way! Yeah, Sophie!
Marquee de Squad: Col. Panic was like a seasoned bouncer moving people on the sidelines. You'd think he were at the front of the stage at a GWAR concert. Awesome.
The whole night was the coolest NO experience ever. Though I hate to use "rock stars,” it seems to apply. One guy knew me as Marquee and I gave him a wheel.
Thanks all of you for being a part of this league and this night. For me it is like the crowning moment after a long period of work and perseverance.
I am proud of BERG. So many people reached out to shake hands saying "congratulations,” "good job,” "look at you now,”
*sniff* I love you, man.
Cherri Pi: Watching the parade, before we jumped in, with everyone. Very fun.
2. The marching 79.
3. The girls from Mississippi in the red velour.
4. Realizing I really did not need to be hammered to enjoy a parade. I am so glad I skated the whole thing and didn't bust on my tailbone.
I cannot believe how amazing Mel was. Mel, are you still ready for me to skate from here to Mobile, with you sweeping the whole way?
Royal was such a good sport. Thank God we drafted Beatrix. Not only does she come with ability, her pa does too.
Anti Em: Bringing up the rear with Lionel, blowing whistles madly all the way. Oh, and I got recognized! That never happens to me! It was the most fun ever and I am so ready to go do it again.
The best was the looks on overwhelmed little girls' faces whenever I picked one out of the crowd and handed them a BERG bead. Future rollergirls, I'm sure.
Sophie: My favorite moments were Von Doom dancing, SmasHer dropping it like it was hot at the Circle Bar, and how much the crowd loved the music that Royal played. Also, people immediately yelled for wheels when they saw us, and three women along the route asked me how they could join BERG.
And, it was great to see all the newbies who showed up!
Galaxy Grrl: It was great to see such a big newbie turnout. And it really felt like we were one big, happy family. So far I've had 3 friends call today to tell me how awesome the wheels I gave them are, and that they are the best parade throw they've ever gotten. I've marched in parades before, but this was the best fun ever! Thanks Crusty and Bea and everyone!
Pontchartrain BeAtch: Catching throws from most of the parade before we joined in, taking our place behind float 19, and watching all the kids like our music so much that they followed us for blocks, dancing all the way.
Col. Panic: My favorite moment would have to be a toss-up between finally getting to sit down, seeing a guy on the street with the same Firefly-inspired hat as me, or watching Mel go crazy on the street, pushbroom-style.
SmasHer: There are so many moments from that night. I LOVED our first-class view of Muses and humiliating myself by running up to the floats to get throws for everyone (ahem, Cherry Pi). Thank you, Muses for your generosity.
Having Ponchartrain BeAtch yell at me and call me a “Hot B*tch” for all my custom throws.
Even though I spent most of my time trying to untangle my throws and not fall over, the crowd’s response was amazing!
Watching Sophie, VVD, Bessie, Crusty & Marquee get their groove on the ENTIRE route.
Having a woman call me over and ask if her son did some “moves” for me would I give him some beads. He did “the bounce,” and of course, I gave him what I had.
Saying, “I’m tired; I want to go home,” after the parade and then dancing non-stop with Sophie for two hours at The Circle Bar. Oh, yeah….
Ruffit: It was ALL so very good, but I guess my favorite moment was handing over the ceramic medallions to my family at the beginning of the parade and kissing them all as they wished me good luck. I also loved being followed by a fan, who REALLY wanted a wheel and was patient while I fished one out from under the tangle of beads in my bag. I expect to see YOU at try-outs next month!!! We'll teach you how to skate.
Beatrix sKiddo: So, my favorite moment really was the "Forget the Heels, We Want Wheels" sign, but in an effort to be more original… Being told by one of the Camel Toe Lady Steppers how much we ROCK because, not only did we dance our way through all of Muses, we did it on skates!
Vandal O’Riley: Well, it was generally pretty awesome! It was really great getting shouted out by the crowd as Vandal O'Riley a couple times- Sweet!
I was also very impressed that word got out that the wheels were the catch of the night. I hope someone got a picture of the "Forget the Heels..." sign. That WAS a coup! I was totally blown away by that.
I have to give out super-props to James (A.k.a. Royal #2-) for continuing to call my cell phone after I was POSITIVE I'd dropped it in the street, or accidentally tossed it into the crowd. Yay! It turned up!!!
I will say we did have it together, didn't we? My jaw dropped when I saw Royal's truck rig. When somebody said, "Oh, Bea's dad is driving a truck for us," I thought, "Oh cool, we got a pickup to toss our stuff in!" Then I show up and see this traveling discotheque on wheels- That was absolutely out of control! And super-kudos to the Banner Designing Brigade. Looked sweet, ladies!!!
Lt Dan: Clocking in for a Double at work the next Morning and overhearing a co-worker telling everyone how the Big Easy Rollergirls were her FAVORITE!!! That just sooo made it all worth it!!
Babycakes: My favorite moment was Lionel blowing the whistle & every time I stopped to see a friend, Lionel pushed me back in line & told me, “Come on, let’s go!” I thought that was so funny. It was awesome when people yelled out, “Rollergirls!” Cheap was so funny. Thanks for the fun
The Big Easy Rollergirls would like to thank Muses for the wonderful, once-in-a-lifetime experience. You ladies are the best.
A special thank you to Royal for bringing up the rear! Your music kept us motivated the entire route! Thank you for your patience and humor.
Warmest thanks to our refs/bouncers: Mel, Lionel, Col. Panic, Anti Em, Josephine Breaker. We are so lucky to have you in our league.
Thank you to our fans for all of their support. We would be nothing without you.
Here’s to next year!
No comments:
Post a Comment