Old School Mardi Gras Christmas Party!

Atlanta is fast becoming a city of glitz and glamour.  And sometimes this glitz and glamour can be seen in even the simplest occasions.  In some parts of Atlanta, you may be invited to a BBQ and when you get there tables with linen table cloths are set up, and there is a wine bar, and a pit master who is more often than not, a caterer hired to prepare the food instead of the owner of the home behind the grill.  A pit master…really?  And who eats ribs on linen table cloths?  Ask yourself, when was the last time that you went to a genuine, old fashioned, old school party?  This past weekend, “Living in Atlanta” traveled to Lawrenceville, Georgia to attend a “Mardi Gras Christmas” party.

There are key elements to an old school party:

1.       Location – Someone’s home
2.       Attire – Come as you are – there is no dress code
3.       Food – is there and plenty of it!
4.       Drink – every type of liquor/beer from the rooter to the tooter on the make-shift bar
5.       Music – a DJ and he/she has any song you can ever think of from blues – current day
6.       Children – they are there, but they are NEVER seen, but well taken care of
7.       Dancing – one person may be on the floor one minute, and 50 people the next,
       depending on the song.  And there is always a song for the “wobble” or “cha-cha slide”

But the most important element to an old school party, are the old school people.  Grown folks who know how to get along and have fun.  Such was the case Saturday night at the Mardi Gras party I attended.  When I walked through the door with my friend Yvonne and her husband Mike, it was warm and inviting because it was not about who you were, but more about making the person feel comfortable.  You see, these ladies have been friends for a long time.  Oddly enough, they all met through their children’s sporting activities.  The boys played basketball, baseball and football and the girls were on the cheer squads, and some of the moms and dads were their coaches.   Systematically they all met and became friends, and their friendship has stood the test of time. 

This annual Christmas party (year 7 to be exact) was no different from any other gatherings these couples have at their homes throughout the year. There is a Matriarch, who dresses to the nine’s and when she speaks everybody listens…and her shoe game is fierce, there is the karaoke queen who sings her rendition of “I’m Every Woman by Chaka Kahn at EVERY party—hilarious, there are the dancers in this group and the singers and they all tell the infamous story of how they met and what they have been through as a group, and how they are STILL STANDING.  The husbands and men in their lives are right there with them dancing and singing and sharing stories as well.   They are a family and you sense that the moment you walk through the door. 

There was plenty to do with trivia games and performances, plenty to see, with the girls vs. guys dance off, and plenty to eat – red beans and rice, gumbo and other assorted goodies.  I felt like I did growing up in North Carolina.  Whether it was at my parent’s home, Uncle Don and Aunt Dottie’s or Aunt Novella’s house, we had the type of parties where family and friends dropped by, the door was always opening and closing with more people coming in than going out, our matriarch’s in the kitchen frying chicken and fish and making biscuits and god knows what else, music playing and an over the top card game (bid whist) being played.  Whew, good times!  So thank you Yvonne, Mike, Monica and Scott, for the memories, all is not lost for the fair city of Atlanta.  Keep on doing you and keep on inviting me!

Peace and blessings,

Phaedra