Various and Sundry Pics from Christmas, Cowboy Mouth & New Year's Eve

D. and Mom, augmenting the Christmas tree.

Standing 7 1/2 feet tall, with packages nestled underneath...

D. and Chris at the House of Blues, just prior to the Soul Rebels Brass Band's performance.

Chris took this shot of us just before the invasion of the Ole Miss sorority girls began. ACTUALLY overheard (from an obnoxious, blonde 21 year-old from Ole Miss): "Omigawd, I'm totally going to eff Fred LeBlanc."

She then started shoving her way through the crowd along with her crew of fellow Plastics. This may have been the least enjoyable Cowboy Mouth show I've ever been to - and I've been too many - because of the vibe of the crowd. Fred and Co. gave a GREAT performance, but the combination of drunk sorority girls and their belligerent and trashed boytoys really affected the crowd, most of whom were just longtime fans like me. One such boytoy actually took a swing at a guy standing near us - a guy who had already been robbed that evening - because the boytoy shoved the guy's tiny girlfriend, and the guy told him to back off. Yeah. Weeeeird show.

It won't, however, keep me from seeing them on Bacchus Sunday if they play.

Attack! (Dude, she had treats.)

D., Jesus and Jessica at Jackson Square on New Year's Eve - well, actually, it was just after midnight, and we were surrounded by throngs of inebriated Georgia and Hawai'i fans. We didn't actually see the ball drop on the roof of the Jax Brewery, but we heard the screaming hordes acknowledge it, so we're assuming it happened. When this picture was taken, we had just finished watching the fireworks over the river. Very cool.

I hate crowds. They turn me into a bitter misanthrope. It's why I do my holiday shopping mostly online - so I don't have to deal with mall bullies...and drunk UGA fans who repeatedly belch out, "Who let the Dawgs out? Woof, woof, woof, woof!"

This was maybe...4 hours after we lit the coffee table on fire?

Either way, happy new year! We had a great time with Zeus and Jess despite D.'s insane work schedule and my Dayquil-fueled haze. We had a great time, too, with Ross and Jessica and their infant son, Liam, when they visited us for the New Orleans Bowl (go Owls!), and we're glad that despite the dysfunctional family Christmas, we were able to open our home to my family, our neighbors, and some of our new friends at NOLA.com for the holiday. After a lot of laughter, tears, and post-holiday binge heartburn, it's time to put 2007 squarely in the past.

Man. I can't believe it's already 2008.