Happy Belated New Year ! ! !

Slacker Jenny is back! I apologize for my lack of posts but I have been distracted by other non-knitting stuff. Oh the horror! What stuff you may ask. Well first of all I got sucked into playing my video game the week I was home on vacation. I also had some good books to read. I did manage to accomplish my Kool Aid dyeing project, which took all day I might add. (I'll post about that another time). I also spent some time visiting friends, family, and other knitting blogs, to the detriment of my own. But that's why I blog with Suzy Girl. Sometimes one of us gets busy, and so the other one oicks up the slack. That's what friends are for aren't they?

I want to share one of the things I did, on the 1st actually. I'll post other knitting related stuff later this week. In Philly, we have this parade every year called the Mummers parade. Its been around for over 100 years, and they march January 1, unless there is rain, snow, or extremely high winds. There are different groups of mummers, but the most popular ones, and the best in my opinion, are the string bands. The bands are mostly men, although there are women involved too, and they spend all year picking a theme with accompanying music, costumes, choreography, and props. The costumes are beautiful and the music makes you dance in the street. This parade has a lot of tradition, and there are whole families that have been involved with this for generations. It truly is its own little industry. Here is a link to the website for the Avalon String Band, which has some sample music. Yes, we stand, watch the parade, and dance in place :)

The parade is a big thing in my neighborhood, because every one knows someone who is in the parade. The clubhouses for a lot of the mummer groups are located in South Philly too. Some are in other parts of the city to be sure, but they are concentrated on 2 street. There is an after parade down 2 street after the Broad street parade, and this is always a blast. Lots of drinking and things which don't get mentioned the next day. In any case here are some photos of the Broad street parade for you to enjoy.

TTFN!

xoxoxo