Peggy’s Patio

So the UAB series was our final hurrah of the baseball season at home. The Tulane Greenwave did not disappoint. We rallied back from a serious deficit to win the game 9-8.

It was a scorcher. Perfect for boiled crawfish and sangria in the lovely shaded area we have come to christen as “Peggy’s Patio.”

Can you believe I came home to find Mr. Hullabaloo carving this crested T into the watermelon we brought to the tailgating? I am impressed with Mr. Hullabaloo.

Priscilla made the BEST boiled crawfish ever to pass the lips of Mrs. Hullabaloo. She even included my absolute favorite mushrooms and introduced me to adding cauliflower into the boil. You know, just about anything goes well in a crawfish boil.

“Homecomingworthy” were these absolutely amazing chocolate mint brownies that Pam prepared.

They were just slap-your-momma-sinful. They were so delish we had to park Terry in front of the ice chest holding them and bounce any unapproved personnel who dared to attempt to help themselves. (Feel Free! You'd think this were a free country or something). I haven’t been able to solicit the recipe out of Pam, but I will die trying.

We had a new face re-joining the party in Section 110 towards the end of the season there and he brought us bacon-wrapped shrimp to grill. Delish. Also deigned “homecomingworthy.” Because last year I had Mr. Hullabaloo cleaning and skewering those suckers and I stressed myself out locating and making The Perfect Marinade.

"The Perfect" Coconut Shrimp Marinade
from Williams-Sonoma
Take 3 limes; slice up 1 lime into pretty lime slices; grate up the second lime for it’s zest; reserve the juice from the zested lime and your third lime. Take the following ingredients and give a quick whiz in a food processor: 1/2 cup dried flaked coconut; 1/2 cup milk; 1/4 cup golden rum ; 1 Tbs. honey. Combine chopped up stuff with the lime juice and grated zest. Marinate your shrimpies for 45 minutes. Then skewer with slices of red onion and your pretty sliced lime pieces.

On the grill, drizzle skewered up shrimp with mixture of olive oil and chopped fresh tarragon.

I can attest that Mr. Newcomer’s shrimp - while sans coconut and lime - were still garlicky butter deliciousness in that Drago's charbroiled kind of way. So that will be one less menu item to worry about. Since I have all these decorations and tablescaping to focus on.

On second thought, I don’t know..... I might just have to make a set just to see how stressed out I can make Mr. Hullabaloo while he’s also racing around the house packing up the car to my exact specifications and not behind one single second lest we miss one moment of tailgating.

Our very own "Just Joe," husband of "Just Gwynne," tossed out the first pitch for the game. Just Joe's company was a sponsor of the game and had a lovely tent with drinks and such behind the first plate bleachers. Just Joe nailed the first pitch. We were so proud! Geaux Joe!

Also happening at the UAB game: Tulane was honoring the football team from 1948 on the balcony behind homeplate. Somehow Mr. Hullabaloo and Mr. Newcomer ended up in the mix up there. The irresistable aroma of Hot Dogs can led men to abandon their wives.

The Friday night game against UAB got away from us even though the greenies valiantly rallied back from 8-3 to 8-7 and UAB took the win that night. Tulane stranded 15 players on base, we had 2 loaded base situations with no scoring. Quelle drag.

So Saturday when we got in a hole again 8-3, stranding players it was just dejavu all over again. I commenced butterflying about the stadium to and fro trying to find the right mojo setting. Peggy being caught on the pot in the ladies room during the ECU series was classic. We phoned Peggy while she was in the stall and forced her to stay put the entire inning. It was hilarious.

Unfortunately, there was no mojo spot to be found.

FF had imbibed himself into a serious situation during our crawfish session. See. Evidence of FF's pre-game imbibing.


So after spending a few moments melting in the sun, FF parked himself in a folding chair back outside in Peggy’s Patio to sleep it off. It was just too hot to roast out in the stands all dizzy and dehydrated. So the shade from Peggy’s Patio beckoned in the 7th inning and I joined FF. Put my headset on to listen to graf, rallied my baseball cap and settled in.

Next thing I know, the greenwave rally ensues. Peggy's Patio is the official Mojo Zone. Josh Prince scored on a double; Shaeffer hits a 2 run homer. Oh. My God. Tulane can actually come from behind. It is now 8-7 .

Mr. Hullabaloo, with Mr. Newcomer, decided to come join us at the Patio during the 8th inning rally. Everyone parked themselves on top of FF’s car.

Except for Mr. Koozie. Mr. Koozie decided that a plastic garbage tub was sturdy enough to stand on and peer over the fence to finish watching the game. No go. Mr. Koozie plum fell off that garbage tub.

Warning: crawfish alone is not enough to fill your tummy while enjoying adult beverages. Bad decisions will inevitably ensue.

It’s 8-8. Our little party in Peggy’s Patio rallied a GREEN! WAVE! cheer with the first base bleachers. And everyone went bezerk when Scott Powell hit a single to bring Josh Prince home (“Bring the Wave Home, Baby!”)

So then in the 9th inning we started having major heart palpitations that the game would go into extra innings in a tie situation. Nick Pepitone struck them out. Thank you very much!

And you know, we have NO idea just who the mystery person was that jumped the fence behind the flags in the outfield, courteously retrieved a fallen foam finger for the folks who watch the games on The Shed, loosened and lowered the UAB flag to half-staff and jumped back over the fence and disappeared into the New Orleans afternoon. We have not a clue. (Allegedly!)

All of us in Peggy’s Patio and the folks on The Shed about pee’d ourselves laughing about the flag. Even Todd Grafignini noticed and broadcast “I’m not sure if this is by design, but the UAB flag appears to be at half staff...”

Now I will say: the UAB baseball folks, ever demonstrating they were from Alabama, had absolutely IMPECCABLE manners. Thanks for coming blazers! ‘til we meet again!

ROLL WAVE!

mmm Bloody Marys

Finally have photos taken by Mr. Hullabaloo of our tailgating before the Saturday Tulane ECU baseball game.

Rainy Day in New Orleans

Today, a very special entry at the Hullabaloo Huddle.....

It's a rainy day in New Orleans in more ways than one.

Mrs. Hullabaloo spent the 10.5 hour drive back to New Orleans trying to console Mr. Hullabaloo after having bet on #16 in the Kentucky Derby. The safe bet. The horse that was in the lead coming around the last bend. The one that got left in the dust when the long shot plum took off like Secretariat out of nowhere. Sigh, our horse came in 2nd. Our original bet with Joe Talamo's horse was scratched. When the dust on the track settled, the entire Churchill Downs was silent. That is the sound of hundreds of thousands of people losing their bets. There were not enough betters on Calvin Borel's horse to make a dent in the silence.

Our friend Jason, however, walked away with $300 on a $2 bet on that one.

But all in all, Mrs. Hullabaloo really cannot complain when there are bigger things in life.

Like losing your athletic program. I get it. At the end of the day, school is, well, about school. Approving funding of $1.4million on the backs of students when you have to fire professors is lunacy. The purpose of universities is to be a center of knowledge and learning.

And for all of our complaints at Tulane about student apathy, nowhere was the tide harder in Southeast Louisiana than at UNO. Which is harder: an entire student body not from New Orleans who pick up stakes and move back to New York or Connecticut without a look in the rearview mirror or a student body made up of afternoon commuters whose priority in life is to provide a living for their families.

TJ Baxter: I am very sorry for my immature behavior cat calling you at third base. I wish I could take it all back. I might have to chew on that last bit a little bit longer. I'll get back to you on that.

And like losing someone like Drew Villar.

Tulane has had many special individuals pass through our community whether they be classmates, boosters or student athletes. My dear friend Gifford Riess. Dickie Monett. Ray Hester.

Mr. and Mrs. Hullabaloo were inspired to be more participatory in Tulane athletics during the Katrina season. That was no fun for anybody, much less for the students who are essentially entertaining us at no pay in exchange for a diploma. What is the point of passing through life without doing much of anything or knowing much of anybody.

When I read Fourth and New Orleans, I sobbed over the death of Brandon Spincer. Sat on my couch hunched over that book with a box of tissues. I never got the chance to know Brandon, but he was good people and did his best and that's important. According to the book, he even befriended a little boy up in Ruston who was also evacuated to the dorms. You see, Leaders emerge naturally.

He worked out for the Saints after graduation, he worked at the Boys and Girls Club which requires individuals who have the patience of a saint. He was walking his girlfriend up to her door after a date like a gentleman and loses his life.

And so today I find myself sobbing over the loss of Mr. Andrew "Drew" Villar.

Our favorite Tulane baseball player at the moment is Andrew Robinson. Robinson doesn't even bat. He is a warm-up catcher and waves to us when he runs in and out of the bullpen to left field practice mound. Occasionally tosses up a ball to a little greenie that might be in the stands. Always smiling! At the last UNO game played at Turchin, Robinson's name was called up to go to bat. Section 110 cheers. Pitch. DINK. Robinson cracks the bat. The ball ZOOMS like a lighting bolt out to centerfield. Section 110 ROARS. Boo-hiss, the ball gets caught by the player at 2nd base. But for half a second, Andrew Robinson was our hero.

Andrew Robinson and Drew Villar have been friends since childhood, having both attended East Ascension High School.

Drew was a recipient of the (wrongly and) much-maligned Legislative Scholarship given to young Louisianians to attend Tulane. One of my bridesmaids and best friends is a recipeint of the Legislative Scholarship. I have zero problem with the Legislative Scholarship. I think it's just much ado by jealous tiger fans who couldn't even spell Legislative if they were given a dictionary.

Drew, Tulane class of 2011, was class president at East Ascension all four years he was a student. He was Homecoming King, etc. He was passionate about intramural sports at Tulane which is extremely popular with the student body.

Drew tried out for the baseball team. According to Rick Jones, he really wanted to play football. So after discussion with Bob Toledo, Drew was the final cut when 2 more players were brought in to the baseball team. So Drew tried out in football and got a walk-on spot on football. He was 4th on the depth chart as a placekicker, but according to Bob Toledo he would play at any spot he was asked.

Ross Thevenot said that Drew would be the first player to congratulate a teammate or lift their spirits. He was a positive, fun, and energetic individual.

It's young adults like Drew whom I wish that more Tulane students would have had the chance to get to know, and God willing, someday emulate. Showing your school spirit and encouraging your classmates is more than sitting back, entitled, and demanding a win.

Bailing out is easy. Stampeding like a heard of uneducated sheep behind a bloated program while other state schools do more with less takes zero effort.

When Mr. and Mrs. Hullabaloo went on the field after the spring game to mix and mingle, I remember seeing Drew and wondering about him. His hair was longer, but he had a great smile on his face.

http://blog.nola.com/tulanebeat/2009/05/teammates_remember_tulane_walk.html

A memorial service will be held on campus in the LBC (old UC) in the Kendall Cram room (2nd floor) at 5pm on Tuesday, May 5.

"Roll, Green Wave, For you we have no fear. With every man in every play, We're bound to win that game today..... Hoorah for Olde Tulane..."