Okay, so Hair Balls was in New Orleans Sunday trying to get out (yes, we know, wrong way) after a business trip and found out the hard way that it would have been better to order a cab before the Mardi Gras/Saints parades started that day, rather than after.

Cab couldn't get to the hotel.

The hotel manager ended up on a walkie-talkie device, trying to guide the cab driver through the back streets so he could make it to where we were in the French Quarter. It was like the last days of Saigon.

Then it took forever to get to the Louis Armstrong airport because guess what? People filled the streets, walking right in front of cars. And this was even before the big win.

Who Dat can get real tiresome real fast.

Prior to going to the airport, Hair Balls checked out where to get the best King Cake and found several likely possibilities. One of the entries that came up was the airport's website, where she found this warning penned by one Sean C. Hunter, director of Aviation:

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Many local travelers will be taking the Mardi Gras

celebration with them to places outside of the area. A

key component of the celebration is a King Cake. As

delicious as a King Cake is, in an airport environment it

could pose a security risk. You can travel with a King

Cake but there are some rules to follow. King cakes

should be declared at the checkpoints. Plain king

cakes, i.e., king cakes without filling, may be permitted

through the checkpoints. Filled king cakes (king cakes

with fillings such as cream cheese, strawberry,

blueberry, etc.) will not be allowed through the

checkpoints. Why? Because many of these king cake

fillings may be prohibited as gels. Passengers should

pack filled king cakes in their checked baggage, or ship

them in advance of traveling. Passengers should also

arrive early enough to check any King Cakes that

cannot be allowed through the checkpoint. If you do

not want to go through security with a King Cake but

wish to still take one with you, check with some of our

airport stores beyond the checkpoint. They plan to

have King Cakes for sale. As usual, your safety is our

main concern at Louis Armstrong New Orleans

International Airport. For this reason, our security will

be in full force to handle any problem that might arise

during the holiday season.

So Hair Balls bought a King Cake at the airport, past the security checkpoint and made it back to Houston in time to watch the game.