Ponchatoula, LA.         October, 24, 2007 ...........    Well they say haste makes waste when you try to hurry something into existence before it is ready to see the light of day, and now we can confirm that this is most definitely true. 

 The administration and staff of Mardi Gras Digest Magazine made a tactical error in choosing to purchase  newer software on the market rather than what the industry had used to date believing what the salesmen had to say rather than their own printer. The result was a series of nothing more than nightmarish scenarios one after the other, as the staff slowly came to the realization that the software simply was not up to the task of putting truly professional journals on the shelves. Also the graphics and layout left a lot to be desired. 

It is our belief, and our mandate, that this old, ailing, but vibrant part of the Gulf coast culture be given the absolute best in journalistic medium which has been sorely lacking before this time. We must reach out to the general public and the industry insiders with a journal that is worthy to carry the title. To do less, would simply add to the confusion, and an already sad thinking process that sees no rhyme or reason to the holiday.  

New software has now been ordered and is on the way. It will take approximately 3 months for the current staff to learn the new format, its protocols, and what is necessary to send a professional style journal to the printer. InDesign by Adobe systems will serve as our new base software, and push us further into the printer's arena then we had intended to go. Our in house staff wanted to concentrate intently on the stories and people, make it about their moves to enjoy the moment, and the movement, as well as with some, the ongoing effort to pave the way for others, rather than making it about the idea that this was just another holiday.

 The misconception that just about anyone could put out a major magazine, made us think this was a piece of cake. That assessment was in error, and gave us a better appreciation for those that do it on a much more frequent basis than we were planning.  The hurry to follow that, with the Digest, hurt in more ways than one, however. There were other situations that brought us to the postponement.

 There was the lack of a good layout artist, in addition to the Krewes not focused enough to take advantage of our distribution plan, which was designed to enable them to earn direct money by selling the magazines hurt. Another hurdle has been the inability to bring krewes online fast enough, to report to us, from all across the gulf coast, without making personal contact.

 It just seems they're too busy, to do those simple things that will bring them the increased membership and increased funding. Plus, the pace of uncovering content was just too slow to materialize, and sales people were no where to be found, when we needed to hire a sales force, finally, the website started to fall behind from the neglect.

  With all that happening to you, it was time to take stock, and we decided to postpone the launch until we could get a definite handle on all of our problems. We will reassess our situation in 6 months and see if we can finally launch the publication with all the proper software and programs in place. Please continue to send in your stories and events!