Tips For Making Your Own Mardi Gras Fun

By JOHN AUSTIN Don't feel bad if you can't blast off to New Orleans for Mardi Gras.North Texas bakeries, bars and restaurants are poised to please customers who want a taste of that Crescent City je ne sais quoi, so your krewe shouldn't have any problem lining up the ingredients for an impromptu Mardi Gras party Tuesday, or at least a Big Easy toast to the occasion.Here, some ideas to have New Orleans-flavored Fat Tuesday fun closer to home before the clock strikes 12 and the season of Lent begins:Go out on the townFamily fun: Lake Dallas' Mardi Gras celebration is a lot closer than New Orleans' -- and hey, it's even near water.