That Time I Lied To College Roomie for One Month and Three Days (Part III)

 "I came here tonight because when you realize you want to spend the rest of your life with somebody, you want the rest of your life to start as soon as possible." ~ When Harry Met Sally

First off, can I just say how sweet all of you guys are?  I've loved your comments and emails about this little blog series.  It's been a blast for me to hear everyone's excitement over the engagement of my friend!  I love that you're all so invested in the story.  Just in case you're new around here, don't miss the first and second parts of this trilogy.

I thought that it was only fitting today to have the future bride and groom take it from here.  Well, with some commentary from me (in orange) because, let's be real, I don't want to miss out on the fun!  So, College Roomie and McCain, take it away!

Before, During, and After Dinner

 

What SHE was thinking: 

·         I’m hungry.  Mmm, McAlister’s Deli would be deli-ishicious.  Deli – deli-ishicious.  Ha!  I’m so clever. 

·         Tiff needs McCain’s con law book, which appears to weigh as much as my head.  Law books are hefty. 

·         Random thoughts about the Stillwater weekend shenanigans as Tiffany gave the highlights (*For the record, it didn’t seem like she was stretching out the stories or giving too many details – I was not suspicious in the least.  Which means she’s always so thorough in her story-telling or I’m oblivious.  Maybe both.)

·         Hey!  She drove right by Smith’s.  I was promised ice cream! 

·         Hmm – going to my house first.  Something’s up.  Could it be…?  Nah – stop thinking silly thoughts. 

 What HE was thinking:

·         I hope the ring is still in my car. (It had to wait there over night because there was no way to get it inside without the Eagle finding out).

·         I hope Tiff remembers to ask for the Con Law book. 

·         Okay – the Eagle has flown.  I have a lot to do.

·         First – set out the white lights on the back deck.  Hmm – not enough white lights for Plan A.  I’ll run to the hardware store when I go to pick up the roses. 

·         Hardware store doesn’t have them.  Maybe Smith’s will have lights?

·         No lights at Smith’s. Maybe it’s time for Plan B. The lights will work inside too. 

·         Got the roses in hand, now all I have to do is pay for them. Let me just reach for my wallet and  . . . if only I had my wallet.  Oops…. 

·         Okay – wallet – check. Run back to get the roses. Now ready to get set up.

·         De-pedal the roses.  With Flo’s (the cat) help. 

·         Set out the tea light candles to form a path through the entryway to the living room.  Flo’s still helping. She wanted to try out a couple of different spots for a few of the candles.

·         Arrange the lights and pedals to form an arc from the living room into the dining room. 

·         Receive text from Tiffany that makes it sound like they are en route to the house. 

·         Frantically light candles (after putting cats in the office so they aren’t able to help with the whole fire part).  The stick lighter is out of fluid, good thing I bought matches for no real reason a few months ago.

·         Wait in office with a clear view of where car will park upon arrival.  Wait.  Wait.  Wait.

·         Text from Tiffany: “Just exited.” Where is the car? No time to figure it out.  {The interstate, for the record.  Exited the interstate.  Note to self for next time I help someone with this, be more explicit.} She read the book faster than I expected, better run to get in place. Ring is ready. Wait. Wait. Wait.  Maybe Tiffany’s text was misunderstood?  Peek my head around the corner to see how things look. Nobody’s here. False alarm.

·         Set the ring on the sideboard so I’m not scrambling to find it as the Eagle is landing.

·         Go back to the office and wait. There’s the car. Okay – now they’re definitely home!  Places. 

 

While Reading the Book in the Car

 

What SHE was thinking:

·         This is it.  This is THE proposal. 

·         But it wasn’t going to happen until April.  I was so certain. 

·         Wow – I’m flabbergasted.  I totally did not see this co-***FLASH OF LIGHT***…

·         Tiff:  Excuse the flash photography.  Carry on.  Keep reading.  {What?  I was told to take pictures for crying out loud.}

·         Last line in book:  “Come inside and follow the path to start the next page in our book.”  {FYI it was a book that McCain made of photos of their relationship.}

Walking Into The House

 

What SHE was thinking:

·         Awww, he left the door unlocked so I don’t have to be digging around in my purse for my keys.  I hate it when the keys are at the bottom of the purse and – ugh, seriously, College Roomie, you’re thinking about THAT?  NOW?  Focus. 

·         Candles.  How beautiful.  Don’t trip on the fire.  That would ruin the mood.

·         Follow the path….  Roses?  Lights?  Oh my double goodness – this is amazing.  And that guy – that one right there – he’s the most amazing. 

 

 

 What HE was thinking:

·         I hope she doesn’t trip on the candles.  {Seriously, they both think of this?  You know they're soulmates.}

·         I hope none of the candles blew out. 

·         I hope she liked the book.

·         I wasn’t nervous – but I heard that door and now…here we go.

 

 

 What TIFF was thinking:

 

     · I drank WAY too much water at dinner.  I really, really have to pee.  I wonder if I could quietly get to the bathroom?  How big is that bush over there, would that hide me?  Don't think about running water, don't think about running water....

The Proposal

 

What HE was thinking:

·         I have to say what I want to say without getting choked up. Don’t be like Chandler.

·         Ok, so that’s not quite happening.

·         This is such a perfect moment. Hopefully she doesn’t think I’m rambling.

·         She said  . . .

 

What SHE was thinking:

·         He’s wearing my favorite green and white striped shirt.  I know that’s no accident.  He’s so sweet and thinks of everything.

·         These are the most beautiful words I’ve ever heard in my entire life.  I need to remember them verbatim.

·         Don’t blurt out “Yes, of course,” until he’s done talking…. 

·         Agh!  He’s getting down on one knee.  How did I somehow convince this guy that he should keep me around forever and give me a gorgeous ring?  I am the luckiest girl in the world. 

·         Okay – now! 

AND SHE SAID….  “Yes, of course!” 

 

 

And he slipped the ring on her (shaking) finger. 

 

 

And it was the most perfect beginning imaginable. 

 

And then College Roomie waved me in from the car, there was lots of crying, screaming, pictures and I finally got to use the bathroom.  Alls well that ends well, folks.

 

I could not be more excited about the upcoming wedding.  No one in the world deserves to be happy more than my best friend.  Good job, McCain (and my matchmaking skills) for making that happen.  Let the wedding planning begin!  (For the record, I don't look cute in halter tops.)



That Time I Lied To College Roomie for One Month and Three Days (Part II)

"Love doesn't make the world go 'round.  Love is what makes the ride worthwhile."  ~ Franklin P. Jones

In case you missed Part I, click here.  And the saga continues....

August 28, 2012. 5:45 pm. McCain calls and says he is changing up his proposal plan and it could cause some delay. I express the fact that I dislike delay. He says that the new plan will allow me to be involved in the proposal. Making it about me. Smart kid, he is. We formulate the new proposal plan and he says that we can aim to do it next week. We refer to College Roomie as "The Eagle" now. Every good secret plan needs code language. We were talking logistics, when he had to go because "The Eagle has landed in the driveway."

August 29, 2012. 7:25 am. McCain informs me that he called College Roomie's step dad and asked him to go for coffee. Only one problem. Her step dad did not know who was calling him. He told McCain that he had the wrong person. McCain had to say, "No, sir, this is McCain, you know, College Roomie's boyfriend?" Her step dad said, "Oh, good, I could not figure out why some random guy would call and ask me out for coffee." HA! McCain forgot to tell him not to tell College Roomie about the coffee plan. I voluntered to handle that.

August 29, 2012. 8:00 am. I leave the following voicemail for College Roomie's step dad. "Hey Step Dad, it's Tiff. Listen, I know that McCain called you this morning and I presume that you know why he wants to take you for coffee, but just to be safe here, you can't say anything to College Roomie. McCain forgot to tell you, so I told him I'd call and tell you to keep your mouth shut. So....keep your mouth shut. And let's have dinner soon!" I've got to do everything around here.

August 29, 2012. 3:05 pm. McCain informs me the coffee meeting will happen tonight. He further informs me that the project he was working on for the proposal has been completed. Monday will be the night of the Eagle. My job is to get College Roomie out of the house. I ask him what we'll do if she does not want to go out to dinner. He says he does not know. I say, "Dont' worry, I'll fake a nervous breakdown and she'll come out with me. I'll cry if I have to." He's lucky to have me involved.

August 29, 2012. 6:30 pm. McCain convinced the step dad to give him permission to marry College Roomie. Good work, since this morning he did not even know McCain's name! I asked what McCain said to the step dad. I stopped him half way through because he made me cry. I'm becoming some sort of sap. We're planning on Monday for the big event.  Oh, and step dad said that I was talking so fast in the message I left him telling him not to tell College Roomie about the coffee meeting that he didn't know who I was either.  Ha!

August 30, 2012. 2:00 pm. I text College Roomie and ask if we can do dinner on Monday night. No response.

August 30, 2012. 5:00 pm. Text message from McCain: "The Eagle flies on Monday." I text back, "The Eagle will not return my text message about dinner."

August 30, 2012. 6:15 pm. I call College Roomie to ask about dinner on Monday. No answer. I leave a message. She's going to feel real bad for ignoring me come Monday when she figures out what's going on.

August 30, 2012. 7:17 pm. I almost hit "publish" instead of "save" on this blog. Holy crap. Be careful, Tiffany!

September 2, 2012. 5:45 pm. I got the following text from McCain: "You may get some resistance to dinner on Monday. She is talking about wanting to stay in." Shoooooot.  She's already making this wedding stuff complicated.  Bridezilla in the making?

September 2, 2012. 6:00 pm. I text College Roomie to confirm we are going OUT for dinner tomorrow night. She confirms, but asks if McCain can come along. I think, "No. He can't. He has to set up for your proposal you silly girl!"  Of course, I couldn't say that.

September 2, 2012. 6:30 pm. I text back saying we need to have some girl time to talk about boy troubles and it would be strange if he was there. I said we could meet up with him after dinner at their house for ice cream. This should have raised suspicion for two reasons. (1) I have no boys with whom to have troubles. (2) She knows good and well that I've said more inappropriate stuff in front of McCain than any poor dude should have to hear. But she bought it. Whew.

September 2, 2012. 7:00 pm. She confirms dinner. The Eagle flies on Monday.

September 3, 2012. 11:35 pm. McCain cannot get away to give me the item I need in order to help with the proposal. We hatch a plan that when I pick her up, I will ask to borrow his Con Law book and that the necessary item will be hidden inside. We so could have run something like the underground railroad with this level of sneakiness.

September 3, 2012. 5:00 pm. T-minus 1 hour. I take a shower to look cute in the post proposal photos. I'm getting nervous. What if I cry before it's time to cry? What if I slip and say something at dinner? There is a reason why girls don't do this!

September 3, 2012. 6:00 pm. I arrive to retrieve The Eagle.  We go to dinner.  I drag it out until McCain texts me the green light to come back by telling College Roomie every. single. detail. about my weekend in Stillwater.  I mean, things like, "And then we went to the Penny where Blonde OSU Girl ordered a Michelob Ultra and Loud Oklahoma Girl ordered....." you get the idea.  She probably thought I was crazy.  At one point, she brought up the fact that she thought McCain might propose next spring, close to their anniversary.  I bit my lip so hard it bled.  She was so clueless.

September 3, 2012.  7:35 pm.  We head back to College Roomie's house.  She says, "Shouldn't we stop for ice cream?"  I said, "No, let's go by your house first" and just kept on talking about other things to distract her.  But I ended up distracting myself and took a wrong street.  I said, "Where did your house go?!?!"  She said, "It's still one street over like it always is."  Nerves may be getting to me. 

September 3, 2012.  7:40 pm.  We pull up at College Roomie's house.  She asks why we had to come there first.  I hand her the book as I was instructed.  She reads half of it, and begins to cry.  I cry.  She says, "What is going on?  How long have you known about this?"  I said, "Just keep reading!"  She finishes the book, and says, "What do I do now?"  I tell her, "Go inside, and leave your to go box here.  You may need your hands."  And then said, "Don't forget about me out here in the car waiting!"

Will she say yes?  Will she yell at me for lying?  Will I die of a heart attack waiting in the car?  Stay tuned tomorrow for the completion of our trilogy, written by College Roomie herself!

That Time I Lied to College Roomie for One Month and Three Days (Part I)

"We're all a little weird. And life is a little weird. And when we find someone whose weirdness is compatible with ours, we join up with them and fall into mutually satisfying weirdness - and call it love - true love." ~Robert Fulghum, True Love


Yesterday, I promised you a good story.  This is is so long, it's going to have to be a three day trilogy.  Just for the basic background you need, here is a visual.

July 31, 2012.  10:35 am.  McCain calls and we're talking about work and what not.  He says, "Do you have time for coffee this week."  I think to myself, "This sucker knows I don't drink coffee, what does he want?"  Then he says, "We have important matters to discuss."  Now, the lady-like response would be, "Well certainly, coffee sounds lovely."  My bull-in-a-china-closet-self response was, "You better not be jacking around here and important matters better mean what I think it does."  He says, "Let's just say we should not tell College Roomie that we are meeting."  That was all I needed to hear.  Cue tears.  What is it about weddings and proposals that flips some sort of hormone switch in girls??  Sheesh.

July 31, 2012.  2:00 pm.  I enlist the Oklahoma Girls for help.  I knew generally what kind of ring College Roomie wanted, but was not totally sure on the diamond cut.  The four of us girls do group emails about random stuff every day.  So....Blonde OK Girl sends around an email about her dream engagement ring and we all jump in and show ours off.  (Sidenote:  BOKG said that she was really liking "simple" right now, and then proceeded to send us a $51,000 ring.  Another blog for another day, that one is!)  College Roomie, so trusting and unsuspecting, played right into our hand.  When I passed the intel on to McCain, he was impressed at my handy work.

August 1, 2012.  1:30 pm.  McCain and I meet for coffee.  After some small talk, I finally smack my hand on the table and say, "Let's get down to business."  Turns out he had already looked at rings and had an idea.  He showed me on his phone--it was perfect.  Completely perfect.  But, he's cautious, so he wanted me to see it in person.  We devised a plan for he and I to meet on Sunday afternoon at the jewelry store.  He had a work meeting that day anyway, and would just pretend it lasted longer.  I vowed to ignore College Roomie's questions about my plans for the day.  We talked about the proposal plan, which I approved of.  I also got him her step dad's phone number and discussed the plan for them meeting to ask for permission.  I will distract her, I promised, even offering to fake a nervous/mental breakdown if necessary.  Go big or go home, kids.

August 1, 2012.  7:00 pm.  College Roomie and I had weekly dinner at my house.  She asked me about my day and what I did.  I completely lied and said I just stayed at the office all day.  No mention of the aforementioned coffee.  I almost slipped once and said, "Yea, today McCain said....." but I caught myself.  Close call.  When she left, I said, "Tell McCain I said hi" you know, for good measure.

August 4, 2012.  7:55 am.  I rifled through a bunch of boxes in my laundry room to find a little red one that contains the ring that College Roomie bought when we faked we were engaged and went to a wedding show.  Why, you ask?  Because McCain and I don't know her ring size and I'm clever and resourceful like that.  We both thought that given events occurring shortly after that wedding show that pretending to be brides might have jinxed us about getting actually engaged.  Clearly that was not the case for College Roomie.  Jury is still out on me.

August 5, 2012. 2:00 pm.  I met McCain at the jewelry store.  Can I just say I now have a newfound appreciation for what boys go through?  This stuff is stressful.  What size?  Shape?  Clarity?  Color?  Type of gold?  I was about to break out in hives.  Best part of the day?  The sales lady is filling out her form and says, "So you want 18 karat" and I say, "Whoa lady hold the phone, how big is this ring?"  Ha...turns out she meant 18 karat gold, not an 18 karat ring.  I feared McCain was buying some sort of engagement medalian.  Oh, and it was tax free weekend and we were at the mall, so ya know....I bought myself a new outfit or two.  What?  I called it my "I'm not getting a ring, but I can get a new skirt" shopping spree.

August 16, 2012. 8:00 am.  McCain called to tell me he was the official owner of a ring.  I told him it was time to get this show on the road because I'm DYING not telling College Roomie anything.  Plus, me and the other Gossip Girls have been planning their wedding and we really need to get some input from her.  Since she's the bride and all.  He says he needs some time alone to work on things.

August 17, 2012.  3:00 pm.  I text McCain the following, "College Roomie and I are having lunch tomorrow.  I still see if I can drag it out to buy you some time."  He wrote back thanking me for the info and said that he would use his time wisely to work on the proposal stuff.

August 18, 2012.  1:00 pm.  I meet College Roomie and her sister for lunch.  McCain is there.  While College Roomie orders, I say, "What the heck are you doing here?  This is not time used wisely."  He said he had been at the office and needed to eat.  I find this unacceptable, but kept my cool.

August 21, 2012.  2:30 pm.  I email McCain and tell him that this blog I am working on about the proposal is getting entirely too long.  I demand a timeline on this proposal.  Patience is running low.

Stay tuned tomorrow for Part 2 of our little trilogy....

College Football Kickoff Weekend Recap

"No one looks back on their life and remembers the nights they had plenty of sleep."

I feel like I got hit by a truck.  I'm pretty sure that science (and by science, I mean me) has proven that once a girl turns 28, she is no longer able to go out and live it up like a college kid for three days in a row.  But I'm no quitter, so I gave it my best shot.

As y'all know, I headed to Stillwater for the kickoff to the college football season.  The weekend involved:

--Dinner and drinks in Bricktown at which time we may or may not have been cut off by the bartender.  We have me and Loud Oklahoma Girl to thank for that one....apparently us after two drinks is as loud as most people who are intoxicated, our bad!

--Some dancing at the Wormy Dog.  Is there anything more fun than some two-stepping to a live band?  I don't think so.

--Me and Loud Oklahoma Girl waking up early to run around Boomer Lake (and therefore annoying all of the lazy folks who didn't want to get up at 5:45 in the morning).

--Breakfast and shopping with my favorite Little Linebacker.  Aunt Tiff bought him an elmo with a drum set and tambourine that was quite the hit. 

--Quality time with SoulMate Friend and Tuba Man at their awesome new house.  This also involved Aunt Tiff spinning Little Linebacker around in circles by his feet until I got dizzy and thought I might be sick.  He was not impressed that I had to stop.

--Lunch with my girl Sis who is a current OSU student in charge of representing for me when I'm not there.

--Tailgating.  Enough said.

--Seeing the bricks that College Roomie and I purchased together so that our names will always be at OSU!

--Limees at the Penny.  Duh.

--The hottest football game ever (where my Pokes rolled 84-0 and played all 99 guys on the roster).

--Penny again, where I found my dear friend Mr. Animal House Boy and met up with Kiddo.  Made my night.  I also earned a battle scar.  While dancing with Mr. Animal House Boy, he twirled me into a dude holding a cigar.  I've now got what I'm self diagnosing as a second degree burn on my harm.  I should have learned my lesson 6 years ago when Mr. Animal House boy twirled me into the juke box and we broke it.  I'm a little slow.

--Church and lunch with some of my favorite people.

--A lovely evening with the Chocolate Browns. 

Phew.  Just writing it makes me tired again.  Here is the photo evidence.

Now y'all be sure to stay tuned tomorrow.....because the most exciting part of the weekend is still to come.  It may or may not involve an engagement.  Trust me, it's a good story. :)

It's Here!!

"Every day should be Saturday, because college football is too important to be left up to the professionals." 

That's right, folks.....it's the most wonderful time of the year.  Hello, college football season.  This girl is crawling on a plane headed to the Happiest Place on Earth (aka Stillwater, Oklahoma) to do it up right.

This was probably made by someone who sat next
to me and Loud Oklahoma Girl last season!

It's time to dawn some orange, drink some limees, waive some wheat, make appearances at some tailgates, scream like crazy people and cheer on the Pokes!!

Dear Wes Lunt:  I know you're only 18, but if you could play similar to the 28 year old quarterback we had last year, I'd appreciate it.  And no pressure or anything, but I talked you up pretty big after the Spring Game, so let's not let me down, mkay?  Awesome.

Me and Wes Lunt after the Spring Game

Dear Oklahoma Girls:  You best be rested up, because we have a lot of fun to be had.  I'm just saying.

Dear Copper Penny:  Not going to lie, I'm concerned about this remodeling rumor I have heard.  If things are different, I may have a nervous breakdown.  No lie.  You can calm me down with a cherry limee.  See your lovely walls on Saturday!

Cow photos on the wall and cow crap on the floor...
..no wonder I love this bar

Dear Little Linebacker:  Aunt Tiff is coming to down.  You know that means football, touchdowns, and Pistol Pete.  It also means we have a date for pancakes on Saturday morning.  Cannot wait to see your sweet face!

Dear College Football Season:  You have no idea how much I've missed you.  You were just about as awesome as you could be last year, but if you'd like to try and top it this year, you just go right ahead.


Big 12 Champs!

Fiesta Bowl Champs!

Happy College Football Season to you all!  And, of course, Go Pokes!

Traveling To San Francisco (Part 1): What to See and Do

"If you’re alive, you can’t be bored in San Francisco. If you’re not alive, San Francisco will bring you to life." ~ William Saroyan

For those of you who are new to the blog, I LOVE San Francisco.  I've visited tons of times and even lived there for 4 months during law school.  I often get questions about what to do and where to go in San Francisco.  I got emails from three different people asking me this last week, so I figured I'd blog about it!  Today, we've got what to see and do.  Tomorrow I'll cover where to eat.

Listen, there is so much to do and see in San Francisco, that you really can't go wrong.  Heck, you really can just set out and wander around and find amazing neighborhoods, shops, farmers markets, restaurants....without even planning it.  But, for you planners like me, here is my list!

1.  Alcatraz.  This is a must.  Everyone who I took out there loved it.  And I never got bored, even after the 10th time!  It is fascinating.  Be sure when you book that you get the boat that actually lands on Alcatraz and lets you off for the tour.  Only one company has the contract with the parks service....other companies just take you on a cruise around it, which is no good.  They offer day tours and night tours....I've never done the night one, but I bet it's super creepy!

2.  Biking the Bridge.  If you're pretty active, I highly, highly recommend biking the Golden Gate Bridge!  I mean, honestly, how cool is it to say you did that?  The bike route is great and super safe and you get some amazing views.  You bike from the rental place near the Wharf down the waterfront, over the bridge, and down into Sausalito, which is the most adorable town!  We did some shopping and got some ice cream and then took the ferry boat back.  It was such a great day!  I think we used this company, but there are lots of great options.

3.  Ferry Building Farmer's Market.  If y'all are thinking "we have these at home" trust me...you don't!  I seriously went here every weekend when I lived in SF.  It's amazing.  The fruit is so fresh and so delicious.  Strawberries and white necatarines.  Sigh.  They also have cheeses and baked goods and veggies and fresh flowers...it's phenominal.  The last time I was in SF for the half marathon, the girls and I bought all the fixins for a picnic lunch at the Farmer's Market and it was awesome.  The market is on Tuesdays and Saturdays!  Go early.  If you're lucky (or unlucky!) like me and Chocolate Brown, you might stumble upon a nudist colony that happens to periodically show up at the park across the street.  That was an interesting experience....

4.  Walk Around North Beach.  Everyone you talk to will have their own favorite neighborhood in North Beach.  For this girl, it's North Beach.  No question.  I love everything about it--the people, the restaurants, the shops, Washington Square Park, St. Peter and Paul....you name it.  The best place to kick off the little tour is at Washington Square Park.  If you go in the morning, you'll see all the cute little Chinese ladies doing tai chi in the park.  From there you can just wander around and I promise you will not be disappointed.  There are great little bookstores, gellato places, bakeries, fun bars, amazing Italian food...you name it.  (More on the food options in my blog next week!)  You can take the trolley (you want Powell and Bay) down and add that to the experience.

5.  Find a San Francisco Event!  There is always, ALWAYS something going on in San Francisco.  During the summer, there is a street fair every weekend, and they are tons of fun.  On the Fourth of July, they have free concerts by the Hyde Street Pier--the girls and I discovered Notorious one summer and could not have had more fun.  Bay to Breakers is a huge party in the streets every May.  The San Francisco Marathon is such a blast!  I could go on forever....

Honorable mentions:  Take in the view from Twin Peaks (on a clear day); Golden Gate Park (don't miss the Japanese Tea Gardens!); Walk around the Haight (the "hippie" area); Seeing all the crazy acts on Fisherman's Wharf; See the Full House houses at Alamo Square Park.

I Think I'll Be A Tow Truck Driver

"Kids: they dance before they learn there is anything that isn't music." ~William Stafford

My friend has the cutest three year old son you'll ever meet.  Big ol' blue eyes and blonde hair and the cutest little grin.  Yesterday, she told me a story about this little one that really made me think.

One morning before school, the three year old and his five year old brother were talking about what they wanted to be when they grew up.  The three year old said, "I want to help people."  His brother replied, "Brother, that's great!  You can be a doctor."  The three year old said, simply, "No, I think I'll be a tow truck driver."

To the three year old, it was simple.  He wanted to help people.  Sometimes, people's cars break down and they need a tow.  Being a tow truck driver helps people.  That's what he'd do.

The innocent view of the world from the eyes of a child is something to which our adult eyes have grown blind.  We are consumed with power and prestige and money and reputations.  Often, even when we say we want to "help people" we are really trying to help our own pocket books.

But what if we lived our adult lives with three year old eyes?  What if we set out each day thinking, "I want to help people" and then just did that.  Even if it meant unglamorous, but helpful things like driving tow trucks?  What if we just started small...we opened doors, we let someone get in during rush hour traffic, we helped the woman carrying the groceries to her car, we bought food for the homeless man on the corner?  My guess is that if we did these small things, we'd move right on to doing bigger things.

Even if my little friend doesn't become a tow truck driver, I hope that he keeps his three year old eyes and goal of helping people.  And I hope that I can take this glimpse through his eyes and apply his logic to my own life.  Because think of what a great place the world would be if we all set out each day to be a tow truck driver...

Never Finer

“This town of churches and dreams; this town I thought I would lose myself in, with its backward ways and winding roads leading to nowhere; but, I found myself instead." ~Kellie Elmore

A tiny white church sitting at the top of a hill overflows with people.  Men standing outside in cowboy hats and boots.  Women sitting in the pews with their hair poofed and their pearls on.  Flower arrangements fill the window sills.  Old, familiar songs drift out the open door.  How Great Thou Art.  Old Rugged Cross.  Amazing Grace.

Most Sundays, the people inside go to various churches.  But today, no one notices the differences.  Methodist or Catholic, Baptist or Mormon, Epsicopalian or Assemblies of God.  Today, everyone sits together.  They hug each other as they walk in and say the Our Father in unison.  Differences matter not.  They mourn together, they pray together, and they remember together.

Photo via

And then at the quiet, country cemetery, everyone gathers around a grave.  The sun beats down and the ranchers talk about rain, or the last basketball season, or the last time that they all stood in the same cemetery around a different grave.  Because this same community has been here before and will be here again.  Together.

Once the prayers have been prayed and Taps has been played, they load up into their pickup trucks and drive to the old school building for lunch.  Because if there is one thing that small town ladies do right, its a funeral meal.  A spread big enough to feed an army sits out on tables that span the width of the basketball court. And here, people recognize the different dishes based on the cooks.  "Oh, that's Mary's chocolate cake" or "Those look like Pam's enchilladas."  And before the meal, the men remove their hats, the kids put down the basketball, and the priest blesses the food.  Because that's how you start a meal.

Small towns are not for everyone.  There are no fancy restaurants.  You have to drive two hours to the nearest Wal-Mart.  A lot of people there have never flown on an airplane or seen the ocean or owned a passport. 

But they know the meaning of neighbors, and of community, and of love.  And they show it when times get hard.  And if you ask me, small towns are never finer than in these moments.

*Linking up with Rural Thursday.

The Color Run Recap!

"I think of life itself as a wonderful play that I've written for myself, and so my purpose is to have the utmost fun playing my part." ~Shirley MacLaine

This weekend was The Color Run.....I put this race on my bucket list the minute I heard about it.  I was so excited to check it off!  It was even better that I had some friends from back home drive up to join in the fun.  It was awesome.  I'll let the pictures speak for themselves.  Well, that and the awesome video that my friend JB created. 

I said I'd let the pictures and video do the talking, but y'all know me.  Obviously that's not true.  A few random thoughts. 

I'm all for going all out and trying to be the person most covered in colored powder.  Seriously.  However, I found it totally inappropriate for people to lay down and literally roll around on the street at the color stations trying to get more powder on them.  That's the FREAKIN' STREET, people.  Yea.....not acceptable.

Also not acceptable are the hard core crazy runners.  Listen, I get it.  I own a Nike Plus watch and I log my runs and want to get a personal best at a race just like everyone else does.  But did you really think that the people at this race were going to be hard core?  You saw the website, right?  And the costumes at the start line?  Your shock and awe when you had to slow down and wait to go through the first color station annoyed me.  Just saying.

Why is it that after a race I can justify eating pretty much anything I want for that day?  For example, after the race we all headed to The Grove for brunch.  I order a very reasonable, responsible breakfast.  And then get a cupcake at 9 in the morning.  Why?  I just ran a race, give me a break.  Later that day, I may or may not have polished off a whole row of Double Stuff Oreos.  Pretty sure the 300 calories I burned runninng were long gone by that point.  Fail.

Lastly, if you ever get a chance to participate in The Color Run, do it.  You'll have a blast.  (It's possible that if this blue/green stain all the way down my arm and the strip of orange down my back doesn't go away within the next few days, my tune may change...)