Have you been enjoying the cooler weather? I sure have!! It’s hard to make myself go inside!! I love feeling the cool wind at the same time that my skin feels warmth from the sun. It’s a perfect feeling!!
Looky Here Design by Lori Rice
Listen…….the holidays are coming up. Are you looking for a unique gift for someone that is an animal lover?!?! Do you have an idea for some art that you want? Have you considered buying a beautiful piece of decoration for outside? One of the sweetest people I know is a fantastic artist and I would love for you to check out her work!! These pictures are from a recent Art Walk here in Longview but this is only a fraction of her work.
Please let me introduce you to Lori Rice. Her artistic abilities completely amaze me. There is no limit to what this young lady can do!!
Below are a couple of the pictures of her artwork. Awesome, right?!?! Please check out her Facebook page, Looky Here Design, so you can see the vast amount of work that she can do for you! If you have any kind of project you want done, you owe it to yourself to call her!! Her work is stellar and you will most definitely be pleased if you let her fulfill your art needs!!! Check out the photos on her Facebook page and you will see exactly how talented she is.
Lori is one of the most genuine people I know and one of her gifts is beautifying the world around us!!!
Harleton Homecoming
It’s been a super long time since I went to Homecoming. I remember the huge mums that we wore that pulled our shirts sideways and the tons of streamers that dangled so far down that we kicked them with every step. Do you remember when they mums got so large that they required an extra mum that would hang over your shoulder to help balance the weight of the enormous mum dangling down the front of your shirt? Wow!! The bigger the better!! I’m sure most of us still have shoulder issues from carrying around the huge mums for 1 night!! And after that, we hung them on the wall of our bedrooms until after graduation, right? So much fun!
I wasn’t really into watching football during my high school years and that is a shame because we had a really great football team with tons of talent. I spent a large portion of every game wandering around behind the bleachers and mingling with everyone. We eventually made our way to the stands to cheer for the team, but mostly just to talk to the friends that weren’t under the bleachers! Of course we always enjoyed the halftime shows with the band, the cheerleaders, and the Mavettes. After the game, we would all link pinkies with whoever was to your left and right and sing the school song before we poured out into the parking lot and went home. Homecoming was always extra special.
So, this year, almost 25 years after my last homecoming, we went to Harleton’s Homecoming. To give you a general idea of the size difference of Marshall vs Harleton…..when I graduated from Marshall, there was almost 400 people in my graduating class and when Kym graduated from Harleton, there was 28 people in her graduating class. So this homecoming was a bit smaller than the last homecoming I went to but the stands were completely packed!! The thing about a small town is that everyone knows everyone so it seemed more like a family reunion. They were grilling burgers and there was a constant long line at the concession stand because, let’s face it, stadium food is ALWAYS the best!!
We grabbed our burgers, fries, and drinks and made our way into the stands. The weather was cool and perfect for football! The homecoming court was driven out onto the track in a beautiful shiny stretch limo. They were presented, one by one, by their fathers or grandfathers who helped them from the limo and walked them across the field. The dresses were stunning and the presentation was gorgeous. Homecoming Queen was crowned and I am sad to say that I didn’t retain her name but seeing the smile on the young lady’s face made everyone smile, clap, and cheer.
I tried to get a picture of the mums hanging on the megaphones but I couldn’t get close enough to see the details. These mums bring back so many wonderful memories.
The guys played hard but they were unable to win. We cheered and clapped and yelled, enjoying the atmosphere despite the fact that we were losing. There is something so indescribable about the feeling you get at Friday night football. The sounds of laughter from the kids in the stands, the rumble of the drums from the band, the shouts from the cheerleaders, and the screams from the stands when your team makes a good play.
Homecoming Cricket Invasion
As the game went on, the lights attracted more and more bugs. There was a swarm of bugs!! It was like a bad Alfred Hitchcock movie. Seriously! I have a major issue with bugs that dive bomb into you and the crickets were in full force. These little jerks can fly, jump, and crawl. COME ON!!
So…….time to cover up as much as possible to keep the crickets from getting tangled in my hair. I spent the last half of the game bundled up, trying to protect myself from the barrage of crickets. Everything was going great, with everyone continuously swiping crickets off of the people around them, until I noticed Kym pinching the leg of her jeans. Why?!?! What is wrong?!?! A cricket crawled up her shoe, under her pant leg, all the way up to her thigh. I almost passed out. Then I noticed the gentleman sitting next to me pinching the bottom of his pant leg because one crawled up his boot and into his pants. No ma’am. Time to take action. I pegged the bottom of my pants to block their access. Remember that from way back when? Who knew that the fashion statement from my high school days would save me from the cricket invasion of 2018 Homecoming???
Time for a bathroom break!! I was looking forward to getting away from the cloud of crickets so I don’t know if I really had to pee or if I just wanted to get inside for a few minutes! I strode down the bleachers to the restrooms, sporting my pegged pants and hoodie drawn tight around my face, not caring what I looked like. Huge sigh of relief…….I could remove my hoodie and relax for a minute. I chose a stall and I noticed the feet of a woman taking the stall next to me. Really pretty, open toe, platform sandals. About 4 seconds after I got fully into my vulnerable state, Mrs. Shoes next to me let out a death scream and practically did the splits in her stall because her really pretty left foot momentarily came shooting into my stall from underneath the stall wall, far enough that she almost kicked my foot. For women, this becomes a bonding moment that requires conversation. After she partially invaded my bathroom stall and caused my heart to skip a couple of beats, she was laughing, I was laughing, and she explained that a cricket fell from above and landed on her after she assumed the position!! GIRL!! I thought we were safe……but NO. There were fewer crickets in the bathroom, but that doesn’t matter when you are half dressed!!
I was having such a great time but I was thankful when the game ended and we were headed home. Not because I was ready to leave, but because I was happy to get away from the swarm of bugs!
With this funny memory being stored in my head, I am reminded of a great quote. “Focus on the journey, not the destination. Joy is found not in finishing an activity but in doing it” ~ G. Anderson
I hope this journey of mine was able to give you a giggle!! Hopefully next time you see a couple of crickets, you will remember this story and smile no matter what is going on. And maybe, just maybe, next time you are having a bad day, something will remind you that it could always be worse……you could be at a football game, surrounded by people, sitting in the middle of a cricket cloud, and realize that one of them is sneaking up your pant leg towards a place that would be inappropriate to grab or slap in public.
Don’t forget to call Lori to get your unique art!! And please, take delight in every moment of your life. Smile and remember the blessings you have instead of focusing on things you don’t have!!
