Leftovers From the Road

Darrell in Kentucky
Originally uploaded by Darrell

(Lexington, KY) - Our departure from the Bluegrass state has been delayed slightly by the icy conditions. I've said many times, "If I ever talk about moving to someplace cold, have me immediately arrested." Daddy D doesn't do cold.
The Unversity of Kentucky's shade of blue is beautiful to my eye. if I lived here, I think I'd wear school colors almost every day. It's very tempting to load up on a bunch of UK gear, just for the color. I know that wouldn't fly in purple & gold country, though; so, my credit card is safe.
I spent a lot of time in the press box Saturday night and I was grateful for it. The driving rain never became snow, so the conditions were borderline miserable to me. I was amazed and amused by the number of people who were transfixed by their BlackBerries and i-Phones during the game. Between texting with friends and keeping up with scores around the country, people up and down the rows of media and dignitaries seemed to be in some kind of prayerful posture. I was among the devoted, keeping an eye on LSU's improbable comeback at home against Troy. The Tigers fell behind by 31-3, but scored 37 unanswered points to win. I watched it unfold through live stats on my Blackberry. Technology amazes me.
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Here's something I don't understand: I've stayed in a lot of inexpensive hotels in my day, and usually internet access is free. I'm staying at a relatively pricey place this weekend, and they charge us ten bucks a day to get onto the net. Somehow, that defies common sense.
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It's been a tough weekend for my blue-clad hosts. The men's and women's basketball teams lost and so did the football team. The volleyball team won, though. I'm in the same hotel with the volleyball squad from the University of Florida. Those girls are tall!
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After the Vanderbilt football team beat Kentucky, I encountered a Kentucky fan who was attempting to deride the celebrating Commodores. They were thrilled to be bowl eligible. The Kentucky fan was screaming 'You're going to Shreveport!" He did not mean this as a compliment. I walked up to him and said, 'Hello, I'm from Shreveport. If your team comes to our bowl game, we would love to see you there. I think you would have a good time."
He stared at me. I said, "We're proud of our bowl game and we would be thrilled to have either of these teams. I just want to invite you to come and I promise we will show you a nice time."
He said, "You're making me feel like an ass. I'm just upset." I said, "Please don't use Shreveport as a taunt. It's a nice place and we would be excited to see you there."
He said "Okay, sorry."
Kill 'em with kindness. That's our way.

Now, it's time to de-ice the wings and head home.

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