A Christmas of Independence

Christmas Eve finds most of the immediate family wearing double duty red. Not only is it the traditional color of the holiday, but it is also prominent around the Independence Bowl. Somehow, my wife and daughter have become immersed in bowl-related activities. The morning started with champagne-based eye openers, mimosas and poinsettias.



The occasion was ladies’ day out, an event which my wife co-chaired. She gamely faced the challenge of keeping wives of coaches and other athletic officials from the participating schools entertained on Christmas weekend. The ladies from Georgia Tech and the Air Force Academy seemed to have a nice attitude about the proceedings, even though it is self-evident that that are many other places they’d rather be.



With the game scheduled for the Monday after Christmas, it proved impossible to avoid spending the holiday on the road in an unfamiliar setting. My wife and those surrounding her set out to smother them with kindness (and a little more champagne) to take the edge off. It seemed to work out as almost everyone appeared to genuinely make the best of things.



I somehow became convinced to call BINGO for the ladies. There were valuable prizes involved. I tried to keep ‘em laughing. I’m not so sure about all that, but they did leave my portion of the event with armloads of free stuff and that can’t be all bad.



Concurrently, the daughter was conveniently corralling youngsters at kids’ day out.
This is part of her duty as an Independence Bowl Ambassador. The night before, she and the other ambassadors got to hang around with the football teams. She is notorious for her discomfort around small children, so today’s event was an exercise in personal growth. I asked her if the kids were well behaved. She paused, took a deep breath and said “most of them.” Again, it’s all about attitude. Hers was positive, for the most part. There are a couple more days of ambassadorial duties ahead, including the game itself. She’s staying busy and that counts for something.
Until the game rolls around, we will keep the spirit alive and keep digging through the closets and the drawers looking for something else red to wear.
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The bowl game has a new mascot this year, which of course means a photo op:

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Big Blue Balloon Amazes Medium Sized City

I'm sure people in the big cities are entirely too cool to notice something like a blimp hanging around in the sky, but when a dirigible lingers over a city like Shreveport, people get kind of wide-eyed.

I was driving around town late in the day and saw something unusual in the sky. I felt like Steve Martin and Bill Murray on Saturday Night Live in the late 70's, thinking "What in the hell is that?

Then, "What in the HELL is that?"

Then, "What in the hell IS that?"

A blimp?

Of course, I gave chase. I wasn't the only one. Along the road, people were pulling over, hefting their cell phones and cameras, scrunching up their faces as they looked westward into the setting sun, taking pictures of the whatever-the-hell...is-that-a-blimp? thing.

Finally I chased it down, and yep. The DirecTV blimp was flying low and slow, doing circles around the city.

I'm not sure why. Most people discussing it figured it was on its way from a NASCAR race in Dallas to another race in Alabama. It makes sense, geographically.
Shazam, we had us a blimp today. Sometimes, you take these little moments as they come.

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I Was Attacked By a Duck

Proud Mother Duck
Originally uploaded by Darrell

This little lady looks happy, doesn't she? Judging from this photo alone, you might think she's offering a feathery warm greeting to her human visitor. I mean, as a duck swims, she's got it going on. She is insulated from natural predators. She has people feeding her all the time. There's plenty of water nearby and lots of brush to nest in.
A picture is worth a thousand words, they say. Sometimes, though, those words are lies. While she may generally be the very essence of avian contentment, at this moment she is hissing mad!

April Ducklings
Originally uploaded by Darrell

That's because she was going about the business of protecting her 13 children! There they are, huddled innocently against the world. Why, in this photo, do they seem exposed, unprotected?
Because their mother has just flown at me and pecked my hand, that's why.
It wasn't scary, although it was a little startling. I respect her motherly instincts.
We have taken her offspring into protective custody. Think she was mad when I was taking a picture? You should see her now. She's all flappy and quacky and quite upset.
We will feed them and set them free right alongside mom, even though she did peck the hand that feeds her.

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