Joy offered me the use of his razor. I guess I was looking pretty shaggy. I couldn't bring my own because the TSA doesn't want anyone on airplanes to bust into the cockpit and give the copilot a close, comfortable shave. I was planning on just letting it grow for the week. We're close to Amish country, after all. I guess that's unacceptable behavior in the Henthorn household, though. So I shaved. [since writing this I've learned that you CAN bring cartridge razors onto flights... Unkempt copilots beware!]
The parade was about what i expected. I've been to small town parades before. This one, however, had Pres. Obama in it! OK, it was a guy in a mask advertising for a limo rental company. Come to think of it, there were a LOT of people in the parade just driving their work trucks/cars in shameless shows of advertising. No float, no costume, not even some streamers. Apparently the only criteria for participating is that you bring a bucket of cheap candy. Oh, and beads. I had enough beads thrown at me to supply myself, Rachel, and the girl sitting to my right! I guess what they say about country boys is true. I certainly won't be wandering about town after dark by myself. Apparently the temptation is too much to resist! (just kidding... not all country boys are gay)
The parade ended and we tried to go to a BBQ place called Haydens, but it was closed so we went home and had hamburgers. I helped Pat clean up and everyone took a nap while I took time to catch up on this journal.
Until dinner time we hung around the house. Rachel, Joy and i picked some potatoes for use at an undisclosed time. Rachel found it VERY exciting and thought i should as well.
For dinner we had home made pizza. They had zucchini on 'em, which was a first for me. Joy wished that they had mushrooms to add. I, on the other hand, was thankful for their absence. The pizzas were "white", which around here means "no sauce". After dinner we went to the newly opened cold-slab ice cream, which was a treat. We don't eat at such places back home, because Rachel says they're food poisoning factories.
We staked our claim out front of the Colosseum, which I assumed was a venue for shows. Earlier in the day Rachel read that Whitesnake was going to be playing there in some 80's hair-metal reunion extravaganza. I wonder if Whitesnake knows that they'll be playing at the town's indoor swimming pool. Oh, to see the looks on their faces. Rachel discovered that her name was on a brick in front of the joint. Turns out Joy's brother had something to do with the construction of the place and put it in there, which was really sweet.
Before the display everyone we could see, and some we couldn't, were shooting off fireworks in anticipation of the big show. At one point the fire truck went tearing off, no doubt to put out a fireworks-related fire. The cops had to put a stop to some teenagers lighting off works under the covered walkway going into the Colosseum right next to us.
Pat brought some heavy-duty bug repellent (reserved for special occasions) and i used it liberally. While we were in the downtown area I went to take a picture of a beautiful old building (not ruined) that had a lovely "Historic Downtown Poplar Bluff" sign painted on the side of it that i had noticed earlier at the parade (but forgot the camera). In a shop in the very same building I saw some people Rachel's and my age that looked like the sort of art-folks we hang out with on 3rd Fridays downtown in Phoenix. Unfortunately I didn't have time to approach them.
The fireworks display was easily just as good as any i'd ever seen. I was quite impressed. A big difference from the parade earlier in the day. I guess if anyone can just go buy their own fireworks, you'd really have to step it up for the official display.
Traffic back to the house was monstrous. It took us quite a while to get home. That night we went to sleep to the sounds of distant, and not so distant, explosions.
Tick count: 0
Vocab: you'uns - you (plural)
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