WELL.....the alarm brought me out of bed at 5:30 AM this morning......I laid back down for five minutes and then quickly got my sagging body ready to leave for Edinburg, TX.....about 25 miles up the Valley. Oh yeah.....where was I going at that time of day????? Well.......
Barack Obama was coming to the Valley this morning!!!! So, I fixed my French Roast, poured my travel cup full, and then put the remaining coffee into my Thermos bottle. Then.......I quietly got out of TheHowserHouse and head west up Exp. 83 and then north on US 281. I had checked out mapquest last night and knew fairly well the route I needed to go to arrive at the Univ. of Texas-Pan American campus. And.......I remembered correctly.......as I quickly parked in the Student Parking Lot.....gambling that I would not get a ticket with this LARGE event occurring on campus this morning.
I asked a student.....who WAS sitting on a brick wall at 6:15AM....how to get to the Chapel area....and soon I saw all of the trucks, bleachers, chairs, movable iron fence sections, police, security personnel, guys dressed in dark suits(Secret Service), etc., etc. With a couple of more questions asked, I located where the beginning of the line....soon to be a LONG, LONG, LONG line.....where to line up. Well.......I was about the 8th or 9th person in line by 6:20AM. More questions asked and I found out that this line would continue to get longer for the next THREE hours as the security gates would not be opening until 9:30!
Sooooo, those of there began to get acquainted......what else could we do at that time of the morning while we were standing on our feet......waiting??????? And so, I met this wonderful Latino family........the father was an area CPA, the mother was a professional, and they had their 15 year old daughter that was "skipping" school for this event. As the hours went by we learned a lot about each other's lives.......that they go to Europe every two years or so......that the father was originally from the West Memphis, Arkansas area...........just lots of talk, lots of talk of politics, and how they had gone from voting for "W" the last two times and had left the G.O.P.......fed up with what has happened to our country by this current Administration!! Hmmmmm.........did we ever develop a common bond for being at this Obama Event!!!!
Sooooo, three hours went by rather quickly.....well sort-of! Then by 9:30 the security detector gates had been set up and activated......and we all emptied our pockets, went through the gates and then stood while the security personnel waved the detector wands over us, both front and back. And then........off we went quickly to get our place at the very front of the event area, standing by the iron "fence" sections.......and I told the others, since I have been at these large events before, that to stand back away from these fences as when the thousands of others began to gather, we would be pushed up against these fences....and that this is NOT pleasant!!!!
And so........we began to the next two hours of standing and talking......and holding our place in the very, very front of the stage....which was only about 8 feet away! Oh yeah.......there are lots and lots of pushy people, but we kept our distance from the fence and kept our position without being pushed and shoved from our PRIME viewing spot.
By 11:30, the many, many press cameras and people were in place, the thousands of people/students were in place and soon formal introductions and "warm-ups" began......and then the excitement mounted.....the music began to blare over the speakers .......the cameras turned to the right.......our heads turned to the right.....and then there he came, without a suit coat....and shaking hands, patting others on their backs......and thoroughly enjoying his trip to the stage....and the thousands cheering and shouting "O-BA-MA" over and over and over!!! YEP......this was a terrific experience. And finally, as he took to the stage, he began his 30 minute "stump speech" to the wild cheers and applause and chanting.......and it was one of those special times when you feel like you are a part of something that will never ever happen again for you......for your own personal experience in this Lifetime!!! WOW!!!!!
And then those 30 minutes went by soooo quickly, and when Obama finished the chanting, the shouting, the momentum building as he stood there smiling, refreshing himself with a bottle of water.....and then he signaled to the Security and Secret Service personnel that he would be making the rounds by the fence in front of us.....and we were quickly facing these body protectors in their very dark suits with dark sunglasses and earpieces with little body colored wires running into their shirt collars......and a tiny microphone on the cuffs of their stiff shirts.
In a very quick few minutes, Obama was soon coming right along the fence, shaking hands....giving hugs....smiling....talking with everyone......leaning into the shouting and pleading crowds.....the Secret Service doing everything they could to protect him as they gazed intensely at the people looking for something that they hoped they wouldn't see......and they didn't!!! And THEN.......he was in front of me....shaking my hand.....and I told him that I had spoken with him in St. Louis over a year ago when he was there campaigning and giving a speech for the election of Claire McCaskill to the US Senate.......Claire, our new Missouri Senator, is a friend and former client of my son who is a political campaign consultant. Obama said, "Yes....I remember well that evening in the Park in STL". Of course I knew he wouldn't remember me......why would he??
And then he moved on slowly down the front of the fence......and greeting everyone who reached out to him!! Shortly after he moved on down the fence line, I checked my watch......it was 12:45....and so I began to make.....to TRY to make my exit from this secured area. That task took until 1 PM.....I found my truck...without a ticket on it....and headed back to Llano Grande, sooooooo.........
We could leave at 2:30pm for Pepe's on the River......that fun watering hole which sits right on the bank of the Rio Grande River.....has great seating for several hundred with open walls to the outside and a thatched roof, with a great C&W band playing for dancing. Pete and Jane arrived from their Cedar Creek on the east side of the Resort, Ron and Linda arrived....and we were soon on our way...about a 30 minute drive.
Arriving at Pepe's, we parked and then found the others who were coming for the afternoon.......and we wound up with 22-24 people sitting at adjoining tables....a LONG table!!! GREAT FUN!!!!!!!!!!!! I had sort of organized this.......laid the idea out earlier in the week since Pete and Jane were going to be here........and I was soooooo excited to see sooooo many of our friends there.....that they were able to make it!!! Don't even think I can recall all who were there, but.......please don't feel offended.......you know....short term memory loss at this advancing age of my sagging hulk.
We were there for several hours, having some beer, tacos, and other Mexican specialties!!!! We enjoyed the conversations, the music, the dancing, and the beautiful sunset on the river as the sun went down behind the trees of that great and colorful country of Mexico!!!! And to think......there are those (perhaps some of you?) who feel this should all be fenced off......this area made invisible to see......this beautiful and peaceful area of our two countries!!! All I can think of is.......the Berlin Wall!!!!!!! There has to be other solutions to this problem......which, I, too, acknowledge IS a problem.......but not to be resolved by erecting a fence.....not by closing in OUR country with a fence!!!!!!!! A terrible, terrible idea!!!!!
After the sunset was completed, we returned to Llano Grande and TheHowserHouse for some peace and quiet. My sagging hulk......well, damn...but it is REALLY sagging tonight!!!!! After standing for 6.5 hours in a few square inches of space........after dancing several times this afternoon including doing the twist all the way to the floor.........I need to bring this to a close!!!
What do you think?????? I don't even need to write my last, traditional line, but........for almost three years I have always closed my little blog of ramblin's thoughts with it, and so......what else could I say tonight but......
LIFE IS JUST INCREDIBLY GREAT.....REALLY GREAT!!!!!!.......And, I hope it is for all of you, also!!!!!
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