2005-07-19 - 4:01 p.m.
Aaaaaaaand that pretty much describes it!
Fred and I returned from our trip to Lubbock yesterday morning. At 3am.
Thank you, Major Airline. I do so enjoy your many, many delays. I was hoping, when I purchased my ridiculously overpriced ticket, that I would get to sit on the runway for a GRAND TOTAL OF FIVE HOURS. Nothing's funner than going nowhere!
Anyway, The trip had its ups and downs. I love the people in Lubbock. They are so friendly. But, in spite of that, I felt homesick for my own home. I just wanted my own bed, you know?
We had a great wedding party with a pretty good turn out (not to mention, amazing food) Also, my instincts were confirmed when I learned that Freddie was a real rascal as a kid. As you can imagine, stories flowed all evening...most of them (to my amusement) started like this:
"This one time? At Revival?"
Revival, to those readers NOT "borndt" in the South, is a MAJOR happening in the summer. Every summer. In just about every community in the South. You don't even have to be specific about it. It's never "This" revival or "That" revival. It's just Revival. Fred's been redeemed and washed in the blood of the lamb about 15 times, thanks to Revival. Fred's most hilarious boy-getting-whupped-for-being-ornery stories start with "This one time? At Revival?"
Yup. Here comes trouble!
But more on church in Lubbock: Man, those folks love church. I'm not kidding, there's really a church on practically every street corner. Who goes to all these churches? How do they stay in business?
"Well, E, Lubbock has over 200,000 residents. I know that seems podunk tiny to a city-girl like you...but it's actually a fairly big town."
I guess it seems small to me because when you are flying into Lubbock, you see miles of cotton patches and then? a little dot of humanity: Lubbock. I'm used to Los Angeles and New York City - major urban sprawl. I'm used to cities blending into one another and you wouldn't know you were leaving one and entering another unless you were a local and just...knew.
Here's another thing about Lubbock that I just have to love:
On Saturday afternoon, I was looking out the window as Freddie was driving, and all the sudden, I perked up:
"Shut UP! It's a SECOND Baptist Church!! I've never SEEN one of those!"
to which Freddie dead-panned:
"Tsk....underachievers."
"Second Baptist" is kind of funny to me, because when I was just out of college and performing in a national tour, I would sometimes attempt to look up a church to go to in a local phone book. Almost every town I went to, I would find AT LEAST five different listings for a First Baptist Church...and what's up with that?
They can't ALL be First, right?
Four of those churches are LYING and LYING'S a SIN!
Anyway, That was the trip to Lubbock. Good food, Revival rascals, and a church name that inspired some fun banter. ("Jesus arrived after John the Baptist...so really, being second is more Christ-like." "yeah, but that THIRD Baptist church? across town? Boy, what a bunch of losers!")
Oh. And, yes, just like last time, the dogs pee'd at the foot of the bed I was sleeping in on the first night.
How...welcoming.
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