Ladybug, Ladybug, So Far Frome Home

With all the excitement of Hick House, I've been remiss in updating you on BirthdayPalooza, our four-day trip to visit The Pony in Oklahoma. Since our birthdays fall within a few days of each other, same as Hick's and Genius's... I decreed that BirthdayPalooza would start with a day just for ME! Who's gonna celebrate Val's birthday if not VAL?

We departed on a Thursday, and spent the (FREE) night at Indigo Sky Casino in Wyandotte, Oklahoma. To save you from future embarrassment, please take a Note To Self, and ascertain that this town is pronounced WINE-DOT. Wouldn't want you to be looked-askance at during your travels there. Of course there was some wagering overnight. We hit the road at 9:00 a.m. for Norman, a trip of 4.5 hours. You could make it in 3.5 on the turnpike, without stopping for bathroom breaks, but we are cheap, and on blood pressure meds.

For now, we'll jump to the second day of our Norman visit, since most of the first one was taken up by my (alleged) phone-buying credit card scam. We had agreed to pick up The Pony at 9:30, for a trip to Midwest City for Hick's thrift store browsing, and lunch at Steak N Shake. After that, we were taking The Pony on a Walmart shopping spree, and then heading to Riverwind Casino to dispose of some disposable unearned income.

As Hick pulled A-Cad into a parking space next to The Pony's Rogue at the stroke of 9:30, the opening strains of "How Can I Help You Say Goodbye" wafted from SiriusXM. You might recall, since I've mentioned it once or twice, that this song reminds me of my mom. It always seems to play when I think about her. Although this time, I was only thinking of seeing The Pony.

Neither The Pony nor I enjoyed the thrift stores, but we DID enjoy our lunch.

Ain't she beautiful? Oh, and the burger, too. I was just gazing at my Diet Coke. I had the Western BBQ n Bacon Double Burger. I think The Pony had a Garlic Burger, and no idea about Hick. I was too busy feasting on my burger, Diet Coke, and SLAW!

Anyhoo... we made it to Walmart. Took a cart in from outside, to act as my walker. Of course it had a squeaky wheel. We were making such a spectacle. Hick walked ahead of us, but my loyal Pony stayed alongside. We veered right to head to the pharmacy area for some gel arch supports (that's what he gets for shopping with elderly parents). I was barely ten assisted steps into that store when something caught my eye.

LADYBUGS! Another thing I associate with my mom, although I've seen nary a live one for MONTHS now, after being swarmed by them the first year (or two) after my mom passed away. I think The Pony was more embarrassed by me taking a picture of ladybug Easter baskets that by walking alongside my squeaky cart to buy arch supports in the pharmacy.

We stopped by The Pony's apartment so he could stash his groceries, and proceeded to the casino. The Pony had more success that Hick or I. He was ready to go home after supper at Golden Corral, because he was expecting company later in the evening. We sent Hick through the line first, since he's the payer. While waiting, we both dug some cashed-out change from our pockets, to drop into the aquarium, trying to hit the shot glass.

Let the record show that we did NOT drop in quarters to try to win a free drink. We used smaller coins, the purpose being just to have fun and try our skill. I'd used my my coins, and stepped over to give The Pony more room. That's when I noticed the aquarium had

A LADYBUG stuck to the front! They pop up when I least expect them.

On our drive home Sunday, I was in the middle of texting The Pony when our other special Mom/Grandma song came on: "Holes in the Floor of Heaven". And let's not forget the penny I found on the floor mat of the Steelville Casey's on our very first stop of BirthdayPalooza. I kind of felt like Mom was along with us for the trip!

All of you crazy-finger twirlers are gonna need a wrist brace.