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Thursday, May 13, 2010

Thursdays with Bone

In the interest of blogging more than once a fortnight, here I am again. I notice that my last two posts, and three of the last four, have come on a Thursday. That was not at all planned, but if you would like to believe that it was planned, feel free. Think of it sort of like Tuesdays With Morrie. Except on Thursdays. And with Bone. Also, much less enlightening.

Last Thursday, I was at a place that I daresay few of you have ever been, and most likely will never be. I went to see country supergroup The Oak Ridge Boys in concert.

Joe, Duane, Richard, and William Lee sang all your favorite Oaks' hits, such as American Made, Ya'll Come Back Saloon, Trying To Love Two Women (which one of them cracked was Tiger Woods' favorite song), and Ozark Mountain Jubilee. Any of these ringing a bell? What about Elvira? Yeah, you wish you'd gone now, don't you?

Here's a bit of Oak Ridge Boys history I found out during the show. The group was originally known as the Georgia Clodhoppers. In the 1940's, the Clodhoppers were brought in to the secret city of Oak Ridge to entertain the residents there who had been sequestered from the rest of civilization to work on the Manhattan Project. From there, they began calling themselves the Oak Ridge Quartet and later, as we know them today, the Oak Ridge Boys.

I also may or may not have got hit on during the show. The lady behind me supposedly "dropped" her phone and couldn't find the back to it. So I found it for her. Then she poked me on the shoulder and said she couldn't seem to put it back together. Please, could she have been more obvious? It's the 2010's, lady. Cars are parallel parking themselves. Who doesn't know how to reassemble their cell phone? Of course, she did look to be about seventy. Nevertheless, I fixed her phone. Rescuing damsels in distress: this is what I do.

Now I know some of you might be thinking that was the most exciting part of my weekend. (Yes, I'm including Thursday night in the weekend, just go with it.) Well, normally it would have been, by far. But not this time.

That's because on Saturday I got to pick up Nephew Bone and take him to the Spring Festival, Bluegrass Jamboree, and Antique Car, Tractor & Engine Show. All by myself.

It was our first uncle/nephew outing together, and he was so well-behaved. He especially seemed to enjoy the funnel cake. And he also got hit on by an older woman. A girl, who looked to be about eighteen, stopped him as we were walking between the giant slide and the bouncy thingy and said, "You are so cute." Like uncle, like nephew. Right, buddy?



On the way home, I started singing songs I thought he knew. I sang Jesus Loves Me, and when I finished, I turned around and he was looking at me with this big smile on his face, like "I know that song, Uncle Bone!"

Then I started singing Itsy Bitsy Spider. About halfway through, I looked in the back seat again and Nephew Bone was looking out the window, his arms in the air, doing his hand motions for the rain and the sun and the spider.

If only you could box up moments.

"Thank God for kids, there's magic for awhile. A special kind of sunshine in a smile. Do you ever stop to think or wonder why, the nearest thing to heaven is a child..."

18 comments:

  1. If only you could box up moments

    I love your first paragraph. Maybe much less enlightening but much funnier. In the end that might matter more. Or not

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  2. I'm glad you enjoyed the concert and your excitement at still getting hit on by "da ladies" ;o)

    and your first date with the nephew, sounds like he's a real chic magnet...perhaps you should take him out more often..that or get a puppy.

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  3. SHUT UP! I love Elvira. One of my favorites!

    Ok, I just wanted to tell you that right now. I haven't finished reading your post. I'm sure I'll leave another comment at a later date.

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  4. Ok, I'm done. This was a great post.

    I totally agree with you, the lady at the concert was hitting on you. Everyone knows how to assemble a phone. :)

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  5. Mmm-boppa Mmm-boppa Mow-mow

    At least that is phonetically how they sound in my head. I think I still have a couple casettes of theirs somewhere in my basement. I just don't have anything to play them on.

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  6. Can you make it every Thursday? :)

    One of my local DJs really like "Elvira." Seems like I hear it almost daily during the week.

    Men with kids are adorable. Especially when those kids are not their own. I'm guessing though, that there were no diapers to be changed?

    Nephew Bone's getting so big. And cuter all the time.

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  7. Also, just wait until he sings along. I love getting in the car and being serenaded from the backseat :)

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  8. Nice post... This must be the week of the occasional blogger posting about nephews and nieces (Uncle Bone, Aunt TC).

    As for Oak Ridge Boys,been there, done that, twice. Of course, I never paid to see them, but when working for the Boy Scouts, they appeared at two national jamborees... I suppose the Rolling Stones are just too much for Boy Scouts.

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  9. Pia - Thanks. I can probably at least convince myself that funny matters more.

    Renee - Yeah, I love that commercial where the guys are renting puppies at the park. Good stuff.

    OK Chick - Thanks. I was pretty sure she was, but it's good to get some confirmation from a bachelorette.

    Ed - That's the one. They closed the show with that and Bobbie Sue. You remember... Buh-bah buh-bah Bobbie Sue.

    TC - I'll try. I'd like to get back to blogging like twice a week. But I suppose I should aim for once a week first. Small steps.

    Nope, I only had him for an hour and a half or so. Any longer and we'd have run the risk of an incident that I am not yet prepared to handle :)

    Sage - Ha! The occasional blogger, I like that. It's fitting anyway.

    My ticket was free, too, so I guess no one here has actually paid to see the Oak Ridge Boys.

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  10. Arriving late - had to up Oakridge Boys.

    I can see you as an uncle. Writing is a form of boxing up moments is it not?

    On the other hand it's is the very elusiveness that makes the moments special.

    You do need a better schedule.

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  11. Your nephew is so cute.

    Hey I've seen the Oakridge Boys Christmas show with Marie Osmond.

    Great post, keep boxing up those memories they hit their teens before you know it.

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  12. Awww...Bone was hit on by a cougar. lol

    I've been so out of the blog loop lately, but am glad to see a new post from you. I haven't felt like writing lately and hopefully the urge will return soon...hope you're well, Bone! Your nephew is precious.

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  13. I feel that I am blogging with the same frequency. *sigh

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  14. -
    If only you could box up moments.


    If only you could. That's a beautiful sentence.

    Nephew Bone is looking big now! He'd kind of frozen in time in my head, stuck forever in that picture you posted of him walking with you when he was very little.

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  15. Man, you DID have an awesome weekend. I finally saw the movie that makes an American an American (according to my coworker): Avatar. It was at the Dollar theater. In another 5 months I'll get to see Iron Man. That's how I roll. :o)

    Nephew Bone is a doll. I'm sure seeing him do the hand motions was fantastic! If only we COULD box moments.

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  16. oh I don't know... I found a young mans love for his nephew pretty enlightening
    Just LOVE thursdays with bone!

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  17. It is Thr. I was hoping for a new post from Bone. ;(

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