The Odyssey - Part 4
We flew to Dallas on Friday and on Sunday I flew to Monroe. I've mentioned before that I get motion sickness sometime on airplanes and I even threw up once but that was because I was on one of those small commuter planes....Just like the one I had to take to get to Monroe.Luckily, I survived the flight and arrived at the huge Monroe Airport. The airport is so small that when you arrive, the car rental counter is right in front of you as you step in the door and the actual car you are renting is visible out the window. It's actually kind of great because when I went to leave the next day I arrived less than an hour before my flight left, parked my rental car at the terminal and walked on the plane.
It was great to be back in Monroe after 10 years. A lot has changed physically but the heart and soul of the place is still the same. The college I went to (N.L.U.) is now called University of Louisiana at Monroe (U.L.M.). They've torn down the 10-story dormitory (Olin Hall) that used to be the biggest building in the city and added a big beautiful library. There are still plenty of landmarks around that have never changed, like Ray's PeeGee which sells great sandwiches and Moon Lake across the street from my old neighborhood.Of course, the best part about going home was seeing old friends. I spent the day driving around with Chris, Donny and Mrs. M..... looking at old haunts and joking around. I can honestly say it was just a great day for me. To the people that live there it was just another day but to me it was like old times and the memories were thick.
That night we played poker (at the same kitchen table where I learned the game), drank beer and ate Johnny's Pizza (the best pizza in the world... they put beer in the batter). It's hard to describe the way I feel when I'm back in that town with my old friends... all of us middle-aged now with so much life behind us. It's just comfortable somehow and I wonder if they feel that comfort all the time because they never left.
The next day I spent the morning driving around and surprising old friends before finally catching a flight back to Dallas. Two days later, we were off to Vegas.More to come...
5 Comments:
wow...is that Chris?!
That's Chris all right. He's a Monroe cop
So...you "flew to Dallas on Friday and on Sunday.." you flew to Monroe. I guess SATURDAY wasn't worth mentioning! And to think I broke a sweat cleaning up those front rooms for your friggin' ass...
I didn't write about our visit because I had nothing funnt to say about it... it was great with no shitty parts to speak of. Also, I didn't think you would want me to post the picture I took of you bending over in the kitchen because your boob is practically falling out.... but if you feel bad, I can always add a new chapter!
Of course I don't feel bad. It was short and uneventful. I thought it would be funny, though, if I made a comment. Or even funnt.
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