Friday, the school thing was yet another annual pageant that Oldest just HAD to participate in. All part of her PGDS. You know how there is that psychopathy you hear of about people who so totally hate George Bush that they ascribe any bad thing to his influence, and won’t admit anything good he might have done? The pundits call it Bush Derangement Syndrome--well, Oldest has Popular Girl Derangement Syndrome. Absolutely cannot stand it that there are such things as popular girls.
I.e., more popular than she is.
And rather than be popular on her own terms and be her own person, she wants nothing more than to be exactly like the girls she can’t stand. Obviously, this has led to much, much discussion about having the proper attitude and outlook on competitive activities that rely heavily on subjective values, and not getting too caught up in the idea that out of the blue, popularity contests will start awarding prizes to those girls who have PGDS, and who fairly well radiate hate-rays all the time. Logic and the teen mind--not so much like oil and water as like phosphorus and air.
So, anyway, that to do Friday. Reba left work early to make the mad dash home, pick her up, and get her changed and back to the school building at 4:57 for her interview. That’s right, 4:57 p.m.--somehow, they’re able to manage to wrangle these chat sessions in three minute increments.
ON the other hand, I left at my regular time, and got to Grandmom’s to pick up the kids and sometime in there found out from Reba via my cell phone that the doors were now open and they were letting guests in. HOWEVER, Reba had our tickets, meaning she couldn’t go on in and save us a place up front, but rather had to wait in the lobby for us to get there so she could get us in, meaning that the entire auditorium (which was sold out for both Freshman-Sophomore Friday AND the Junior-Senior version on Saturday night) was already packed by the time I managed to get there with the kids, MEANING that we sat in the next-to-last row of seats on the sidewall. Meaning that there was no use in trying to take any pictures. And for some reason, this also meant that we were surrounded by six different sets of restless screeching friends-of-contestants and their dates, all of whom seemed to be able to display both the volume and intensity of oversexed locomotive whistles, and the good manners and taste that would cause them to feel right at home in the finest of warthog mud wallows.
As for the show itself, a special commendation to Wendy Garner’s on-air partner, Ken Lass, who did an excellent job emceeing the event. He had nearly sixty names to keep track of and the whole thing lasted almost three hours, but he did a very good job keeping it moving and not mangling the girls’ names.
Surprises? Amazing amount of girls who want to go to college at Auburn, and two who actually want to study architecture. Get ready to not sleep for five years, ladies. Second--well, none of the popular girls Oldest most wanted to humble won first place. Then again, she didn’t either, but she seemed to take it much better this time than she did last year. Maybe her PGDS is moderating some. Which would be the best surprise, for sure.
ON to home then, got the kids cleaned up and in the bed, so I could get them right back up Saturday morning for our lectureship at church.
Reba said we were supposed to be there at 9:00…
Posted by Terry Oglesby at January 23, 2006 10:43 AM