1 Wedding, Cattle Sale, and a Game of Bingo

We're headed down to Hallettsville today. Something about that drive is so calming. Maybe it's the 2 lane farm roads, maybe it's the little roadside strawberry stands, or perhaps it's the interesting characters we encounter at each truck stop. Whatever it may be, I always look forward to visiting my in-laws and being surrounded by nature................because it's way way way out there.

I love being driven through "downtown" Hallettsville. The streets are lined with quaint little houses that remind me of Steel Magnolias. The town square is full of interesting shops, from antique stores to a pharmacy/general store to a movie theater that just introduced Dolby sound. The Hallettsville town square is known for the movie, "The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas" and being a HUGE fan of that film, the tour never gets old. Despite my never ending excitement to pass by his old high school football stadium, or his first job at that BBQ restaurant on the corner of something and something, Shawn always finds the strength to humor me.

So on this particular weekend, we have a full schedule. Tonight my mother-in-law is taking me into town to play BINGO. Now to some it's just a game for fun. My mother-in-law and her closest friends soon taught me that BINGO is serious business and you bring your A-game. They don't play once a week - they play 5 times a week. That's a job to most people! I'm pretty sure that my mom-in-law is a professional Bingo-er. All of her dobbers (the stamper thing that you use to blot your number when it's called) are color-coded to match each card (and her outfit). Needless to say, BINGO is a way of life to my mom-in-law and to be invited to join her is a big honor and I'm sure I try her patience when I'm looking around at all the other people and asking ridiculous questions such as, "Why does the man with the oxygen tank keep staring?" and "What does 4 card blind mean?"

Tomorrow I'm accompanying my mother-in-law while she gets her hair done - another adventure in my book. I can't wait to soak up everything a small town beauty parlor has to offer. Then we're attending the wedding of Shawn's cousin in New Ulm.........at a longhorn ranch! Oh man I'm excited. I've never been to a wedding overlooking a pond with ranchers and steer. What is the proper attire for such an event? And the reception is at a dance hall and that in itself sounds like a good time to me.

Wait - it gets even better. On Sunday, Shawn and his dad will be going into town to sell cows. They keep a lots of cattle on their land and my husband has a small herd that he sells once the calves are "big enough." It's no secret that I'm rurally challenged. Growing up in the mid-cities, I didn't tend to cows, ride horses, or have a "County Road" address. I grew suspicious when he deterred me from joining them the first time I heard of this "selling cows" business. Finally, my mother-in-law explained that the cows are auctioned off to slaughter houses and it's really not uplifting to watch them board the trucks when they leave. HUH?!?!?! Ewwwwwwww. Now I'm a girl that loves a well-prepared steak. What I don't want to know is how it made it's way onto my plate. But it's what they do and an honest source of income, so it's best that I stay home and mind my own business.

Needless to say, my bags are packed and we're escaping the concrete jungle for open green pastures, some gambling, a celebration, and a touch of trade. Not a bad way to spend the next 48 hours...