RODEO DRIVE

365 Days of Thanksliving — Day 244

How ya doin’, everyone? Welcome back to the blog, edition number 244. Sidebar: did you realize we just blew past the two-thirds mark in this daily gratitude marathon? We’ve been doing this for eight months straight without a single interruption. Four more to go!

A bunch of folks are hoping I keep this daily going. We’ll have to see. I’ll definitely need a quick breather first—maybe I'll take December off to recharge, and then pick right back up in the new year. Who knows?

Sidebar out of the way, the wifey and I literally just rolled in a bit ago. Our buddies Shawn and Connie invited us to Jackpot Junction for an early buffet supper. Hey, it wasn’t half bad for 11 smackers a head (pop included, because we have standards)—and then it was off to the Lower Sioux Nation’s Amphitheater for their first event in over a decade: a rodeo. Hence the title, Rodeo Drive. Ding, ding, ding!!!!

Let's be real, you didn’t actually think I’d be writing about that Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills, did you? Personally, I have zero interest in ever setting foot in that overpriced zip code. Nope. Nope. Nopety-nope! That said, it might be a hoot just to people-watch and see what the locals in the People’s Republic of California are wearing this week. Anywho….

This was the first-ever rodeo for these former city slickers, and what a trip, man. I guess it wasn’t a full-blown rodeo, but rather a crash course crammed with spectacular bull riding and perfectly timed comedic entertainment.

The funny thing is, I spent half the night looking at all those steers and thinking, That’s a lot of potential ribeyes and burgers out there in the dirt. Go figure a foodie’s brain goes straight to the grill. Not that those bulls would have any decent marbling anyway. They were all pure, unadulterated, pissed-off muscle—a few of them were just absolute units. Basically, chewy steaks with major attitude problems.

In all seriousness, it takes a special kind of crazy to voluntarily strap yourself to a 2,000-pound meat tank just to have your internal organs rearranged for eight seconds. Those cowboys must own majority stock in our nation’s pharmaceuticals. Anybody got a Costco-sized bottle of Advil? My muscles hurt just watching them.

In any event, my wife and I had an absolute blast tonight. Getting out, doing something completely off-script for us, and hanging with good friends—it’s exactly what the doctor ordered. Truly, I feel refreshed. And for that, I have Shawn and Connie to thank, and God too. I thank the Lord for them, their friendship, and the invite to go on an actual rodeo drive. Shout out to Shawn and Connie! You’re the best!!