That's the Drill

I'm not a shy person... generally. Oh, OK, sometimes I'm a bit reserved. But, have you ever noticed that when you get with a friend, a really good friend, you gain strength and sometimes do things you might not have done by yourself? That's what happened in this instance.

Many years ago I read about a very small town that had a very small Christmas parade. It was so small that the parade marched up the main street and then came back again. One of the entries in this town's parade was a drill team. It was comprised of a bunch of ladies that carried drills. How funny! How perfectly it fit our own quirky little town that prided itself in being different! For a while we even had a newspaper called  "The Bluffton Eccentric". But, back to the story...

I just never got the drill team off the ground until I met that special friend who was willing to stand by my side and do something silly in front of half the people in the town. The other half of the population was in the parade! Remember, I said it was a small town! So, the Bluffton Ladies Drill Team was born.

I found a few friends who were willing to be a little bit kooky. We borrowed drills from our boyfriends or hubbies. One lady even bought one just for herself! I had T-shirts made, and my best friend and I worked up a routine; oh... and it was fine if you weren't in step. After all, it was hard enough to walk, kinda do the steps, throw candy.... and laugh!

Our silly routine became a town favorite. We were often pictured in local papers, like the photo below. There I am, in the front and my best friend, my courage, is behind me on my left. I now have some insight into how celebs feel with paparazzi's lenses in their faces. I became used to ignoring a few photographers trying to capture the story as they marched backwards, trying to nab the perfect shot of the team in action!

We marched in the parade for 17 years, and even did a guest appearance at a nearby St. Patrick's Day Parade. We developed our own rules and procedures, with the first rule being that we must have fun! One year, in the spirit of fun, we jumped in the back of hubby's truck and were chauffeured back to the beginning of the parade, and marched the route again!

I moved away from Bluffton just over four years ago. Before leaving I officially passed the drill to another leader, and the Drill Team marches on. It's fun to know that I left a legacy in our former home town.

You've Got a Friend in Me

Yesterday we went on a day trip with Chris and Zoe. We had a wonderful time, but got home after dark. (Not hard to do when it is now getting dark at 4:30!) I ran down to the barn, got hay for the horses and fixed their dinners; one cup of EquiPride, a cup of Purina Healthy Edge and a cup of Timothy pellets. Mmmm-mmm!

But.... the boys didn't come galloping to the barn. How strange. Before I am even through dishing out the pellets, one is usually craning his neck over the stall door and thumping his size twos against the door. (Can you guess which horse would be so pushy and bold as to paw at his stall door demanding food; Right. This. Minute!?)

I grabbed a lead rope and went out into the pasture. What I found was so incredibly sweet, and yes,  a little bit funny. Pippin had gotten into the small area I fenced off this fall to munch on the newly grown grass. As we drove out of the yard earlier in the day we noticed that the deer had pulled down the top strand of wire. I put that on my 'to do' list. (Have you noticed how one never gets to the end of the 'to do' list when you own your own home?!) We'll blame the fence on the deer, because certainly neither one of my horses would do anything like that! So there was Pippin, pacing inside the small fenced off area. He was afraid to step back over the wire in the dark, yet he wanted to get to the barn to eat his yummy dinner. But... where was Doc? The lights from the house extended only dimly into the pasture, but I could tell he wasn't trapped in the fenced area with Pippin. As my eyes became accustomed to the darkness, I finally noticed a golden shadow, just on the other side of the small fenced area. Doc was standing as close to Pippin as he could get. He was waiting for his buddy. He didn't go racing to the barn until I extricated Pippin from his enclosure. Pippin, you've got a friend in Doc. Such a sweet, loyal friend, indeed!