Although today was technically the second Monday in a row that Elizabeth and I have had off together, it was the first two-day weekend we've had together since beginning our new jobs. In honor of that milestone, we did what we do best -- hit the road for a little getaway.
The destination? Our old home, Ruston. I called up my best man Kyle over the weekend to see if he and his wife, Judith, could me us for lunch. We chose an old staple of Ruston cuisine, The Dawghouse, which makes quite possibly the best burger in town.
The Dawghouse, I must say, didn't disappoint with my burger. Very good. And the cheese fries were magnificent, as always. Elizabeth had been craving some cheese fries. It was neat, pulling up to The Dawghouse, where we hadn't been since we left Ruston eight months ago. The exterior had received a face lift (Tech blue, my favorite color, of course), while the interior had been remodeled as well.
After spending about an hour or so at the restaurant, Elizabeth and I followed Kyle back to his house and hung out for awhile. We did what guys do -- talk some sports, play a few video games, hang out with the chihauhau -- you know, that kinda stuff.
Eventually, Kyle kicked us out of his place because he had to get on the road -- headed to Bossier City for Monday's night live television showing of WWE's Monday Night Raw. Yes, I admit, I used to watch wrestling. In high school, I watched religiously -- both WCW and the then-WWF. Kyle and I were die-hards. As we got into college and matured a little bit (although, asking our wives, that maturity level is still debatable), we both got away from watching wrestling. But Kyle had a chance to go with some buddies and he jumped at it. After all, we're both still kids at heart -- and wrestling was a big part of our childhood. As much as I hate to admit it, I've actually watched a little bit recently myself. Not much, but certainly more than I did my entire college life.
Anyway, after Kyle took off, Elizabeth and I went to visit a family that's near and dear to my heart -- the Ferrels. Let's just say, we go way back. My mother and Sherri Ferrel have been friends for years, and I've known Sherri's kids forever. Casey, the oldest, is three years younger than me, while the twin girls (Ashley and Michelle, "my little girls") are juniors in high school.
When we were younger (like when I was in junior high and high school), we lived near one another, and it became a tradition for me to go over to the Ferrels to play in the snow whenever we got a day off from school because of bad weather. I have some great memories with playing with those girls, who literally were like sisters to me.
It's funny because I recently, as in last week, caught up with Casey and Michelle through MySpace, and Sunday night, Michelle left me a message asking when I was coming up to visit. I was tempted to give her a call and let her know we planned to come into town on Monday, but decided against it and showed up unannouced.
Talk about a wonderful time. The four Ferrel women, along with myself and Elizabeth, sat around in their living room and reminisced about old times, as well as catching up on new ones. It's amazing that my little girls, who I've literally known since they were born, are now 17-year-old juniors in high school. To put that in perspective, some of my friends from church are 17-year-old juniors. Strange.
After spending, I guess, an hour or two with the Ferrels, Elizabeth and I caught up with my boy Binni Keleta for a few minutes before hitting the road back home. I'd hoped to go to Monroe to catch a Ruston High soccer game (Binni's the coach), but the game was canceled due to bad weather. But the 'Cats have a home game in two weeks, so we'll try to make it back up there then, when they face off against district rival West Monroe.
All in all, it was a great trip home. Even though it was short, and honestly that's the way I prefer my trips to Ruston, it's always good to see old friends and visit. There's a ton of other people I wish I could have seen while I was in town, but time simply doesn't allow for that. The good news is there will be time for plenty more trips home in the future.
