From the Cheap Seats to Front Row

Let me just begin by saying working for both Texas Tech & Missouri Athletic Departments I have been given a number of wonderful opportunities. Traveling with various teams has been amazing and then there are always the concert perks. While at Tech I got to see the Eagles concert from the athletic director's suite absolutely free. Last night was another one of those memorable nights. As employees of the Mizzou Athletic Department, we are able to request 2 comp tickets to any event that is held either any of our facilities, pending that the event is not sold out. Well Lady Antebellum, Jack Ingram & Martina McBride came to the Hearnes Center last night. Thankfully, we got comp tickets, so I was super excited. Our seats weren't amazing, but hey you don't complain when the tickets are free. So we are in C-section of Hearnes and actually at the side of the stage and there are speakers in our way, but these are FREE. This is the 3rd level of seating in our volleyball/gymnastics/wrestling competition "gym" -- also our old basketball gym...so we are pretty high up. The concert starts and Lady Antebellum is performing. Well part way through the first song, this guy starts talking to Tara & I. He says, "I work for Martina McBride, and I see you two girls sitting up here watching the concert. How would you like front row tickets for free. I have 2 of them." So we are shocked at this point and kinda skeptical of why he is handing us free tickets. He then says, "There's one catch: You just have to have a great time tonight." So of course we take them. It was AMAZING. The top picture is from the C-Section seats. That was our location for the first song. The slide show below is from our front row seats. There is obviously a noticable difference. Tara and I had a great time! So we went from the "cheap" seats (super cheap for us since they were free) to the front row. The concert was great. I only knew one of Lady Antebellum's songs, but they have several other good ones too. I love Jack Ingram, he fulfilled my Texas Country fix for a while. (I saw him earlier in the year with Dierks Bentley too). Martina McBride is AMAZING. She can definitely sing and has an amazing voice. I was in awe of how she can sing such powerful songs and never even seem to be tired.

Aunt Judy

This weekend a very special person to me passed away. Last week my dad called and told me that Aunt Judy was in the hospital with congestive heart failure and there wasn't anything could do for her becuase the family didn't want her on any life support. This is one thing that I am thankful for...I hate to see loved ones on machines. Sadly, she passed away Sunday night, but thankfully in peace. For those of you who aren't aware, Aunt Judy really isn't my aunt, but for as long as I can remember she has been "family." Way back before I was ever a thought, my grandparents and Bill & Judy were friends. Aunt Judy has always been present at our Thanksgivings, Christmases, and any other family get together we have. She was just like another grandmother to me (odd we call her Aunt I know, but I came along after this had already been established). Many times at holidays her family lived too far off and didn't get to come in, or they had their get togethers at other times, so she just joined us. When her family members could be there, they just joined on in with us as well. Her granddaughter and I actually share the same birthday, only a year apart. Needless to say, my family is much bigger and deeper than blood ties.

I have so many wonderful memories with Aunt Judy and her family. My absolute favorite may be the Christmas Emily and I received a karoake machine and Aunt Judy got on the microphone and showed us how she could Yodel. Definitely the first time I had experienced that, but it is one of my favorite Christmas videos to watch. This memory doesn't actually involve Aunt Judy, but I can remember when David, Terri, Alesha Kay & Zach moved to Kansas and I was in JH at basketball camp at South Plains College in Lubbock. There was a girl there named Alesha Anderson...I thought, I KNOW her. So being the outgoing person I am, I went up and said...is Judy Anderson your grandmother? That was the first time we had seen each other in years and were so excited to call home and tell our families we were at the same basketball camp. Aunt Judy's son & daughter-in-law were also very supportive of my dad's basketball teams. I will never forget the nights when Dad's teams were playing in the regional tournament in Lubbock and staying at Mark & Bev's house. Mark & Bev were also at my dad's last win, which was a special moment for us at all. I know I will continue to make memories with her family throughout the years, I am just sad that my ones with her have come to an end.

Luckily, when Aunt Judy was admitted to the hospital and it was determined there wasn't much they could do, all the family got to see her except for 2 grandkids. She was able to say her goodbyes and was at peace with dying. Another fortunate thing was that they were all at Christmas in Lubbock, so at least everyone has that memory. (The picture to the left is of Aunt Judy & 2 of her grandkids--Zach & Alesha.) My parents did get to go visit on Saturday and said she was happy to see them and told them to give us a big hug and tell Emily & I that she loves us. I really wish I could have gone home, but it's just too far. I would have done anything to be at her funeral this morning, but time constraits didn't allow. (At least there wasn't a fight as to who had to sit by me in the funeral...I bawl like a baby and end up making everyone else cry even more.) My family knows that I was there in spirit and in heart. There's not a doubt in my mind that MeMaw, PapPaw, Uncle Bill & Aunt Judy are all reunited in Heaven catching up on old times and making new memories.