Saturday, February 19, 2011

. . .a flinger!

this blessed nest


Come join the Spring Fling with This Blessed Nest!!!!!!!  Anything goes. . .fling something, create something, re-make something, a fun Spring thing you find or buy. . .anything!!!!!!!

Spring Fling takes me back to my high school days.  I went to a private Christian school that discouraged dating.  But in the Spring we had a fancy formal banquet where dating was encouraged!!!!  My freshman year I couldn't go to the Fling because I got in trouble for something and I was so sad.  I ended up babysitting for my youth pastor's little girl and had a good night anyway. 

My sophomore year I heard that a certain someone was going to ask me, but I was so hoping that someone else would ask me, so I avoided the first guy like the plague.  He was persistent!  Our church had a long, long hallway with stairs that led from the basement to the second floor.  I remember going rounds and rounds on those stairs because he would not stop searching for me.  Kind of like Mr. Collins searching for Kierra Knightly--Lizzie in Pride and Prejudice.  Finally I found a place of refuge--the girls' bathroom.  I turned off the light, went to the very last stall and sat up on the toilet so my feet weren't showing, and tried to stop breathing.  In a bit I heard the door creak open and the light came on, "S-h-e-r-i, I know you're in there.  Sheri, come out.  S-h-e-r-i, I'll come find you."  Well that was the last thing I wanted--people to find US together in the bathroom so I came out and stood by the sinks.  "Sheri, will you go to the Spring Fling with me?"  Oh man!  Now I was in a pickle.  My mom's rule was that if a guy had the courage to ask you out, you MUST go with him--remember my exposure to boys was at this Christian school and she figured they were o.k. guys on the whole with a few weirdos thrown in.  I missed the previous year and was determined to go this year, but I so wanted to go with a different guy--one who would have the sense to realized a girl was avoiding him and more dignity than to chase her into the BATHROOM!  So I said. . .yes.

My junior year I was again hoping that a certain someone would ask me to the Spring Fling--but someone else asked me again.  He showed up in a matador outfit and couldn't get out of the bullfighter attitude all night.  We ate at a fancy restaurant that night and to get there we walked along the river--in the Spring--very pretty and romantic. . .until my matador saw some dandelions that had gone to seed.  He picked one for me and as I was saying, "Thank you," blew with a very big breath and my mouth and face and hair were suddenly covered in white fluffy dandelion seeds.  Now my matador is trying to pick dandelions out of my hair and brush them off my face--but have you had a matador trying to do such a gentle task--someone who is used to wrestling bulls?  I BEGGED him to stop!  The night never recovered. . .

Ah, my senior year and the guy I'd secretly been in love with all of high school had graduated the year before.  I was so relaxed and planning to go with friends--forget this encouraged dating stuff!  When a decent guy from my class invited me.  We were friends and were going to double date with some other people in our class--not dating just going to the Spring Fling together.  We had such a good night.  Then we girls learned that the boys had wanted to take someone to the Fling that year and didn't know who so they went through all the choices, narrowed the list to us two girls, and then flipped a coin to decide who was taking whom.  Well, this kind of took some of the fun out of the night. . .but I felt much better after socking my date in the arm!

Needless to say, I have much higher hopes for this year's Spring Fling;-)

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