Cotton Bowl Trip, Vol. I

The First Lady and I have settled back into our daily routine after getting back home from our trip to Texas to see Kansas State play in the Cotton Bowl, and to see my parents and commemorate their 50th wedding anniversary.

We hit the road right at 3:15, after I worked my retail shift and loaded up the car and headed west on I-20/59. Our first stop was in Jackson, Mississippi (pronounced Missippi by the locals) for food, and we camped for the evening in Monroe, Louisiana. Following an early start and lunch in Kilgore, Texas, we got to our hotel about 2:30.

I also may or may not have been pulled over just on the outskirts of D/FW, doing 76 in a 65 mph zone. The state trooper spent more time calming me down than telling me what I did. I was just wanting to follow the playbook-- you know, keep my hands where he can see them, etc. But he and Ann both noticed that I seemed to be freaking out. And it doesn't always pay to be completely honest: like when he asks, "have you ever been in trouble," it's not always proper to respond, "well there was this one time..." This caused him to ask if I'd ever been arrested. This time I put my shovel down and said no. He also asked me to take my rear license plate frame off, since it blocks the state name. So I drove the rest of the time without my UTEP Miners representation.

Anyhow, the hotel, such as it was, was a few miles away from Cowboys Stadium, site of the game, and under renovation. Our room, on the only unrenovated floor, had no functioning A/C unit, so we got a second room with a nasty bathroom. The third room measured up to lukewarm status, so we rested a spell.

Our first stop was a local watering hole for happy hour, then off to the Gaylord Hotel. The place is kind of like it's own separate city and you could well get lost and spend several days there without getting claustrophobic. This where the team stayed, and we went to be amongst friendlies and watch our men's basketball team play KU. We also caught up with an old college friend who lives in the Metroplex. Good food, good times and good conversation.

Following the game, we hung out for a spell and went back to the room. It had been a big day and a long day as well, and there was much more to come.