My uncle lives in Texas, and when I was 13 my mom and I took a trip to visit him.
We joined him on his errands . . . he drove to the bank to withdraw some money. He said hi to drive-thru teller and dropped a lollipop in the pneumatic tube. He told us, "That's how you get good service around here."
For lunch we walked around Sam's Club, trying the samples they give away. He didn't have much money, and he knew the people working there -- I think that's where he ate most days.
My favorite part of the trip was when we went to the rodeo. We saw huge smokers for the Texas-style BBQ. It was some of the best BBQ I'd ever had; thick charred strips of beef with sweet sauce on top. I loved it and have never had it since.
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Recently, the Professional Bull Riders show came to Madison Square Garden. A rodeo in NYC!! My friends and I got dressed up in our "cowboy" gear and sat in the nosebleed section for $15 apiece. I bought bottled water and they removed the cap for me. This was to limit the damage I could do if I threw the bottle at the entertainers.
The floor --- the floor where the Knicks usually play basketball -- was covered with dirt. The bulls were herded through a maze of gates at the far end, and when their riders were ready, exploded onto the arena floor, bucking and spinning. Such powerful animals -- they were amazing and scary to watch.
A rope around the bulls' haunches makes them buck. As soon as the rider falls off, the rope loosens and the bulls generally trot back to their gate. In case they don't, there's a cowboy who can lead them back with his lasso.
The first time a bull strayed too far, the cowboy approached and threw his lasso toward the bull's head. The rope missed, and the mildly interested crowd murmured "booooooo". The MC said, "You don't want to miss in New York!"
A few minutes later, another bull drifted toward the far end of the arena. Again the cowboy approached and threw his lasso, and again he missed. This time the crowd was paying more attention. "Boooooo!!!" we all sang. I was laughing -- New Yorkers can be such jerks.
The next time a bull got loose, everybody watched to see how the cowboy would handle it. He rode up, threw the lasso and it landed around the bull's neck. "WOOOOOOOO!!!!" we all cheered.
Then he dropped the rope.
"BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!" we screamed.
God, that was funny.
It was a strange event . . . . at one point, LeRoy Neiman, the famous sports artist, presented a painting to a champion bull rider. They brought an easel onto the dirt and placed the painting on it. We joked about how cowboys are such art snobs. We talked about how strange the whole scene was. And we realized we were:
- at an art show,
- in a rodeo,
- in New York City,
- in 70-degree weather,
- in January.
