Marching bands are the greatest

I have gotten to see the IU marching band two weekends in a row now. John makes fun of me, but I love marching bands! They are so entertaining, the way they move together to form different shapes and letters. And all while playing music. The shapes and letters change so fast, too. One second it's all perfectly aligned, everyone in their exact spot, and the next there is chaos as they run around getting to their next spot, and the second after that there is another new shape and everyone has found their perfect place again. High school marching bands are good (not to brag, but my high school had a top rated marching band. Of course, I was a cheerleader and had nothing to do with band, but as these things go one naturally feels a sense of pride when something good is slightly related to oneself), but you get a big college band like IU's and it's darn near perfect! Anyway, we went to the IU homecoming football game this weekend and at halftime the marching band came performed some 'big hair' songs (Van Halen, Bon Jovi, etc) which I got a big kick out of while John tried his best to stay cool and portray only the smallest amount of mild enjoyment (but inside I'm sure he was enjoying it just as much as me, if not more ;-) ).

So as I mentioned, on Saturday we went down to IU to the homecoming football game. It was a cold and windy day, but sunny and as long as you were in the sun it wasn't too bad particularly since we had several layers on. It was a great game. IU has never really been known for its football team, but the last few games they have actually won and last weekend they slaughtered Michigan State by about a million points.

We're so used to going to the Colts games that the college football scene had a whole different feel to it. The way they play is different. It's sort of hard to explain because it's the same sport with the same rules (although many of the penalties are different in that different rule infractions carry different penalty yardages), but the plays that they make are a lot different. For example, in pro games the quarterback hardly ever runs the ball himself, but in college (at least this particular game anyway) the quarterback is constantly running the ball himself. Another difference between the Colts games and the IU game was the players themselves. The college kids look so skinny and fragile compared to the pro guys, but by the same token they seem a lot more agile and quick. And of course the cheerleaders were completely different. College cheerleaders are proper athletes who do flips and pyramids and actually cheer. The pro cheerleaders do little dances on the sidelines every few minutes, smile for the camera, and perform very out of sync dances out on the field before the game.

We had gone down to Bloomington originally because my friend Steph who now lives in Tampa (near Faith) came up with her baby Jaden and husband Gordon. They also went to IU (although I didn't know Steph until Lilly) so came up for homecoming. We got to meet up with them for a little while before the game which was really nice. Jaden is such a cutie! There wasn't loads of time to catch up, but it was great to see them. I'm looking forward to seeing them again in December when I go to Florida to meet Faith's new baby.

Sunday was more 'house stuff' shopping. We got a TV, washer and dryer. I could go on and on about picking these things out, but I might just fall asleep thinking about it. Actually, joking aside it is fun stuff to shop for (sadly enough, I am very excited about the washer and dryer in particular. Did I suddenly become a housewife in the ‘50s?), but I don't think there is a way to write about the exhausting process without putting anyone reading this into a boredom-induced coma. So shall I carry on talking about marching bands then?!

So my new work schedule is official now! I start this week with my 4 day schedule (although the contract was only just signed today. I'm kind of a rebel). John and I (and Abbey and Jude, of course) are so excited about the extra time I get to be at home. It makes for longer days in the office as I need to squeeze 40 hours into four days, including not getting into the office until about 9 and leave at 4:30 on Thurs, but it will be very worth it.