Horn Lake, MS Christmas Parade 2003

Saturday, DEC 6, 2003 – Thanks to LaRue, “The tapes were rolling” as we prepared at the library parking lot for the morning parade there in Horn Lake. LaRue was filming so that we could show the tape at our December meeting. There was a lot of excitement in the air, as we got creative with the decorations. There was enough time to actually get to chat before we lined up. The staging area was laid out differently this year. So, I was glad that all 15 VWs were there early. There was only enough space at the marker for 2 bugs. So, at the suggestion of a couple of members, we lined up the rest on a conveniently located side street.

It was nice to see that folks brought along guests to share in the fun too. My wife and I, recruited our friend and neighbor Nancy to drive Verty (wife doesn’t do stick shifts). My little buddy, 4-yr. old grandson Riley, rode shotgun with his “Papa” Bill in Lightnin’. Cecelia and her husband brought a couple of young ladies from the church youth group she is involved in. They wisely brought quilts to cover up as they rode in the back of Cecelia’s really nice Bug convertible (white w/burgundy top and subdued, white flame job). LaRue and his wife had their ever popular poodle “puppy dogs;” Tim Key brought “my favorite Martin” and one of Martin’s doggy buddies who I will call “Spot;” and Jason and his family brought their 5-6 month old “wrinkle dog” (notice I did not try to spell that). They were all well behaved and a real hit with the human elements.

The parade started at 9 a.m., right on-time again this year. Considering that the streets on the parade route are extra wide, we drove two-wide. It made candy throwing a lot easier. Speaking of that, Riley giggled most of the way through the parade. He thought it was 1) “neat to throw things out the car windows” without getting into trouble, and 2) REALLY neat to have older kids begging him for Dubble Bubble. He even coaxed a police officer over to the window and then offered him some bubble gum. I wish that I could have had a tape running in the other cars too.

We got lots of thumbs up and praise from the crowd. They appeared to have got some enjoyment from our participation; and I KNOW we enjoyed it.

We were finished by 11:30. After removing delicate decorations from the VWs, we were ready to head to lunch. But we will talk about that in the Olive Branch story.