Stories from the Stringam Family Ranches of Southern Alberta

From the 50s and 60s to today . . .



Wednesday, July 11, 2012

The Non-Party Animal


Jerry. With Mom.
Oh, and me.

Jerry is my big brother.
He’s cool
He’s neat.
And he never could be considered a ‘party animal’.
An explanation is in order . . .
One of the best times to host a party is on New Year’s Eve.
Everyone is excited.
Everyone is happy.
And , more importantly, everyone wants to party.
Jerry decided to host his first, ever, New Year’s Eve celebration.
Invitations were extended.
Preparations were made.
And Mom cleaned the house for two days straight.
They were ready . . .
The party started out well.
Forty or so kids, all intent of having a great time.
There was a group in the ping-pong room.
Cheering or competing.
Another group around the pool table.
Ditto.
There were kids dancing in the front room.
Kids playing games wherever there was a space.
Kids circling the snacks table.
And kids visiting with my Mom in the kitchen.
The house was full and the party was, for lack of a better term, ‘hitting on all cylinders’.
The time came for the big build-up to the New Year.
Noisemakers were handed out.
Because forty-plus people couldn’t make enough noise on their own.
The countdown.
The cheer.
Or rather, din.
And the New Year was official.
Everybody completed the ritual hugging and kissing.
And went back to what they had been doing.
Well, almost everyone.
Several young ladies were looking for someone specific to ‘congratulate’.
My brother, Jerry.
They searched throughout the house.
Staked out the bathrooms until the current occupant emerged.
And finally enlisted the help of my Mom.
She did a circuit of the obvious places.
Then decided to see if Jerry was, for some reason, in his room.
She knocked.
No answer.
She cracked the door and peeked into the darkened room.
Then reached in and flipped the light switch.
A sleepy head lifted from the pillow.
“Whazzup?”
He had visited and played games.
He had congratulated and cheered.
He had gotten tired.
He had gone to bed.
Never mind that he was leaving his guests to wind down and find their own way to the door.
Nope.
Bed was the place for him.
Yep.
My brother, Jerry.
Party host extraordinaire.
“Good night! Don’t forget to put out the lights when you leave!”

9 comments:

  1. Well, he doesn't look like a shy guy, so maybe he is tired. Then, the thought of all those anxious young girls could cause overwhelming stress and retreat.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yeah. It would make me break out into a nervous sweat! :)

      Delete
  2. Jerry would fit right in with us! I have kids that do the same thing... when they are tired, they just go right to bed - even if it's only 6 or 7 pm. It sure is nice! :) We are early to bed, early to rise kind of people though.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Well, I did not expect that! That has to be something Jerry will never live down.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Never! As the unofficial family chronicler, I'll make sure of that. :)

      Delete
  4. I've nominated you for the Versatile Blogger Award!

    Come check it out!

    http://www.momontherunx2.com/2012/07/ive-been-nominated-for-versatile.html

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE! Thank you, Julia!!! I'm so excited!!!

      Delete
  5. My husband and Jerry would be great friends! I like the line about 40 plus friends needing noisemakers? Thanks for linking up with us at NOBH. I love your stories!

    ReplyDelete

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