Guest Blogger, Aunt Julie: A Story That Will Steal Your Heart Away!

Please give a Warm Welcome to Today’s Guest Blogger, Aunt Julie. As most of ya know, Auntie J., who happens to be my SIL, is a familiar presence around these parts. The photo above shows College Boy, on the right, with his roommate Casey, who’s on the left. The kid in the middle is named Panda. I know, don’t ask. So sit back, relax, and hear Aunt Julie’s story of sending College Boy off to school this year. This tale will pretty much steal your heart!

College Life isn’t what it used to be. When Uncle Lynn and I moved College Boy into his new apartment 10 days ago, we were in for a couple of interesting surprises.

The apartment is very nice. It is on the edge of a very large city park, on a small lake, an easy walk, bike ride or bus trip to campus. The park is home to the baseball field where Hammerin’ Hank Aaron got his start, playing Class C Northern League baseball for the Eau Claire Bears in 1952. College Boy has one roommate, named Casey. The boys face the lake, and can wake up every morning and see the water, and hear the ducks.

My first thought when I heard where they were looking for an apartment was, “On a lake? Shouldn’t you be above a noisy bar with five other guys? And shouldn’t the wind blow through the windows in the winter, and shouldn’t you hear the pitter-patter of little mousy feet in the walls at night? What do you mean, on a lake, with one other guy? Don’t kids start at the bottom any more?! When I was your age…”

Well, when I was his age, I lived at home with my parents, and college was just four more years of Harder High School. So I didn’t want to promote that! College Boy did report that the day after I left, he and his roomie pooled their money and bought a flat-screen TV. Guess the living room is just too small for an Old School TV. Just because I don’t have a flat-screen yet is no reason for me to be petty, right? Though I sure would like to watch Brett Favre march the Jets to victory each week in High Def!

Anyway, back to my story. I had paid $50 to get a mountain bike tuned up for College Boy, and bought a locking cable, too. The first time he took the bike out, to a friend’s house to watch a movie, he couldn’t find the bike when he left to go home, because it had been stolen!

I had called College Boy to see how things were going and he said he had “bad news.” I asked how the thief cut the cable, and College Boy hesitated. I said, “he didn’t have to, did he?” There apparently were several other bikes there, none locked, and his is the one that’s gone! Ya, right!

The moral to this story? If you don’t plan to use the lock for your bike when you go out, stay home and watch the movie on your own flat-screen TV!