<![CDATA[Parade]]>Sometimes you look at a photo or a group of photos and it’s a little startling. Like hearing your voice on an answering machine. Looking at these photos from my town’s Patriot Day Parade was like that for me. I felt like I was looking at stills from a parade in Mayberry. Do I really live in such a bucolic little town?

I moved to Massachusetts for graduate school and lived smack dab in the middle of the city. Each successive move has taken me further out and away. I remember walking back from the T after one such move and thinking I’d moved to the boonies because I saw a Big Wheel in a front yard on my street. I’m 2 moves past that and wish I had the gritty street cred that comes with having only ONE plastic toy planted in my yard!

Before I got married I made a demand deal with my now husband. No ice hockey and no reenacting. I was always bothered as a kid on class field trips to Colonial villages with the whole, “What is this metal flying bird of which you speak?” It was a perfect combination of annoying and embarrassing. But when, at 3, your kid mentions at dinner, “I’m really interested in weaponry!” you just thank your lucky stars that it’s motivated from an historic perspective and not video games. So hoop skirt, I see your billowy unbleached innocence in my future and mock you further I shan’t! But I’m holding firm on the hockey.

My future peeps looking beat.

If these had been invented before I got married I’m sure I would have added these to the forbidden list.

I’m guessing there would have been no argument.

Flying the flags.

I missed the best shot on this one – there was a guy walking behind these folks pulling a red wagon full of horse dukes.

This is the guy who stood in front of us the whole parade with his tag still on his pants. I’ve got the humor of a boy in middle school.

Jazz bands were big this year and rightly so. Rock on. I hope I’m half as cool at that age.

I just don’t feel right saying something meanish about Bert.

This is my Elmo siting. Elmo is the man and he knows it. He’s in demand and can’t please everyone. So my little guy got more of a Big Foot experience that a snuggle from the red one but hey, I still love you ELMO.

These kids looked good and sounded tight! It’s not easy to rock hard in a yellow beret.

It wouldn’t be a post without my referring to consumerism and the struggle of STUFF but it’s a cultural plague. If you lined up each cart of crap it would’ve been longer than the actual parade. True story.

The parade photos have got me thinking about my town and got me wondering about yours. I was inspired by Green Jello’s Toy Week and I was thinking we could do a week of photos of our towns/cities. Just sites, big or small, that you see on a walk around your neighborhood or on your daily outings. If anyone wants to join me next week, I’ll post a link to your site and we can have some fun!

edit: The WordPress support team did a bang up job helping me get rid of my NCP haunting! Thanks WP!!!

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