Mountaineers, Old Men, and Morning Coffee

Went to our first Appalachian State game Saturday. The Mountaineers screwed around for too long and lost a game that they should have won, 24-21. But it was still a great day, the Misses and I tailgated with our daughter and our niece, enjoyed a glorious mountain day, and slept in a super nice motel. Really not so much with the super nice motel, but the room was clean, even if the water pressure was almost non-existent.

I was up early Sunday morning and off to Mickey D's for mandatory caffeination. After taking my money, the drive through attendant felt obligated to tell me about the crowd that descended on the restaurant after the game. It was okay, I didn't mind listening. He said they were slammed till 3:30 AM. The story pulled me back to my own college nights. They were a lot of fun. Certainly not as much fun as the life I have had with my wife and daughters, but fun nonetheless.

With coffee in hand I sat on the patio and watched the morning bloom. Inside the McDonald's, old-timers gathered at a table for breakfast. It was obviously something they did quite often, and the men seemed to enjoy each other's company, laughing and talking for the hour that I sat and wrote. It was good to see, and brought this thought to my head. It doesn't matter if you are twenty-year old college kid chatting up a cute girl late at night, a tailgating family, or an old codger laughing with your old codger friends at dawn's first light; it's all about the same thing: people and the joy that they bring.

See you tomorrow.