Twas The Night Before Kickoff 2014

A couple of years ago, I wrote this poem to commemorate Mizzou's inaugural season in the SEC. I made a little update for 2014.

Twas the night before kickoff and in every house
not a fan was sleeping, just ask their spouse.

The coolers were packed full of bratwurst and beer.
It's almost September and football is here.

We're choosing our outfits, our black and our gold,
I swear this excitement will never get old.

The buses will stop, the team will unload.
They'll be fired up, ready to explode.

On Sasser! On Murphy! On Ray and Mauk!
On Golden! On Boehm! We're ready to rock!

The cannon will fire, the band starts to play,
the stands will be full, it's finally game day!

Every True Son exclaims all through The Zou
Fight Tigers, Fight for ol' Mizzou! 

College Colors Day!

It's the most wonderful time of the year! It's the day before the first football game. Campus is full of excited students. Everyone is wearing black and gold for College Colors Day. Mizzou is full of team spirit, and I love it! Football season is finally HERE!

To celebrate, I'm in black and gold from my head to my toes. Literally!

And my office mates and I entered a door decorating contest sponsored by the MU Staff Advisory Council. I had college flashbacks of pomping floats. I think it turned out great! Now if we can just preserve it for the rest of the year. And hopefully we'll win the prize! Voting will start on Monday on Facebook!

Mizzou-RAH!

Burn It Down Tour

This Saturday my sister and I had the pleasure of seeing Florida Georgia Line and Jason Aldean on their Burn It Down tour. We saw them at Verizon Wireless Amphitheater in St. Louis, MO. The place was packed. Every seat around us was filled and the lawn was completely covered. Amazing crowd.

"It gets wild, yeah, but that's the way we get down."

And it was HOT! Not only were the artists hot, but the weather was a stifling 95 degrees (felt like over 100). Super hot! Thank goodness a very nice radio station was handing out paper fans. They became my new best friends.

The heat was well worth it though. The boys from FGL played all my favorite songs... Cruise, Shine On, Round Here, Stay, Dirt.... and even debuted one from their next album. It's due out in October! They even had a few shots of Fireball Whiskey at the most opportune time ("...and that fireball whiskey whispers, temptation in my ear...").  It was definitely a feeling alright Saturday Night!

"Get your Shine On!"

Jason Aldean opened up with Hicktown (the song that made him famous) and rocked out for a near 80 minutes. He sang Amarillo Sky, Big Green Tractor, The Truth, When She Says Baby, Night Train, and many more of his many hits. He saved my favorite, She's Country, for the encore. The only cheesy moment was when the fake Kelly Clarkson sang... they projected her image on the big screen during Don't You Wanna Stay. The coolest moment was when he brought FGL back out for The Only Way I Know.  They should definitely record a song together.

"It sure left its mark on us, we sure left our mark on it."

This was the third time I've seen Jason Aldean and each show has been fantastic. He's a great entertainer. Go see him if you have the chance. I hope he'll be back in Nashville at the CMA Fest in June!

"That's the way she was born and raised... she ain't afraid to stay - country!"

Rivalry Run 2014

It's that time of year again! The fifth annual Rivalry Run was held in downtown Kansas City on August 16. Missouri and Kansas has had a long rivalry that has existed since the Civil War. I will always love to hate Kansas. So whenever there is a chance to beat up on them, I'm there.

For this run, each registration earns a point for your state. The top three finishers in each age group earns points. The overall finishers will earn points. And fundraising dollars for the Domestic Violence Protection Services Agency earns points as well. The first two years, Missouri was the winner. The last two years, Kansas has taken the cup. Will Missouri win it back and break the tie?

Even though Missouri had more participants, there sure was a lot of blue.

This year I also registered my son. It would be his first competition 5K. He ran last year without a bib and did very well, so this year he ran as a participant. And he did awesome! Look at that time!

He was disappointed with coming in 4th in his age group. So close to a medal! But that only fueled his desire to try harder next time. We're considering doing the Komen Race for the Cure in Columbia on October 4th. Plenty of time to train between now and then. 

And I'm happy to report that Missouri WON the cup. We smoked them 556 - 487. 

Until next time! Mizzou-RAH!

Pet Peeves - do you have any?

Today's photo of the day prompt is "pet peeve."  My first thought was I don't have just one... I have whole kennels of irritation! But I did narrow it down to my top four which led to this blog post.

Here's how to really push my buttons...

Top Left - see that toilet paper roll? It's WRONG! No matter where I am, I will turn that thing around. I'm an over the top gal when it comes to toilet paper. And the lid? Please, for the love of Pete, close it.

Top Right - be QUIET when you are supposed to be QUIET. There is nothing more rude than a cell phone going off in the middle of a presentation or whispering during a lecture. Same goes for movie goers. I can't stand the people who ask questions throughout the movie. There will be plenty of time for discussion AFTER the movie. Be courteous. Be quiet.

Bottom Left - use your turn signal! Nothing gets me more irritated than an inconsiderate driver. And, here in the USA, please pass on the left and drive on the right.

Bottom Right - I think this goes without saying. Three distinct words with three different meanings. Please learn them and use them correctly. 

Okay, that's enough negativity for one post. 

On a positive note, the photo a day project is going well.  Follow me on Instagram!

I'm baaa-aaack!

Look familiar? Yep. I'm doing a photo project again! I thought I'd give it a go for August. 

Are you laughing yet? I am... I just can't seem to stay away... It's been a couple of months since stopping my own photo project and nearly a year since I've done FMS Photo a Day. The break was nice (really nice), and just what I needed. Life is pretty calm this month, and I may just be a tad bored. That means it's time to focus on something creative.

I'll post a summary at the end of the month. Until then... follow me on Instagram: clmarksonlife