Wednesday's Winning Words--purposely delayed

I know I was supposed to post winning words yesterday, but I also knew that some early morning activities today would inspire awesome rhetoric from our little man, so I intentionally delayed.  I was not wrong.

At about 6:40 this morning, a College Station landmark, currently known as the Plaza Hotel {formerly known as The Ramada and University Tower} was imploded.  It was (even at 6:40 a.m.) the social event of the summer.  Thousands of people gathered on the polo fields of Texas A&M and the surrounding area to watch the 17-story building at the busiest intersection in town come down.  Meanwhile, down the street, safely inside my office building on the 6th floor, a handful of co-workers and our families gathered to watch the same with Whataburger and coffee in hand.  No need to breathe in all that smoke, right?  I failed in that I just wanted to enjoy the moment, and didn't take pictures or video, but it was a great moment to experience and I knew others would have captured it.  Again, not wrong.  For great coverage of the event (especially if you like watching buildings fall down and go BOOM!), go to http://www.kbtx.com/news/local/headlines/The_Plaza_is_Gone_153567845.html

Our first discussion on the matter started when I went to wake him up at 5:00 a.m.  Given the early start time, I had to dangle a carrot to get him moving.  So, I immediately started in with "We have to get up and going so we don't miss the explosion."  You have to say "explosion" to a 5-year old.  It is infinitely more exciting to think about than "implosion."  Don't know why, but it is fact.  As he stretched and started moving around he said very matter-of-factly:  "Mommy, we are not going to be late.  The men are just now at the store getting all the dynamite they are going to need.  We will be there right on time."  Aahh, if only it were that simple, right?

So we get to my office about 15-20 minutes before it is set to blow.  We had the live feed up on my computer in my office as it was happening.  I should have known this was a bad idea.  While waiting, Justus kept looking at the computer because he said he didn't want to miss it.  I said, "Justus, this is actually happening right outside the window.  Look there, not at the computer if you want to see it happen!"  I suppose that from a distance to a 5-year-old, until the moment it happened, nothing looked that different and the build-up is lost on him.  Watching it on tv, with all the commentary, made more sense.

They had been talking about it a lot at school lately, and he knew that it would be there in the morning, and then gone by the afternoon.  So, right after it happened and things started to settle, he said "Mommy, it blowed up and then it won't be there in the afternoon."  I said, "The afternoon?  Justus, it's not there now.  You don't even have to wait until this afternoon!"  He looks outside and just said "Oh yeah."

Of course, then he asked me to make it happen again.  I wish I could, son.

Although we didn't video it, a bunch of people did and posted on Facebook.  While waiting to get into school, he kept watching a friend's posted video over and over and over.  I mean, at least 10 times while we sat in the parking lot.  "That is SOOO AWESOME!" is all I kept hearing.  Then we got to school and several of his friends had watched it live too.  They were all so excited talking about what they had seen.

There is very little that is as entertaining as a boy's excitment over destruction.

I'm so glad he got to see it, and I hope he remembers it fondly as a neat childhood experience...

now where's my coffee??

**The whole family was there, but not surprisingly, Delaney was not very interested. 

 She liked the Whataburger though.**