My Mother, The Rock Star!

Yep, she tore it up this weekend like a mixture of Janis Joplin and Courtney Love - SHE IS THE LIZARD QUEEN SHE CAN DO ANYTHING!!!!

Let me explain. This is actually a post dedictated (a week late) to my parents, Joyce and Charlie. They have been married - as of January 20th - for 40 years.

40 YEARS.

And they seem to still like - even love - each other. They certainly still get a kick out of each other. It's pretty amazing, isn't it? It deserved some sort of special recognition, so Snow White and I decided to treat them to a concert and a hotel room - Willie Nelson in Primm, Nevada, formerly known as "Stateline, Nevada" - its right on the - you guessed it - stateline between Nevada and California and I guess at first they couldn't be bothered to come up with a good name. It used to be just a gas station and a general store and a casino called "Whiskey Pete's" in the middle of the desert, if I remember correctly from all of our road trips as a kid. But there is another "Stateline, Nevada" in the north so you know, it's confusing. There's also a Jackpot, Nevada, right before you cross into Idaho - I always thought that was such a cool name for a town when I was little.

Sidenote - I just wikipediaed Primm and thought this was pretty funny and typical Nevada lore:

In the 1920s Pete MacIntyre owned a gas-station at the stateline. Pete apparently had a difficult time making ends meet selling gas so he resorted to a little bootlegging. Primm history remembers him as "Whiskey Pete". When Whiskey Pete died in 1933, legend has it that he wanted to be buried standing up with a bottle of bootleg in his hands so he could watch over the area. Whiskey Pete was accidentally exhumed while workers were building a connecting bridge from Whiskey Pete's to Buffalo Bills Hotel and Casino (on the other side of I-15). The body was moved and is now said to be buried in one of the caves where Pete cooked up his moonshine.

Excellent! But I digress. So Mom and Dad went out to Primm to see Willie and had a MOST excellent time - and maybe I'll leave it at that and let your imaginations run wild. Lets just say Willie rocked, and then there were 2 more bars, some live music, at least 5 more drinks, my mother made some new barfly BFF's, my dad tried to get lucky (by playing California lotto - get your mind out of the gutter!), and a poor overused wastebasket, followed the next day by a Most Wonderfully Hungover Mommie Dearest. And I'm guessing my dad kept right up with her.

But you know what? GOOD FOR THEM!!! They had a good time and please - 40 years together deserves a good drunken escapade - so cheers to you both!! Without the two of you together, there would be no me, there would be no Snow White, there would be no Allie and Jake Dwarves, and where would the fun in our lives be without a little Joycie and Chuckie to spice it up?

And now, the band shall play a song in their honor - how's about a sweet tune from the 70's?

We've been together since way back when
Sometimes I never want to see you again
But I want you to know, after all these years
You're still the one I want whisperin' in my ear
You're still the one that makes me laugh
Still the one that's my better half
We're still having fun, and you're still the one

You're still the one that makes me strong
Still the one I want to take along
We're still having fun, and you're still the one
You're still the one who can scratch my itch

Still the one and I wouldn't switch
We're still having fun, and you're still the one
You are still the one that makes me shout
Still the one that I dream about
We're still having fun, and you're still the one...