Mafiapalooza

So, this past weekend we attended the retirement party of my mother-in-law, Lesley, which was held at the Ft. Hood army base in the quaint little town of Kileen, TX. As a side note, I fondly refer to Kileen, my wife's home town, as a "town," while she refers to it as a "city." I had to explain to her that when your town's number one employer (outside of Uncle Sam) is WalMart, then you in fact reside within a town and not a city. Seriously though, I do this more as a jab at my wife, because... well because I like to, that's why. She quite often rebuts my claims by noting that Kileen's population was last calculated at around 110,000. And despite the fact that this is about 10,000 more than they get for a Saturday afternoon football game in Ann Arbor, that is most impressive. With all that being said, I should probably get back to the party. Now, I had always wondered exactly what type of teacher Lesley was, but upon being greeted by the loudest and most intrusive mariachi band known to man, I came to the conclusion that she must have just spent the past 21 years as an instructor at Kileen's finest bull fighting academy. Now, I like a good mariachi with my chips and salsa now and then, don't get me wrong, but this seemed a bit out of place.

My mind was put at ease however when it was explained to me that the school of note was fondly known amongst its peers as "The Hispanic Mafia." I'm still not sure if that is in reference to the high percentage of Hispanic-Americans within its student population and faculty, or rather the high level of organized crime operating within its walls, but either way, I think it set the stage for a great party. I anticipated that the remaining acts would follow suit and stick to the festive mariachi mafia theme, but alas, I was soon proved very, very wrong. We were soon treated to an energetic performance by a group of Hawaiian dancers, which I can only assume was inspired by the Honolulu Cartel, also know as the school's janitorial staff. They performed what they described as a tribute to the various Hawaiian islands and landmarks, which would have been fine had I known there were more than 4,000 documented Hawaiian islands and landmarks. Now, i'm not going to say it went on forever, but after the second intermission, I was looking all over for the mariachi band.

Now I jest, mostly because I can, but it was actually a very special night. Lesley was fondly honored by her peers and district administration, and was even allowed the chance to speak at the podium. It was a first rate event that was well deserved after 21 years of service in what I have always said is one of the most important and underappreciated professions in the world, bull fighter, er... I mean teacher.

Congrats, Lesley. We can't wait to hear what your second career will bring.

Paul