Let me explain. . . in order to reserve a spot to enjoy the parade, a lot has to be done prior to Jan. 1st. My Aunt Shauna is pretty much a tagger- shhh don't tell. She goes out around Thanksgiving or as early as Halloween and takes field spray paint and marks our spot in the grass median. Now she informed me that she has to watch her territory because if there's a heavy rain or if the grass is mowed, she has to retag the spot. This process continues until Dec. 31st. She's pretty much a member of the Rose Parade Taggers- now that's dedication! The "fun" begins at about 2am Dec. 31st. She and my Uncle Mike, as well as the rest of the spot savers, sit in their cars and wait until the tarps can go down. Now this depends on how strict the police are being. Once the first person gets their tarp down without hassle from police
everyone else busts out of their cars and lay down their tarps on their precious territory. A few hours later chairs are allowed to be set-up. From then on, someone has to remain at the spot, or else you can lose it. This is when our parade shifts begin. We all have shifts and have a great time playing cards, Catch Phrase, football, eating In-N-Out, etc. Finally it's midnight and we all celebrate the New Year on the parade route. This includes poppers, noise makers, music, or whatever else we have on hand. If you drive down the parade route your car will more than likely get nailed with silly string- not the smartest thing to do.
Once we've celebrated, the fun really begins for those who sleep out on the route. This last year Doug and my Dad were the brave souls. The nice thing is that my Dad purchased 2 huge propane heaters a few years ago. This makes all the difference, or at least that's what I am told. The rest of us spend the night at our relatives homes in a nice warm bed- sorry Doug and Dad. Once morning comes all that Doug and my Dad want to do is have a warm shower. My Grandpa picks them up and other family members take their place on the route while they have a chance to freshen up- REMEMBER: It's all about saving our spot!!!
We really have the best spot on the parade route. The parade is 5 1/2 miles long and we sit at about the 5 mile mark. By the time they get to us they are pretty exhausted but with our many signs and treats we give to many of the members, they really do LOVE us.
I do have to admit we have one sign that is a little, well mean in some of their eyes. It says "You're half way there!" This is hilarious because so many of the band members, etc. are from out of town and have never been in the parade before. Now imagine having to play a tuba wearing a polyester band uniform and marching in the usually 70 degree weather for over 5 miles- exhausting. We hold up this sign and they about die because they think. . . WHAT we're only half way done!!!! In reality they are just about ready to put that tuba down and relax. I know a little cruel, but the faces we see on some of these people are priceless!!!!! Throughout the parade my Aunt Shauna pretty much runs a snack bar. We have hot chocolate, orange juice, danishes, cinnamon rolls, cookies, and muffins.
We watch in luxury and have the BEST time together as family and friends. I just want to give a big THANK YOU to everyone that has made The Rose Parade such a wonderful tradition.
Some great memories:
1. Holding my sign for Kirk Cameron that had hearts all over it. I so had a crush on him!
2. Uncle Mike daring us to put bright lipstick on and kissing the Boy Scouts. I think he gave us each $5!
3. Heather getting kissed by a USC (male) cheerleader.
4. Matthew holding a sign for Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor that said "I love a woman in a robe".
5. Screaming for Clay Aiken and O'Town- hilarious!!!!
6. Cara being Cara- LOVE it!!
7. Uncle Mike getting everyone to do the wave.
8. Grandma's plastic hair net that protected her hair from the crazy rain in 2006, Dad's Gumby rain suit, seeing him chew gum- he NEVER chews gum, the Gentry's first parade in the rain, and Mom's INTERESTING outfit- CLASSIC!!!
10. Our signs for Trista and Ryan from The Bachelorette (2004).
Fun from 2007's Parade
From December to January-
3 girls behind us driving in a convertible bug: BLASTING J.T. and dancing!!
Suzanne: "I bought this the day before you called about the concert."
Everyone: She was sooooooooooooooo good. "Stupid Girl" was our favorite!
It really was the most insane concert ever. His stage was amazing and it's unbelievable to me that he can play the piano and guitar, sing, dance, and just be so dang cute the entire time. Lisa was the biggest fan of his smile. Check out the video, hard to hear and see, but you'll get the idea!
Waiting for the Rose Parade to start- I can't wait to blog about this!!!
