Breakfast With Santa, Yeah Baby!!

Good morning.
I'm not sure what to say about the dinner doo last night, or the 4H Club in general.

We get there, on time, and it's packed, we have to park down the street. We walk in and there is a table set up with a bowl of money on it and a couple of flyers. There were several people standing there, so I asked, "oh, do we need to pay?" No response, I am met with blank stares. Meanwhile, Hubby was reading the flyer, I asked again, thats when Hubby told me its for "donations". Ok, he tosses ten bucks in the bowl. We enter the diningroom, its packed, I don't see a single empty seat, nor a single familiar face.

Let me just stop here to say, this has been our whole experience with the 4H Club. Never knowing what is going on and it seems like asking questions is some kind of cardinal sin. Being made to feel unwelcome and uncomfortable. I think we joined the wrong club and I think we joined at the wrong time.

So we stand there, holding our coats because we couldn't find any hangers at the coat hanging nook, just looking around, feeling most uncomfortable, and finally some dude came over and said something about we look like we're looking for seats. Ya think?? He dashes over to shuffle some people around to open 3 seats together for us, cool. If I was a toothpick I may have been comfortable.

Then I pick up the program and notice my daughter is to get up and give a speech near the beginning of the events. Wow, nice to let us know that in advance. Actually, she found out about it that day at school from another member, her friend D.W, and she told me when she got home from school. Big deal, hardly time to prepare a speech. She and D.W were supposed to get up together and do a duet speech, but D.W wasn't there yet, and was expected to be late, as she had another function to attend first with her dance class. So from that moment I had Little R freaking beside me, saying she couldn't do it, she wasn't going to do it, bla bla bla. She was on the edge of tears. She was terrified. Can't say I blame her, who would want to get up in front of a room full of unfriendly strangers and give an unprepared speech, especially at that age. I would have gladly done it for her, but I'm afraid I would have been ejected by security immediately thereafter hehehe.

Anyhoo, we finally convinced her to go up to the head table, Hubby went with her as I was trapped like a sardine in my seat, to talk to the MC, the only familiar face in the place, and see what can be done. I mean talk about putting the kid on the spot. They agreed to put it off until D.W showed up.

Finally we get to eat, its a buffet, it was good, nothing to write home about, but a hearty meal.

Then it was awards time. Thank heaven the kids weren't singled out and called up one at a time, they were called up in groups with their clubmates. I should say here, in our club Little R and D.W are the only ones in their age group, the rest are all older, in fact out of 8, this was the last year for 4 of them, and that is supposedly the reason we never saw any of them at any of the shows and events, they were doing other stuff. Little R was told she wasn't getting any awards and you know about the nomination for Outstanding Junior Whatever. But she did win. She walked away with an armload of gifts. She got a clock with an engraved thing (what the heck is it called?? lmao) for Top Junior Showperson (or something, I didn't get a good look at it yet) and a pile of John Deere gear for Outstanding First Year Member or something like that. So that was a pleasant surprise for all of us, and helped ease the tension a bit.

Eventually D.W showed up with a quickly written speech to share, and they got up there and did their thing. The awards giving and speeches went on and on, the whole thing lasted about 3 hours.

I was so glad to get out of there. Our whole experience with the 4H Club has been strange. It wasn't what we expected. Theres a lot of good old boy attitudes and if you aren't from a certain family or connected to a certain farm then you just aren't shit. They seem to go out of their way to make us feel unwelcome and uncomfortable and to keep us uninformed, always out of the loop. So whatever, we'll see. I'm tempted to write an email to the top dogs. I'll be spending the next months trying to find a different club for her to join.

The temperature had really dropped and we were starting to get the freezing rain and snow for the drive home, it's snowing and whatnot out there this morning. Hubby and Little R will be attending "Breakfast With Santa" at her school this morning. They've gone every year, I've not gone once. I have no interest in pancakes and sausage at 7-10 a.m. This is her last year at that school, though I suppose you can still go, without being a student at that school, since it is put on by the Lions Club. And yes, there is actually a big sign in front of the school announcing the event BREAKFAST WITH SANTA! I love it!

I would like to take this opportunity to thank S.W for her timely comment on the "Good Night" post. I couldn't have said it better myself. Apparently I've been unable to say it for 30 years or more. That's not for a lack of trying. Someone who can't be a supportive friend, is not a true friend. Said person then spends a lifetime trying to convince me that expecting support was expecting too much. Still, to this day, trying to convince me that I don't know what friendship is about or means. Accusing me of all kinds of wrongdoing and ignorance. Saying I pick people apart, no I don't, but isn't that exactly what you do to me? I am well aware of all my flaws and shortcomings, in fact, if you were to read some archives, you'd see that for yourself. I have no problem looking in a mirror. I don't feel guilty. I can live with myself just fine. They say living well is the best revenge. Hmmm, my life has gone on just swimmingly without your support or friendship.

And really, if you must read my blather, maybe learn to take it for what it is, and not take it so literally.

Heres a pic of the girls giving their speech and Little R back home with her loot...

And on that note, you all have a lovely day!