thoughts of Snoopy

shared by Marlo R. Beall, her sister

Yesterday, our family went out to lunch to celebrate VJ's birthday. Both Cyn Cyn and I were wearing shirts with Snoopy on them. A family friend who had joined us for lunch asked whether it was "Snoopy Day" or something, to explain why we were both wearing Snoopy shirts.

I told her that I usually like to wear a Snoopy shirt to family gatherings or special family occasions, as a way of representing Cindy. I believe that she is always with us in spirit, so it's fun to have small ways to express it.

thoughts of bruins and jayhawks

shared by Andrew Beall, her brother-in-law

Anyone who knows me knows that I am a proud Kansas Jayhawks fan. But I will also say that at the point in my life when I met Marlo, I became a UCLA Bruins fan too. I think I actually keep track of them more than she does. The only time I don't cheer for UCLA is when they are playing my Jayhawks. 

Last week, we watched the UCLA mens' basketball team play on TV against the MU Tigers. It was a fun game and thankfully the right team won. As we watched, it made me think of the time that Cindy took me to see the Bruins play my Jayhawks in Pauley Pavilion. It was quite an adventure.

When I mentioned to Cindy that KU would be playing UCLA, she said she would get us tickets and then decided she'd get us student tickets so we could sit closer to the court. I didn't quite realize what that would entail. 

The day of the game, Cindy told me she had borrowed one of her friend's student ID's. I was going to have to pretend I was a UCLA student with my borrowed ID. We waited in line to get in, and nervously practiced everything I was going to say as they checked my credentials. Security really did hold the ID up next to me and ask me what my name was, but I was apparently persuasive enough that they believed me even though I looked nothing like the darker skinned fellow on the ID. 

The Jayhawks were ranked #1 at that time, and the Bruins #11. It was supposed to be a good game, but my Jayhawks played terribly. I vividly remember sitting amongst all the students screaming for UCLA. And because I was sitting with them, I knew better than to openly cheer for the other team. Cindy laughed at me when I poorly tried to control my emotions. I remember that I would squeeze her hand instead of yelling when KU would make a good play, which there weren't very many of. 

In the end, it was a pretty frustrating game from my perspective. KU lost 87 to 77. The UCLA students stormed the court as time expired. Cindy rushed down while I stood in the stands and wallowed in my sorrows. 

Still, I had a great time with Cyn. I miss our adventures together.