Louie Louie, Oh Baby, We Gotta Go!

Say the title--out loud or in your head--a few times. The song is stuck in your head now, isn't it? And now you can't remember the rest of the words to the song, can you? You're welcome.

When I was a kid my Dad was able to take me on some of his bi-weekly business trips & I loved it. I thought I was all special getting this time to go to another state & have these experiences, just Dad & me.

When I was older I found out he took me because my constant chatter kept him awake during the long drives. Hey...I had a lot of thoughts in my little head & I liked to share them. Who am I kidding? I still do, it's just called a blog now.

It worked out for both of us because I got to see some pretty awesome things. Like the funny-shaped little brown things that were coming up near me on the beach that I was exploring. I poked them with sticks & came very close to picking one up by it's odd stick-like tail. I wanted to put it in my backpack & take it home. Then I decided that since it came from the ocean, it would probably not smell too good on the ride home & Dad would find out that I'd hid this alien creature & then I'd get in trouble. Also, even if I did manage to get it home, I didn't know what I'd do with it after that. Living in Wisconsin, I didn't have sea water at my disposal & I was pretty sure I couldn't just keep it in the barn with the sheep.

Sad Me left the brown little guys in the water, even though it really tugged at my heart. I thought they were some of the cutest little things I'd ever seen. When I told my Dad about it later, he got a book ('cause I'm old sp this was pre-Google days) & we looked for the cute little guys so he could see what I was talking about that I fell in love with. When I said, "That's it!" as I saw a picture of one, he thought I was crazy.

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Look at those adorable little eyes! Aww, he's just so cute!

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The underside of these guys...seriously, does anything have a cuter mouth? I think not.

While my parents were thankful I didn't pick one up after all, they didn't understand why I fell in love with the little guys.

Hubby doesn't understand my desire to swim with them or feed them or touch them. I don't understand that he just can't understand it. But we are each okay with our crazy spouse, so it all works out in the end. Which is a good thing since I'm not sure anyone else would be as okay with my not-normalness.  

At the aquarium last weekend, I was able to stand over a tank of stingrays & watch them! I cannot express my excitement over this. I didn't want to leave. When the little guys looked up at me with their sad round eyes, pleading me to just reach in & pet them...I could have cried. It was a cruel joke to let me get that close but keep us separated by glass.

I wanted to scoop them up & put them in baskets & put bows on them & hug them on rainbows &...okay, not really. But I did want to bring them home.

And I did. Well, not all of them, but I did bring 1 little guy home. I didn't want to be greedy & not leave any for the others who wanted a new buddy.

Wearing the hat I knitted for my cousin's little girl.

It only took me about 25 years but I finally got my stingray. His name is Louie. Hubby named him. He said he just looks like a Louie. I must have been on a pretty strong Happy Hormone High 'cause Louie it is.

Hubby said I'm cuddling Louie every morning when he wakes up. What can I say? Louie doesn't complain about me being a human furnace.