Fightin’ Irish forced to shut their pie holes

It was shaping up to be a pretty great International Pie Hole Day on Saturday (along with being Ken’s birthday weekend). Several silly like-minded friends participated, and it was a beautiful fall day: sunny and in the low 60s! A perfect day for a football game! It was the first night game at Notre Dame stadium in about twenty years, so it had a bit of a different feel to it.

We headed out to grab a bite to eat and a couple of beers at our go-to place when it starts getting cooler, Between the Buns. (Decent parking across the street, 32 ounce beers we can take along with us, and a pleasant, not-overly-far walk to the stadium. And TVs at the tables, so we can watch whatever game we want!) When we finished up there, we started making our way to where my sister and her husband were tailgating with some friends. Most of them were women with whom I was in a service sorority for a while, so it was really great to get to see them! They’d been at it for a while, so everyone was exceedingly happy, and we joined right in. They’d managed to leave a little Goldschlager in the bottle for me. Yay!

As we were all talking, Diana pointed out that she was pretty sure one of the guys tailgating next to us was Cheech Marin. (You might remember his movies with Tommy Chong in the ‘70s...although if you were a big fan, you might not!) He was having a bite to eat, so I didn’t bother him then, but when he finished, I had a shot of courage from the Goldschlager bottle and went over and said, “Welcome to Notre Dame!” He asked my name, we chatted a bit, and I said, “I’m guessing you won’t be cheering for Notre Dame, though, right?” He laughed and said, “Well, you know...!” I asked if he minded if I got a picture with him, and he said sure, so Ken got a picture of me and Diana with Cheech! What fun! Honestly, he couldn’t have been a nicer guy. Just super nice, and everyone was kind of chatting him up and being cool and welcoming. He mentioned that he’s working on a new show, so I’ll have to watch for that.

Cheech VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

Ken got a couple of pictures when I first went up to Cheech, and I saw later that I was rather glad-handed, putting my hand on his shoulder. I wrote on Facebook that I pulled a Mitt Romney on the guy, but at least he didn’t go all Rick Perry death stare on me! He actually smiled, so I guess it was okay.

Of all people to run into, tailgating right next to you. So funny, and super cool! My goal is still to get a picture with Regis Philbin, but I don’t think we run in the same circles. Ha!

Tailgating ND-USC game VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

Then it was off to the stadium. We took a sort of roundabout way, so we could stand where the band comes by as they walk into the stadium. It’s one of the best college marching bands in the country, and it was fun to watch them go by. Then we parted ways with the gang and headed to our seats. Best seats we’ve had this season, about 15 or so rows up from the field, right by the student section. (We have even better ones for Boston College, the last home game of the season!) Guess who was sitting in front of us? The men’s basketball team. That’s right. There’s all five-foot-nothing of me, with this six-foot-plus guy in front of me. (Tim Abromaitis, the best player on the team this season, was a few seats down.) I don’t know who the kid was, but he was really sweet, and we all got a laugh out of the situation. He was often trying to duck down so I could see, and he didn’t seem to mind when I stood up on the seat to see over him, bracing myself with my hands on his back.

The crowd was loud, the place was rockin’, and the players were sporting their new helmets with the extra-sparkly gold paint. They looked really neat, and yes, they really do put gold flakes in the paint. (Kind of like the Goldschlager, now that I think about it!) The Southern Cal band came along, and they’re also one of the best college marching bands in the nation, so it was a pretty cool night...for a while. I’m sorry to say that the team made some stupid mistakes, and the game ended up being a nasty loss for ND. Coach Kelly is not a happy man right now, and I actually feel sorry for the players this week! But we stuck around for the entire game, including when the team came over to stand by the student section as they all sang the alma mater, and I still raised my fist at the end and sang along: “Love thee, Notre Dame!”

Now, do better next week, guys!

It all began so innocently

This morning, my niece Jen (love you, Chickie) posted a Facebook update in which she wrote that Dick Cheney needs to shut his pie hole. I couldn't agree more, but then a friend of hers commented that Jen was the second person to mention "pie hole" on a status update.

Well, the moon was in the second house, and Jupiter aligned with Mars...and it was obvious that the time was ripe for action. I raised the call to arms, and asked my Facebook friends to join me in trying to mention the phrase "pie hole" at some point during the day on our status updates. The response was overwhelming, and I can't begin to tell you how impressed I was with these folks. They didn't just step up to the plate, they did so and then hit it out of the park. Folks from England (although I had to disallow Simon's initial entry about "hole pie" due to the judges' ruling...he came back strong) and Canada joined in, and thus was born International Pie Hole Day.

I had a very enjoyable afternoon, reading the updates pouring in from around the country and from other countries, all working "pie hole" into their status updates. I'm not ashamed to tell you that I was deeply touched and very moved by the outpouring of love, concern, and international brotherhood expressed by my friends as they stood by me, united as one in our efforts to get others to embrace the use of "pie hole." Such togetherness and unity is a beautiful thing, people, and never doubt it. It left my pie hole wide open with shock, awe, and delight.

The gears are working, and I'm wondering if Cousin Shane and I might collaborate on a song for International Pie Hole Day, sort of a "we are the world, we are the pie holes" thing, or "feed the pie holes, let them know it's Christmas time again." We've done great things in the past, with his "Whirl-O-Matic 2000" (or was it 3000?) song and our collaborative efforts on "White Trash Whore." I think there are definite possibilities here. It's good to get involved, isn't it?

Today was a very good day. I hope your day was as pleasant.