My Country Valentine.

Valentine's week coincides with the start of our relationship. Therefore, we always celebrate both events by doing, pretty much next to nothing.
Today, I will honor one more year into our relationship by high-lighting how little my Country Valentine has grown. (No, that is not a short joke! Jerks.)
As often quoted, by The Mrs. and I....
"You can take the boy out of the country but you...."

***Side Note: Our men ARE NOT 'Hank Williams/Belt Buckle/Shined Cowboy Boots' kind of Country Boys. They are Farm Boys. Big Diff. Seriously.***

Livin In-Town Ain't Gonna Phase This Boy:

1. Coach doesn't Get Curtains. Apparently, when the only person who may ever peer into your window, is your Grandmother, living a mile away... you feel no reason to hide your personal business. Therefore, each evening I am not home, please feel free to drive past and stare directly into every open window, showcasing our messy home and ignored children.

2. Garbage Day! Each Tuesday evening (for YEARS) he is surprised by the idea that a State Funded organization of sanitary workers will drive to your home and pick up/cart away your garbage. Even more surprising... you have to actually carry those cans to the curb before Wednesday morning and then (for all that is Good and Holy) carry those bleepin cans back to our home side BEFORE the following Saturday.

3. The lawn. (Admittedly he has improved slightly.) He no longer believes the "Faster and Shorter the better' motto while mowing. For the first couple years, our poor lawn would stand barely 1/4 of an inch. Because obviously, if he cut it shorter, he would have more time to tend to the crops.
However, he is confused that people can see all the way to from the street to our porches. He often treats our porch as type of mudroom. Chilling a case of beer. Leaving the treasures he has pulled from other folk's garbage....

4. Oh... he picks stuff out of other people's garbage.

5. As previously mentioned, he treats our garage as an empty chicken coop.

6. He views poor weather as a dare from God.
If the weather man, threatens a possible severe thunderstorm/tornado/ice storm/blizzard....
Coach will immediately suggest calling a friend Just Down the Lane (6 miles outside of town) for a family game night. Proving to God, His mini natural disaster, can't hold Coach down.

7. He speaks in code. For example,
"This morning Dad called while on the Back 40."
What does that even mean? Is his Dad golfing or something??!

8. Last and most irritating. He is friendly. He waves at everyone! To imply his hand is up and open in a full cheerful wave is hilarious. He 1 finger flip/farm waves.. Thankfully, he taught the wave to both The Kid and Coco. In their absence, Tink and I spend hours pretending to not notice waves... all summer long.

But still, years later....
I'll take him as my Country Valentine.

(With that declaration, I fully accept, my 'Country Valentine' will not actually gift me flowers, candy or jewelry. Cuz out on the farm, Valentines aint a real holiday. It's not a real event, like say the Catholic Wake of a fella down the road's cousin from...)