Did you say pole dancing???

That’s right, my Mom told someone she wanted to be a pole dancer at 89.

It was on our trip out to California and points west last year.  We were in Arizona.  Because we have family there, we spent time in Benson, Tuscan, and Phoenix.

While driving through Phoenix, I asked Mom if she would mind visiting a couple of Paul’s buddies there.  She was game and so, we met Earl and John somewhere in Phoenix at a strip mall with a Starbucks.  We parked the truck and trailer in the lot and leaving the dogs in the truck, we wandered over to Starbucks to meet these guys.

I may have said this before, but my Mom was smart, funny, and quick witted.  But she met her match there at Starbucks. 

Earl was ON that day.  He and Mom hit it off right away and they just kept the banter going.  I felt like John, and I were watching a ping pong match.  Earl is a heck of a guy, and you could tell he loved Mom to pieces.  Earl has told me in the past that he has had several near-death experiences, so he has given up on filters.  He says life is too short to not say what you think and get it all out there.

As Mom and Earl shared life experiences with each other, we all laughed, it was great.  Then Earl suddenly stopped, turned to Mom really serious and asked, “So what do you want to do when you grow up?”  Mom’s immediate response was, “I want to be a Pole Dancer.”

John and I just busted out laughing, but Earl, quite seriously says, hey I know a guy who will give you a good start.  He’s just down the street here.  For the first time in the conversation, Mom went quiet.  I could see she was uncomfortable and pretty soon, she told Earl, she’d like to retract her answer.  Again, without skipping a beat, Earl replies “So, you want me to rewind that image?”

Later in the car as we were reliving the moment and laughing hysterically, Mom tells me she was just going for the shock value, but apparently shock is no longer an emotion Earl registers, must have gone out the window with his filters…

Mom’s 90’th birthday would be June 1 this year.  I’ll be in California then and by gosh, golly and knowing just the right people, I’ve signed up for a pole dancing class in Mom’s honor.  When I called the Monarch Pole Dance studio in Folsom and shared this story, they were all in.  So, on May 30th, Denise, Shiela, Sandy, Margaret, Peck and I are hitting the poles!!!

Wahoo!!!