HOBNOBBING

Vicki and I had an invite to the kickoff of the Festival of Trees tonight. It was a semi-formal evening with dinner and a live auction to raise money for Opportunity House. I got to wear my suit and Vicki wore something shiny with a fur collar. She looked hot, I looked frumpy.

It was kind of weird for me being surrounded by doctors, politicians, business owners and lots of what I would call "rich people". We were seated by the front and really enjoyed it. We were so close to the ballerinas performance that once, when they twirled, a skirt almost took my head off. The mayor was so close, I could have read his speech notes. I became the foil for the auctioneer on a couple of occasions and even got to make a $1000+ dollar bid on an item. Altogether a fun evening.

There were a lot of high points during the evening, but my favorite was during a part of the entertainment portion, when a high school girl was singing a beautiful version of O Holy Night. I happened to look over and noticed her mothers reaction at watching her daughter. The pride and joy on her mothers face was priceless. Crying parents always strike a chord with me.

Opportunity House is a great organization that doesn't just provide a bed for homeless people here in Vacaville, but provides them the tools and means to get off the street and into a job and home of their own. It was truly a blessing to be a part of the evening.

The live auction was a lot of fun, although I was terrified of screwing up on several occasions. I didn't want to reach for my drink for fear of the motion being misinterpreted as a bid. That itch on my nose that was driving me crazy...I didn't even think of scratching it until all the bidding was done. In case you were wondering, the $1000+ bid was not for me, but rather on behalf of my company. It was still exciting though. I can officially check "bid at live auction" off of my bucket list.