9/3/22 An Invitation To The Orange Castle? (Part 1 of 2)

     I have one good adult male friend that I talk to outside of work and everything else.  We used to work together maybe 20 years ago when I first started with AMD.  He is a huge Longhorns fan and over the last few years, he has been inviting me to attend a game with him.  I kept saying no, mostly because I don't like the idea of big crowds and being away from the comfort of home.  Well, things changed when Baby A declared that he would like to see a UT game live, so he could see first-hand how fast D1 athletes move.

    Before we even get there, I was still hesitant.  It just seemed to happen by the stars aligning just right.  As soon as Mijo said he was interested in a game, my friend happened to call and offered his usual invite.  I might have surprised him by saying yes, and how much will my part be, so I can pay you back.  He said to give him a headcount, was Wife going to join or just two tickets?  Wife thought about volunteering for the Cougars booster club, they were there, on the 10th floor, but already had enough volunteers.  Wife chose to stay home and catch up with work.

    The game was set for Saturday evening at 7:30pm.  Being naive about the whole thing, when my friend asked what time, I was almost thinking getting there at 7:00pm, but then I noticed TikToks and Snapchat images of people already there at 2:00pm.  It felt like we were missing out on the festivities.  I decided that maybe 5:30pm would be better, then maybe even earlier would be good.  We discussed the time, and how to get there.  Since he bought the tickets, I felt obligated to say I would drive us there.  He said he would come over to the house at 4:30pm, and then we could go whenever we were ready.

    I kept looking over images online, I wanted to know what to expect.  I noticed everybody wearing burnt orange, so I told Wife I was going to run out to Dillard's and buy us some new shirts.  She decided to join me.  We went and found a great shirt and shorts for Mijo, but my fat ass had to settle for a T-shirt from DXL, the fat man's store up north.  Still, we both looked the part.  We got back home from our clothes shopping by 12:30pm.  This left just enough time to pick up Mijo and go have a little lunch, which we did at Mucho Taco.  We were home by 2:00pm, I showered and grabbed all my stuff, like my watch and extra cash, then laid down for a nap about 3:00pm.  I napped for about 45 minutes to get ready for the evening.