Well Now Buckaroos

I've had my cowboy boots and cowboy hat, in anticipation of my first rodeo, for sometime now. I had mentioned to my Osage Beach friend, Sharon Love, that these acquisitions paved the way for the creation of a dress design long 2-stepping in my head. 

Her reply? "Oh, you want to be a cowgirl slut."

"What! No, that's not...I didn't mean...I would never..."

Clearly I'd been less than clear. In my head I saw this feminine, vintage inspired dress with a western influence. I was looking to dive headlong into the rodeo experience. I'd no intention of...savin a horse to ride a cowboy!

Well I never did get the dress out of my head and into fabric but Babs, Dr. Leslie D______ and I still attended the Homestead, Florida rodeo this past weekend.

Where, I might add, literally no one was dressed in anything feminine and vintage inspired. Not one vintage cowgirl was in sight! 

My disappointment was profound. Although, the handsome and lanky cowboys, the bucking bulls and broncos and the fried turkey legs did go far in soothing my spirit. 

Babs, who has the inside track as she's friends with a few bona fide cowgirls, tells me that most of them see such dress as silly. 

Ouch! That leaves a slight flesh wound. 

Really! Rodeo's without cowgirl fashions? It's hard to fathom. I mean, they put pink and blue glitter on the hind quarters of their horses but dressy cowgirl fashions are silly dress?

Is this Brokeback Mountain fall out or what?  Is it just Missouri and Florida? What's going on here buckaroos?

I might just be finding myself on a mission to bring back something the rodeo people have lost. 

The rodeo was a blast! Exciting, scary and funny! And oh my gosh, when those cowboys fall to their knees in a quick prayer of thanks after their ride is through, it just about brings tears to your eyes. 

Try as I might, I could never catch a good picture of a bucking bronco. The picture was either blurry or the horse just wasn't in the shot. It took only one try though to get Miss Holly's boots - a rider who took in a rescued horse she calls Charlie Horse. Pretty cool boots, eh? I wonder if they come in a dusty rose color?

When's the next rodeo you ask? March. Arcadia, Florida - www.arcadiarodeo.com 

Yee-haw!