A peek at you at the rodeo
Eavesdropping on spring break week at RodeoHouston
In the middle of spring break week at RodeoHouston, a woman entering NRG Center from the carnival festivities proclaimed to her friend next to her, “I want a margarita.” Meanwhile, a worker handed over a sample cup of steaming gumbo to an eager customer at his food stand, All of Us Old Plantation Soups & Dips. “It’s gumbo, cowboy,” he said with a smile.
In the shopping market inside NRG Center, where you could buy saltwater taffy, cowboy boots or a mattress, a young boy asked his father incredulously, “300 bucks?!” about the price of a brown stuffed pony for sale.
A couple debated in Spanish whether to buy a sign with their last name engraved on it for their front door.
There were “Ooohs and “Ahhhs” over blue sparkly necklaces and fancy boots inside Cattilac Style. “How are y’all?” A blonde attendant with a light country accent asked as customers streamed into the store.
“Will he start crying when the animals start to lick him?” a mom pushing her sleeping son inside a stroller, wondered to her friend next to her, as they got closer to the animals inside NRG.
A dad patted the back of his daughter’s pink jacket as she became sick to her stomach in the middle of the carnival grounds.
“Hey, that one’s not long!” a kid wearing a light green plaid shirt said, as he drags his mom to the line for the carousel around 4:30 p.m.
“Are you watching me?” a girl wearing pink cowboy boots and mini denim dress asks her dad, as she gets buckled into her seat for Spider Mania.
He nods yes, as he positions his phone to capture her screams and kicks on the ride.
A boy with black hair tries to balance his weight on a mechanical bull as Michael Jackson’s “Bad” booms.
An announcer at the 93Q stand wonders aloud if one of the Chik-Fil-La costumed cows strolling by is Garth Brooks, “Garth, is that you?” he said. “Just kidding, that’s not Garth.”
A group of people sing along to “I Will Always Love You” by Dolly Parton, while waiting for warm chocolate chip cookies and other treats at a food stand.
During a magic show at the Stars Over Texas Stage, a magician entertains the audience with some cow jokes but promises to stop, “I don’t want to tell too many,” he said. “I don’t want to milk it too much. They can be pretty cheesy.”
“Do you want a picture on a bull?” a mother asks her son at the shopping market inside NRG Center.
“Bluebonnets!” a boy says, excitedly pointing at a photo of them.
“Bacon, ooooh bacon!” a young kid shouts, as his father asks him what food he wants to eat at the carnival.