Miss Ellie Meets Tom Jones!
http://www.featuredarticles.com/Miss-Ellie-Meets-Tom-Jones/a15419_1
Jackie Finch
By Jackie Finch
Published on 09/6/2009
"It's Not Unusual" that she always gets in trouble!
At 89, Miss Ellie was a pistol and had been a fan of the geriatric entertainer Tom Jones for over 30 years, ever since she first saw him swivel & gyrate himself onto national television!
Several years back, we get the news that he's coming to Seattle to perform at the downtown waterfront. Being the demented daughter that I am, thinking what a fabulous idea this is, I buy tickets to take Miss Ellie to see her dream dude. I con my friend Jo, who over the years I've sucked into doing some pretty cool things, and we're off to Seattle.
After spending forever trying to find parking (we didn't have our handicap sticker yet), we maneuver Miss Ellie & her wheelchair from the car, across the railroad tracks and traverse Elliott Avenue traffic. With tickets in hand, we approach the entrance and are accosted by the ticket keeper that indicates that folks with wheelchairs get first crack at entering the venue and best of all, they get first dibs on FRONT ROW seats! Now I'm thinking, why haven't we been using this ploy all along for all the other treks that Miss Ellie and I have found ourselves on!
So now we're settled in at the front row, have a little time to relax and grab a microbrew before the concert begins (me, not Ellie – she's taking enough meds that introducing alcohol into the mix might make her even more outrageous!), and my best friend Jo decides that Miss Ellie needs some extra special attention – I mean seeing Tom Jones in person has been on Miss Ellie's "bucket list" for a very long time after all! Jo approaches a vendor who is selling nightshirts that say "I slept with Tom Jones", as well as a sweatshirt, noting Tom's tour info. Well, Miss Ellie is thrilled to say the least! It was a struggle, however, to keep her from changing into the nightshirt right on the spot!
The music begins to play, and when I look over, Miss Ellie is grinning from ear to ear! She's so happy; 1st of all to be at the concert, 2nd of all to be out of the house, and 3rd she's getting spoiled rotten!
Then, out comes Tom, all dressed in black, lookin' mighty fine and giving the crowd that sexy smile. The distance between where Tom's standing on stage and where "hell on wheels" is situated is about 15 feet. Now picture this – Tom starts to sing, begins to shake his moneymaker and the crowd (women, lots of women, every size, shape, age, etc.!) goes crazy! Everyone's singing along, clapping their hands, shaking their booties, & before you know it, I look over and notice that Miss Ellie has totally forgotten her "proper Grams" demeanor and is really getting into the music. She leans over to me and says, "Did you see that? He's singing that song to me!!" "He's singing that song to ME!!!!
She is having such a marvelous time but when I look over, I suddenly start to see little signs of mischief in her eyes – I know that look! Before she has a chance to make her next move, I quickly lean over and say sweetly "I swear to you Mom, if you throw your Depends on stage, we are outta' here!
Story #1 in a series of "Miss Ellie" stories. Dedicated to my 89 year old Mother, this series will honor her memory and help others to know her as her family did - one wild & crazy gal!
Miss Ellie Meets Tom Jones!
"It's Not Unusual" that she always gets in trouble!
At 89, Miss Ellie was a pistol and had been a fan of the geriatric entertainer Tom Jones for over 30 years, ever since she first saw him swivel & gyrate himself onto national television!
Several years back, we get the news that he's coming to Seattle to perform at the downtown waterfront. Being the demented daughter that I am, thinking what a fabulous idea this is, I buy tickets to take Miss Ellie to see her dream dude. I con my friend Jo, who over the years I've sucked into doing some pretty cool things, and we're off to Seattle.
After spending forever trying to find parking (we didn't have our handicap sticker yet), we maneuver Miss Ellie & her wheelchair from the car, across the railroad tracks and traverse Elliott Avenue traffic. With tickets in hand, we approach the entrance and are accosted by the ticket keeper that indicates that folks with wheelchairs get first crack at entering the venue and best of all, they get first dibs on FRONT ROW seats! Now I'm thinking, why haven't we been using this ploy all along for all the other treks that Miss Ellie and I have found ourselves on!
So now we're settled in at the front row, have a little time to relax and grab a microbrew before the concert begins (me, not Ellie – she's taking enough meds that introducing alcohol into the mix might make her even more outrageous!), and my best friend Jo decides that Miss Ellie needs some extra special attention – I mean seeing Tom Jones in person has been on Miss Ellie's "bucket list" for a very long time after all! Jo approaches a vendor who is selling nightshirts that say "I slept with Tom Jones", as well as a sweatshirt, noting Tom's tour info. Well, Miss Ellie is thrilled to say the least! It was a struggle, however, to keep her from changing into the nightshirt right on the spot!
The music begins to play, and when I look over, Miss Ellie is grinning from ear to ear! She's so happy; 1st of all to be at the concert, 2nd of all to be out of the house, and 3rd she's getting spoiled rotten!
Then, out comes Tom, all dressed in black, lookin' mighty fine and giving the crowd that sexy smile. The distance between where Tom's standing on stage and where "hell on wheels" is situated is about 15 feet. Now picture this – Tom starts to sing, begins to shake his moneymaker and the crowd (women, lots of women, every size, shape, age, etc.!) goes crazy! Everyone's singing along, clapping their hands, shaking their booties, & before you know it, I look over and notice that Miss Ellie has totally forgotten her "proper Grams" demeanor and is really getting into the music. She leans over to me and says, "Did you see that? He's singing that song to me!!" "He's singing that song to ME!!!!
She is having such a marvelous time but when I look over, I suddenly start to see little signs of mischief in her eyes – I know that look! Before she has a chance to make her next move, I quickly lean over and say sweetly "I swear to you Mom, if you throw your Depends on stage, we are outta' here!