I've been doing this blogging thing for a while and I get a lot of questions about what I write, back stories, "why didn't you tell EVERYTHING about Niobrara?" But more than any other question - people want to know about Lurleen.
"Why is your blog called 'Living Lurleen'?"
The simple answer is, Eddie loved "The Simpson's". Ahhhh... but nothing is ever simple, is it?
In order to truly understand and appreciate Eddie James' sense of humor, you had to experience it first hand. Nothing I could ever write will do it justice because I am not even a fraction as funny as he was.
Like all good comics, nothing was sacred and if you couldn't be part of the joke, then you probably weren't going to last too long around him. Everything and everyone was fodder, including himself.
It was his humor that first attracted me. I was in the audience of a "Ride For Kids" volunteer training session. He was the trainer and it was his first time conducting it for RFK as he had only been employed by them for a couple of weeks. Within minutes of opening his mouth he had everyone in the room in stitches. I leaned over to my fellow volunteer/sister and whispered "I love this guy. I'm sure he's married with three kids, a dog and a mini-van." Thankfully, I was wrong on all counts.
I too was a bit of a Simpson's fan but nothing like Eddie. He could quote whole episodes. So, the first time he called me "Lurleen" I knew exactly what he was referring to.
Lurleen Lumpkin was a waitress at a dive roadhouse and an aspiring country singer. Homer becomes her Colonel Parker-ish manager. Lurleen falls in love with Homer but Homer only has eyes for Marge.
Eddie loved it when stereotypes were smashed to smithereens. So it made perfect sense to give me a nickname that embodied every big haired, waitressing, redneck, trailer-park living, country music loving, husband-stealing, southern-woman stereotype you could come up with.
Of course, it didn't stop with the nickname. Eddie had just moved south from Minnesota via Ohio. He was an Upper Midwesterner to the core, you betcha. So, he proceeded to tell all his friends from around the country that he was dating a woman named Lurleen who he met at a Waffle House - that bastion of Southern Redneckism. (His other favorite story was that he was dating a hot cheerleader he met in a strip club.)
Eddie was obsessed with pop culture and Americana in every form. He found the whole idea of Waffle House hilarious. The fact that there was one at every corner (or at least every interstate exit ramp) and that there seemed to be a news story weekly related to some crazy-ass, drunk, redneck doing something stupid at a Waffle House kept him constantly entertained. Interestingly enough, he didn't care for the food. This from the King of Junk Food.
This was 2006 and the summer of Butt Lite IIII - the multi-day, endurance motorcycle competition that Eddie put on every-other-year. For the uninitiated - think of a cross country scavenger hunt on steroids and motorcycles. Not a race - a rally. Being first means nothing. Scoring the most points is the goal. You get points by selecting bonuses from a very long list; typically the more difficult to get means it is worth more points. Then you have a set time frame to get to each checkpoint. And if you do happen to win, all you get is bragging rights and a trophy.
Eddie wanted to introduce me to his friends in an unconventional way. So, he decided he would make me - actually, Lurleen - a bonus on the last leg of the rally. He suggested Lurleen should start posting on the rider's discussion board. That way when they saw the bonus, they would know who she was. So she did, beginning with this:
_________________________
Most were betting Lurleen was simply a figment of Eddie's over-active imagination and that he was actually the writer of all her posts.
During the last two hours of the rally, Lurleen - sporting an official Waffle House name tag (thank you eBay), sat on a bench outside The Two Rivers Saloon in Niobrara, Nebraska (Butt Lite IIII rally headquarters). The rider's instructions were:
Niobrara, NE 218 points 10am-noon Tuesday
That darn Lurleen girl has been stalkin' TeamStrange for awhile now and she made us promise to let her be a part of the rally.
Take a photo of Lurleen to earn this bonus. She'll be at the Two Rivers for photos from 10am to noon on Tuesday only.
Each rider is given a flag at the beginning of the rally with his/her unique number on it. This flag must be visible in every photo they take. No flag, no points. More than one rider failed to score the points for this bonus because in their excitement at meeting the famous, TeamStrange stalker they forgot to hand Lurleen their flag to hold in the photo. Lurleen was under strict instructions to not remind them about the flag. She felt really bad about those lost points...
For years there were riders who thought Lurleen was my real name. To this day I am greeted with "Hey Lurleen!" from dear friends and Strangers alike everywhere I go where long distance motorcyclists gather.
Lurleen is Lisa and Lisa is Lurleen.
Living Lurleen - living life from the perspective of having it all, then losing it all and then managing to survive it all. Like every good country song.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PCcgPt3VdsM
"Why is your blog called 'Living Lurleen'?"
The simple answer is, Eddie loved "The Simpson's". Ahhhh... but nothing is ever simple, is it?
In order to truly understand and appreciate Eddie James' sense of humor, you had to experience it first hand. Nothing I could ever write will do it justice because I am not even a fraction as funny as he was.
Like all good comics, nothing was sacred and if you couldn't be part of the joke, then you probably weren't going to last too long around him. Everything and everyone was fodder, including himself.
It was his humor that first attracted me. I was in the audience of a "Ride For Kids" volunteer training session. He was the trainer and it was his first time conducting it for RFK as he had only been employed by them for a couple of weeks. Within minutes of opening his mouth he had everyone in the room in stitches. I leaned over to my fellow volunteer/sister and whispered "I love this guy. I'm sure he's married with three kids, a dog and a mini-van." Thankfully, I was wrong on all counts.
I too was a bit of a Simpson's fan but nothing like Eddie. He could quote whole episodes. So, the first time he called me "Lurleen" I knew exactly what he was referring to.
Lurleen Lumpkin was a waitress at a dive roadhouse and an aspiring country singer. Homer becomes her Colonel Parker-ish manager. Lurleen falls in love with Homer but Homer only has eyes for Marge.
Eddie loved it when stereotypes were smashed to smithereens. So it made perfect sense to give me a nickname that embodied every big haired, waitressing, redneck, trailer-park living, country music loving, husband-stealing, southern-woman stereotype you could come up with.
Of course, it didn't stop with the nickname. Eddie had just moved south from Minnesota via Ohio. He was an Upper Midwesterner to the core, you betcha. So, he proceeded to tell all his friends from around the country that he was dating a woman named Lurleen who he met at a Waffle House - that bastion of Southern Redneckism. (His other favorite story was that he was dating a hot cheerleader he met in a strip club.)
Eddie was obsessed with pop culture and Americana in every form. He found the whole idea of Waffle House hilarious. The fact that there was one at every corner (or at least every interstate exit ramp) and that there seemed to be a news story weekly related to some crazy-ass, drunk, redneck doing something stupid at a Waffle House kept him constantly entertained. Interestingly enough, he didn't care for the food. This from the King of Junk Food.
This was 2006 and the summer of Butt Lite IIII - the multi-day, endurance motorcycle competition that Eddie put on every-other-year. For the uninitiated - think of a cross country scavenger hunt on steroids and motorcycles. Not a race - a rally. Being first means nothing. Scoring the most points is the goal. You get points by selecting bonuses from a very long list; typically the more difficult to get means it is worth more points. Then you have a set time frame to get to each checkpoint. And if you do happen to win, all you get is bragging rights and a trophy.
Eddie wanted to introduce me to his friends in an unconventional way. So, he decided he would make me - actually, Lurleen - a bonus on the last leg of the rally. He suggested Lurleen should start posting on the rider's discussion board. That way when they saw the bonus, they would know who she was. So she did, beginning with this:
Do Y'all Know Rev Eddie?July 28 2006 at 12:46 PM | Lurleen (Login Lurleen) | |
Hey Y’all,
Lurleen here. So, I was workin’ my shift at the Waffle House up there on Jimmy Carter at 85 in Norcross when this guy drives up on this killer BMW bike. It was the weirdest color of green. Kind of like when my last baby, Junior II had the runs really bad? Anyway, this guy – did I mention he was really big and had real pretty white hair? – he comes walkin’ into the place, all macho and everything and he just started flirtin’ with me right off. He told me how Waffle House was his favorite restaurant and how he thought this one was goin’ to be his all time favorite from now on. So he starts tellin’ me that he and some friends are havin’ this big motorcycle party-race thing and he has to go all the way to Nebraska (I think that’s up near Canada somewhere) to get it goin’. These guys that ride in it will go all over the country and maybe even New Mexico and then wind up right back in Nebraska about a week later. That just doesn’t make sense to me. Why wouldn’t they end up in Vegas or someplace where they can have some fun? Well, I’m just listenin’ to this guy because he talked kinda funny, ya know? Like he was from somewhere else? Anyway, then he goes and tells me that he’s a Reverend! You know, like a Man Of God!! OMG! My gum almost fell right out of my mouth. I’ve always had a thing for bad boys who are all spiritual and stuff. He said I should call him Rev Eddie. I didn’t tell him that my oldest baby’s daddy was named Eddie and he turned out to be a sumbitch. I didn’t want to offend him by cussin’. He IS a Reverend. Between the title and the smokin’ bike I was so turned on, I could barely stay on my side of the counter. And did I mention how pretty his hair was? He kinda looked like Kenny Rogers only without the beard or the bad eye job. About then he said he had to go. He really didn’t eat much but I think he was distracted since he spent the whole time flirtin’ with me and talkin’ about the motorcycle party. He said he was headin’ to Atlanta to see some woman. Well, I didn’t need to hear that. Especially, since he was all into me and everything. It was so obvious. But he said that I should check out this web site and read all the stuff about the motorcycle party-race thing he was puttin’ on. So, I decided I’d just post this message and see if anybody knew this guy, Rev Eddie. If you see him, tell him Lurleen is lookin’ for him. I’m still at the Waffle House workin’ the 7 to 3 shift. That would be 3AM. But this is just temporary ‘til I can get some money saved to go learn how to be a pedicurist. Y’all have fun at your motorcycle party! Lurleen | ||
Most were betting Lurleen was simply a figment of Eddie's over-active imagination and that he was actually the writer of all her posts.
During the last two hours of the rally, Lurleen - sporting an official Waffle House name tag (thank you eBay), sat on a bench outside The Two Rivers Saloon in Niobrara, Nebraska (Butt Lite IIII rally headquarters). The rider's instructions were:
Niobrara, NE 218 points 10am-noon Tuesday
That darn Lurleen girl has been stalkin' TeamStrange for awhile now and she made us promise to let her be a part of the rally.
Take a photo of Lurleen to earn this bonus. She'll be at the Two Rivers for photos from 10am to noon on Tuesday only.
Each rider is given a flag at the beginning of the rally with his/her unique number on it. This flag must be visible in every photo they take. No flag, no points. More than one rider failed to score the points for this bonus because in their excitement at meeting the famous, TeamStrange stalker they forgot to hand Lurleen their flag to hold in the photo. Lurleen was under strict instructions to not remind them about the flag. She felt really bad about those lost points...
For years there were riders who thought Lurleen was my real name. To this day I am greeted with "Hey Lurleen!" from dear friends and Strangers alike everywhere I go where long distance motorcyclists gather.
Lurleen is Lisa and Lisa is Lurleen.
Living Lurleen - living life from the perspective of having it all, then losing it all and then managing to survive it all. Like every good country song.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PCcgPt3VdsM
