The Boat Show

So we've gotten a little backed up on posts recently due to midterms, projects and just overall disarray I think. So, despite the fact that the boat show was in February, I thought I'd post some pictures from it. It's an annual tradition for our family to head to all sorts of different expo extravaganzas! Weird I know, but the Friday night of nearly every "show" is considered college student date night, so we can get in for really cheap. This show was actually a little disappointing since they only brought the poor man's house boats....not even one of them had granite countertops! Can you believe that? ha ha. We actually could have bypassed like 90% of the show and not missed much. Like for instance....who buys a boat that is made 100% of diamond plate steel? Or, why would I still be interested in watching the wakeboard show when all the "pros" are out skiing (per the announcers comments since it had snowed a couple feet the day before) and instead watch who is likely his little brothers. By the way, the were definitely not pros, and sad as it may seem, there wasn't even any carnage... I know, I know, that shouldn't bring me happiness....tough!

We decided to find my mom a boat for kicks, and it turns out that she is only concerned with one thing....well, maybe two, but they're related.

1) Does it have a potty?
2) If so, can you actually fit in it to do your business?

You'd be suprised how many boats have number one, but neglect number two. Hence, Corey volunteered to be the ultimate tester.... makes me laugh just thinking about it.

Not only was there boats at the boat show, but there were attack dogs as well.....yes, I said attack dogs. Well, I typed it anyway, and then retyped it just for emphasis. So as random as it sounds, we had the privilege of watching a Belgian Malaneux (really sorry pooch about misspelling your breed), which happens to be the dog they use at the prison, nearly eat his trainer alive.

Maybe he just didn't approve of the dirty Jimmy Buffet Hawaiian shirt. I guess we'll never know.
We saw boats of all shapes and kinds, some with big bows and some with little bows. Some with pretty colors and some with PLAID.... what? Yes, and it's gotta be the most expensive boat there outside of a house boat. Plaid? Really? I know it has been in and out of fashion lately, but on the side of a boat? It never ceases to amaze me what "the industry" can convince people is good looking. It's got the Mastercraft name, so you can put whatever the heck on the side of it you want and people will eat it up. Lets not think about trying to sell a plaid boat 10 years from now....ah, but there's the secret. People who buy this boat don't own it for more than 3-4 years before they get a new one. On average they will use it for family outings 3-4 times per summer. So wow, 16 trips on the water....if only my cars could be traded out every 16 trips... Anyway, forget the fact that they have a HORRIBLE maintenance record, just like Range Rovers (I reference this because I saw one no more than one year old with 5 foot flames shooting out from the hood yesterday....again) and will cost you more than what people put into a house to buy and fix for 4 years. WOW, anyway, I love capitalism, truly, I do.

I took that picture so I could warn my loved ones away from the hype that is actually the Land Rover of boats. That wonderful status symbol that says 'I care more about appearances and a name than efficiency, reliability, and financial intelligence. But I have enough money, so what the hell?' ha ha, I joke, but really, it's the best way to confuse all around you as to how you got your money in the first place. Maybe they just do it for the joke?

In the end, we picked our boat of the show. Hands down it was the winner. So we took a picture in front of it to show it off. Well, and because when we remembered we wanted a picture we happened to be standing there. :-)

We had a newcomer to the group this year. Cindy, Rachel's younger sister, occasionally needs a break from her educational institution that turns out to drive thousands to anxiety attacks annually, BYU. So, she comes and stays with us for the weekend to get her fill of normal-dom (not a word I'm sure, but I'm working on getting a couple added to the dictionary) to set her on an even keel. She seemed to enjoy it, although I think it's more fun when you realize that we're there to hang out and see some cool things and collect as many books as possible, not to look at the price tags and actually contemplate buying them.

Anyway, I have a lot to again catch up on, so hopefully I'll get a couple more posts up soon. PS, If anyone knows how to do the little collage that the pictures can expand out of so that my blogs don't have to be 7.3 miles long, I'd love to know. Thanks!