Any House Will Do
By Margie Keane
On one of our trips from Connecticut to California we happened to drive by Henryetta, Oklahoma and I saw a sign that said “Welcome to the Birth place of Troy Aikman. ‘Stop and pay a visit to his Homestead’
For those of you who don’t follow football, Troy Aikman was a famous quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys. I am a big Cowboy fan as is my son in law, Bruce and I thought it would be fun to find some Aikman trivia for him. We stopped at a gas station and I asked the woman in charge if she could tell us how to get to Troy Aikman’s homestead but she had no idea who he was or where he lived.
Not to be denied, I suggested we go to a liquor store that I spotted down the road, surely there would be some good old boys hanging out who could help us, but instead we met two women – one was the owner, a hefty woman about sixty with bleached blond hair done up in a bee hive. She gave me a disdainful look through her cat’s eye glasses and uttered a “HUMPH.” The other woman, younger and skinny jumped up and started telling us how we could “jest foller this road two blocks, then make a turn on New Lake Road ‘and keep a follerin’ for a ways more and then I forget the name of the road you turn on but you’ll probably find it.”
I said “We’re not from around here, we’re from California and I’m not sure the roads or landmarks that are familiar to you will help us, but we thank you any way.”
Mizz cat’s eyes drew herself up to a full huff and announced, “Well if ya’all are from California, yall should to know all about Troy, he was born in California, came here when he was just a baby.”
“Gee, I didn’t know that,” I said, trying to ingratiate myself. Do you know him?”
“Know him! I guess I do! Troy was just another kid to me, used to cut his hair for him all the time.”
I got the feeling that either she didn’t like him or was unimpressed by his fame.
About then a big burly man in farmer overalls came in and the skinny woman jumped up and ran over to him. “Hey, Leroy, you live up by the old Aikman place, can ya tell these folks how to get there?
“Not really,” he replied, I don’t pay no attention to road signs, I just drive ’til I get to my home.”
“Well, couldn’t they foller you home?” she asked.
“Well, sure”, the big man said”
“Great”, says the skinny woman.
“But I ain’t goin” right home,” says the burly fella
“How long you folks gonna be in town? I could drive ya there in the mornin’, offered the skinny woman.
Tom, who had remained quiet through all of this, started pushing me toward the car and said, “we’re leaving at four in the morning but thank you for your effort. It’s been swell talking with you.”
We jumped in our car and sped off. A little way down the road Tom pulled up in front of an old farm house and said, “Give me the camera.” He stepped out of the car, took a picture of the old home, then turned to me and said, “You can send this to Bruce, This is now Troy Aikman’s homestead!”
I didn’t send Bruce the picture – I sent him this story and a picture I took of Miss Cat’s Eye and the skinny woman.