Harris 1
Jada Harris
EN 101: Freshman Composition
Lockwood
27 August 2013
“Get Up Off That Thing!”
“Stop your stupid complaining and go back inside!!” I yelled to one of my girl cousins. When I was 8 years old I never understood the meaning of staying in the house. I was always on the go; I never stopped moving. I was considered a tomboy. I wanted to wear the oversized shirts with boy sayings on them, I loved my too muddy to walk inside the house tennis shoes and my tube socks that were originally white, but somehow managed to turn dark brown by the end of the day, not to mention, they smelled of sweat and dirt. I was one of “those girls” as I child. As for always on the go, if I were to go inside and sit down it would never be at my own house. I would walk over to my grandparents’ house; it was, literally, a hop, skip and a jump because they lived right next door. My grandparents were my world, but my grandfather always seemed to stick up for me all the time. If I ever got in trouble at my own house I would cry to my grand father just to watch my parents get yelled at. I just knew out of eight grand children, I was his favorite. My grandfather was always fond of tight blue jeans that were a size too small, tight shirts with stripes and cowboy boots. He was a true country boy. He was a professional truck driver, which means I never got to see him during the week; traveling through the United States, he was always on the road, but he never missed a weekend at home. If my grandfather ever missed a weekend at home, he would have to deal with my sassy attitude. Usually, when he came home, he devoured a good home cooked meal and slept for days on end. If he wasn’t sleeping, then his eyes were glued on the television.
Harris 2
If someone asked me to describe my grand father in one word, I don’t think it would be possible. He wasn’t as outgoing as people would have liked him to be; he always had a mean look on his face like a pit bull ready to attack. If you wanted his opinion, he wouldn’t mind telling you his. He never held back what he had to say; it was like he didn’t have a filter. Sometimes, he would joke around with us, but most of the time he meant business until one Saturday night. There is one show I will never miss; it comes on once a year around the same time in June, The BET Awards. The BET Awards is a ceremony to celebrate Africa-Americans in their success of music, acting, sports and so on. One night my cousins and I had come in from a long day of playing tag and doing things we weren’t supposed to do. We were all showered by 7:45 PM piled on one another with popcorn and soda waiting for the awards to come on. It was a Saturday night and I was beyond excited for this show, but something was missing. My grandfather had not come home from traveling. I wasn’t worried because he said he’d be home by nine o clock, but I didn’t like waiting for or missing someone. Where was he? My cousins told me to snap out of it, to stop being a baby! So I did just that. I let the show take over my thoughts. All the music and bright lights jumping out of the screen gave me a rush. As an 8 year old, it seems like I was fascinated with everything. It was around 9:30PM when we heard “Get Up Off That Thing” by James Brown; that song seemed to be
