POP!

i love poporn.

and i love my family.

now you might wonder how the two go together, or even how that connection formed in my mind. well the real question my friend, is how don't the weldens go together with popcorn. i wanted to write a little anecdote about my parents to hopefully give some insight into the bizarre world i live in. my parents rock. i mean they are awesome and the best parents anyone could ask for. and boy do they LOVE popcorn. must be where i developed my love as well. i can remember all the way back to elementary school, when we would sit and watch tv, my dad would pull out this ancient air popper and make himself a giant bowl of popcorn. and of course, he would melt a quarter stick of butter to drizzle on top. mr. welden loves popcorn so much so, that he proceded to purchase a popcorn machine. (just one of the many quirky things we own) and you better bet, any time we sit down on the couch to watch something, he will pop some corn in that machine, and sit and eat it, stripped bucket and all. but that is just the amatuer rounds. it's when the weldens hit the movies when things really get serious. here's a normal welden movie endeavour:

as a family we always arrive to movies at least a half hour before it starts. (the previews are the best part! duh! plus we like to sit in the back center, and those seats are hot commodoties) but most importantly, there must be time to do a consession stand run. and this is how those go: one parent and one child stay behind to guard the seats, while the other parent and child take the drink orders and proceed to the stand. they will order four drinks, and the biggest popcorn, whichever comes with the free refill, and also two of those nifty cardboard trays. with skill and technique they will carry the giant popcorn and all four drinks (plus napkins!) up to where the other parent and child remain. napkins will be passed out accordingly, and the trays will be placed in the hands of each child. (we're not important enough to eat out of the bucket). a parent will then dump out the popcorn evenly into the two trays, and then take the empty bucket downstairs for an instant refill. (who wants to risk missing five minutes of the movie to refill popcorn! so efficiet, i know). the three who remain in the theatre will all cross their fingers in hopes that they don't mark the bag, so we can get, thats right, a SECOND refill. two giant bags of popcorn are not enough for us weldens. but sometimes its a risky game, many times we have gleefully exited the theatre with a third full bag of warm popcorn for the drive home, and others we have left with our heads hung solemnly, stomachs growling for just that little bit more of salty goodness.

bet you never knew how serious popcorn can really be.

and yes, there is reason one of a billion of how i became me.