Rita and Haley

"The Feet"

I met Rita and Haley last week in a Starbuck’s inside Universal Studios, Orlando. I wanted ice cream for the neighboring Ben & Jerry’s, but the line was way too long. Whah! I like to have ice cream every day when I’m on vacation. Instead, I sat down on a bench to take some pictures of the feet walking by. One of those pairs of feet walked up to me and said, “Did you just take a picture of my feet?”

“Yes,” I said, “Just your feet. All these feet walking through are pretty interesting. I like to take pictures of feet.” I hoped I didn’t sound too strange. Who takes pictures of feet?

“Can you send me a copy?” and The Feet handed me his card. He’s a Certified Chimney Sweep from Indiana.

Giggling erupted behind me. Rita and Haley.

Yes, that's G-Money behind Rita.
He's trying to be inconspicuous.

Rita is 48 and a stay-at-home mom. She substitute teaches for k-2 for two different schools. She worked 19 years at Perdue and likes to travel. She and her husband (“The Feet”) have been married for 27 years. They traveled a lot, going to Italy and beyond, before they decided to have children. Haley is their only child. Rita has one brother and one sister and a half-brother. She is the oldest. The scariest part about having a daughter is the thought of something happening to her, like a mean guy taking her. When Rita was a little girl, she had a normal childhood: she played outside a lot and fought with her brothers and sisters. She grew up in the city and walked to the park to play with the neighbor kids. Now she lives in the countryside and rides motorcycles and bowls for fun.

Just look at all that confidence.

Haley is nine years old and in the 4th grade. Her favorite color is light blue and 13 is her favorite color because she has 13 friends. Rita’s never knew her daughter had a favorite number or that she has exactly 13 friends. Haley likes to go swimming and play basketball. Her favorite class is P.E, but she likes all her classes. School is fun. Haley has a bet rabbit; she can do that because she lives in the country, not in the city.

Haley thinks she looks like both of her parents. She is most like her mom because Mom takes her places and they both love shoes. Haley has eight pair of shoes. Oh Haley, that’s a pretty good start.

Just look at those adorable toes and sandals. Feet really are pretty interesting.
Don't you agree?

I wonder if Rita fell in love with Italian Ice-Cream, like I did.
Oh, I'm hungry now.

While I moped for a sweet treat, I received a wonderful a tri-gift: getting to know The Feet, Rita and Haley. Besides, after an Iced Coffee with a little cream and a touch of sugar I was ready to get back on my feet again and tackle Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey. Wheeeeeee!