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Saturday, November 3, 2007

Freedom is not free...

... blared the banner carried by the Korean Veterans in the Home-coming parade in Gainesville this year. They were joined by similar slogans from associated armed forces groups. Why, it made me proud to be an American! Oh wait... Senators in classic cars, prom queens in tiaras riding in horse drawn carriages, marching bands (my favourite part), the giant alligator mascots, Albert & Alberta followed by Smokey the bear warning us of wild fires, all went past, travelling in every mode of transport from huge workman's trucks to the Shands Medical Urgent Care Vans. Quite what would happen if there was an emergency is unknown, since all the firetrucks were also in the parade, trapped between the engineering school's Transformers float and a bus full of lawyers. Still, all the city were there so I guess they were in the right spot. The giant blood vans that litter campus rolled passed, still refusing to accept my (undoubtedly) mad-cow infected blood. A bright yellow school bus that I used to believe only existed on the Simpson trundled behind a bus load of possibly the silliest looking barbie dolls I've ever seen, who turned out to be the UF cheerleading squad. It was a great spectacle, huge fun to watch and totally cut off the town's north and south areas since you weren't allowed to cross the road for several miles. Woe betide the poor grannies who had nipped across the street for a pint of milk. They weren't going home for the rest of the day. So after watching the waving, cheering people and the dogs dressed in Gator shirts, I reach the edge of campus and walk across to the department, wondering what on earth the 'traditional mollies of Gainesville' are and why they have a float.

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