Put Away Those Young Boy Ways, by Chris

Well, Kris, today things are slow here in the Rio Grande Valley on a Friday, so I thought I would sit down and catch you up on my rollercoaster life. So here goes.

After I walked through the gates of Slidell High, I knew I was leaving behind some of the best days of my life. I knew at this time, though, that I was going to Ole Miss to play baseball—a dream realized—but I had no idea what was in store for me there. Upon arriving at Ole Miss, I pledged Phi Delta Theta and became a frat boy/college athlete to make sure I got to all the good parties. My first year, I was so scared I would flunk out, so the grades were good, but they slowly declined each year after that. I got a great education at a school in the Southeastern Conference while making some great friends at all the schools I played against, that is, when I played. You see, this is the second most important thing I learned at college: it’s not always how good you are but how much money your daddy has and the workout facility they buy for the baseball team… yes, politics. So I went on the cruise control plan and almost flunked out of college.

I did learn that I had a second talent that a lot of people liked, one that I had found my senior year: singing country music. This got me a lot of attention in college. My senior year came, and I became a commodity again on the field and also with the pro scouts. After all the BS I went through, I was pretty much burned out on baseball and ready to graduate and get on with my life. I learned that baseball was not everything. I graduated Ole Miss in 1991 with a BPA in public administration/criminal justice with minors in political science and sociology. These minors were there only because I was on the 5-year plan.

After graduating, I came back home to Slidell to work with the St. Tammany Parish Sheriff office. While in college, I had worked as a reserve for the sheriff’s office when I came home for vacation and the summers. While working there, I started out as a patrolman, then became a K-9 officer and violent crimes investigator, and finally found the thing I liked to do most, working narcotics. In 1996, I also met my wife, Jolie, who went to Northshore High School. Seems I always dated girls from there; I don’t know why. Ya’ll probably don’t know her because she graduated in 95. (Yeah, I robbed the cradle. )

Anyway, Danny C. and I worked narcotics together for about 3 years before Danny got promoted. While working narcotics, I got invited to participate in the True Value Country Music Showdown as somebody had heard me on stage one night in Slidell. Although I was getting job offers to do tributes to Garth Brooks at the Mississippi Casinos, the showdown was not much to talk about, so I stuck with what I was really good at instead of what I was good at. I stayed in narcotics until 2003, when I got promoted to sergeant of the burglary unit working under Danny as my lieutenant.

During this time, I looked at my pension one day and decided that after 12 years at the department the pension did not look good and it was time for a change. I applied for the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) at the age of 35. I know: what the hell was I thinking? By the time my application cleared and I got accepted to the academy in Quantico, Virginia, I was 36. Most of the people in the class were much younger; I was the second oldest in the class. But my experience took me a long way.

I did 16 weeks away from my family, which at this time included a 4-year-old daughter, Paige, and a baby boy on the way. My wife was awesome during this time, handling all the things back at home, considering that I found out during the academy we would be moving to McAllen, Texas. Jolie got the house listed and took care of everything. My family and providing a good life for them pushed me through the hardest, most physical 16 weeks I had gone through since I did two-a-days at Slidell High playing football. I should have done this out of college; again, what the hell was I thinking? I was in the best shape of my life, though, running 2 miles in 14 minutes. (Don’t expect to see the results at the reunion; it’s been 2 years.) I ended up graduating number 2 out of 45, so I was pleased about this. Number 1, and I would have been able to stay in New Orleans.

Of course after we moved to McAllen, Katrina hit. I know it was hard on my classmates who still lived there, but after working 12 years alongside people like Danny, who fought alongside of you and watched your back for so many years, it killed me not to be there in Slidell, helping them, while the town that I knew, grew up in, and lived in for 28 years would never be the same again. My boss let me and three other guys from here go as soon as the rain stopped. Almost all my favorite places were gone. Once I was able to locate friends and family, the guilt started to subside, but the pain of losing things that were dear to all of us—classmates, friends, and family—will never go away. McAllen is where I live, but Slidell will always be my home.

Looking at the blog and all the pictures has brought back a lot of memories and regrets. Regrets are that I didn’t take more time with my friends, like Doug, Charles, Lynnwood, Chuck, Danny, Bill, and these guys. I missed out on a lot of good times by not going out with these guys sometimes, putting other stuff in front of my friends. Regrets are that I was so shy in high school and most of the girls I was scared to talk to—which were most girls—thought I was stuck up.

Good things I remember are the senior play; everybody knowing you and you knowing everybody; David B., who got me investing in the stock market; the parties our senior year; Friday night football games; and hanging out with everybody while cruising Gause on Friday and Saturday nights.

I am so looking forward to seeing everybody and their kids. I hate that some people who I would love to see cannot make it. I can’t wait to introduce my wife and kids to everyone. Everybody be good and be careful coming home.