See You at the Cinema - Peggy Springer

“See you at the cinema,” Luanne said to people as they left our booth. On Tuesday, we set up a booth at the UA Vendor Fair where Luanne and I gave away free tickets to movies, handed out information on upcoming events and films, and got people to sign up for a drawing. We also had candy on the table for the eating. Thank you for stopping and talking to us! We enjoyed being on campus from 10-2 and I think we may have even recruited a few new volunteers.

We met a girl who is changing careers—she just began school for dentistry and she’s currently a radio DJ--from DJ to Dentist! She told us she loves The Loft and loves the Sing-Alongs, but didn’t go to the Holiday Sing-Along because she doesn’t like Christmas.

There was a guy who stopped by on his bike who is in Tucson with his wife for a month—they come every year for a month or two, ever since their son started going to school here. Their son has long since graduated; but they’ve kept up the tradition of visiting Tucson. He was happy to pick up our February calendar and we were happy to give it to him.

There was a girl (pre-med. major) who told us how much she appreciates The Loft and what we do for the community. She said the films we show raise the level of dialogue for everyone in the city.

For thirty or forty minutes of our day, two guys played Frisbee behind the booths. They’d occasionally engage a stranger and try to get others to play with them. The wind picked up suddenly as they played, and a dust devil swirled around and around a little patch of dirt in the grass. One of the Frisbee players promptly jogged into the dust devil and, once there, spun himself around and around with his arms outstretched and his smiling face pointed upward.

There was a lady who talked to Luanne about “The Maid” while I was taking a break. This lady had really loved the film and asked Luanne if she’d seen it. Luanne told her she wished she had so that they could talk about it. Lady, wherever you are, I love that movie! What a tremendous film!

At some point, a field trip of youngsters appeared and stormed the table for candy. Their chaperones shouted from behind them, “This is not why we’re here—keep moving!”

At the end of the day, a guy dressed casually in shorts and a T-shirt, with about four pens affixed to his collar, visited with us. “I work for the Federal Government; we’re here to help,” he said as he straightened all the piles of fliers on our table. He assured us that all Border Patrol agents are just like him—friendly, outgoing, charming, and funny. He told us that he used to take all of his first dates to see “The Rocky Horror Picture Show.” He’s married now, and he doesn’t believe his wife has ever seen it.

See you at the cinema.

Peggy Springer volunteers at The Loft when not working at a local coffee shop. She loves to write, take pictures, read, and watch things on screen. Peggy is considering returning to school, and otherwise does her best to welcome whatever life throws her way. Check out the Volunteer Vignette written by her on this blog. If you're interested in volunteering at The Loft, please visit our website for more details.