Sadie Hawkins cowboy-style
Cowgirl Sass & Savvy

By Julie Carter

Bachelorhood among cowboys is a confirmed asset to this free-livin' species of man.

I know one who is sure he's going to be a bachelor for his allotted three score and ten years.

He says, "Good judgment comes from experience, and experience comes from bad judgment, usually with bulls and women."

Not many things truly scare this cowboy. The cattle market strikes realistic caution and a genuine nervous moment comes with those dainty glasses on a stem - the kind that don't come with jelly in them originally.

A confirmed cowboy bachelor will avoid, at all costs, a woman with any kind of advantage. Those gals are bad enough straight up, but then someone declared a special day when they could legitimately propose marriage and, according the rules, the male has to oblige. Sadie Hawkins Day is here.

For review, Sadie Hawkins Day was a daylong event in Al Capp's comic strip Li'l Abner, named after Sadie Hawkins, "the homeliest gal in all them hills."

Each year on Sadie Hawkins Day, the unmarried women of Dogpatch pursued the single men.

If a woman caught a man and dragged him back to the starting line by sundown, he had to marry her.

Now it is celebrated only every four years on Feb. 29.

The closest to Sadie Hawkins Day the cowboy world has come is with the invention of line dancing. It gave even the "homeliest gals" a dancing partner.

Our cowboy and his steady gal had been rocking along for a couple years going to local ropings, barbecues and calf fries. Occasionally, they would go dancing and he would sometimes humor her along with a movie in town if she seemed a little antsy.

She was a good hand, knew cattle and good horses. He was quite happy with the current arrangement.

This cowboy had his life in order. The singlewide was paid for, there were roping horses in the pen, a friend he liked to rope with, a close Quik-Stop for menu selections and the girlfriend if he got lonesome or needed some errands run.

She, on the other hand, had another take on this deal.

Our cowgirl had been looking over the cowboy's life and could clearly see a few improvements that would help him out immeasurably.

He had been known to go for days eating only the gut-grenades available at the corner gas-and-go where you turn to go the roping arena.

He had told her these were not unlike gyp water - a feller could get used to them if he just had enough intestinal fortitude.

He discovered that if you washed everything together, eventually your entire wardrobe matched with a light blue-jean hue, which was his favorite color.

With Sadie Hawkins Day on approach, she thought out a plan of action.

Her plot included dinner in town, her treat, at that classy joint that charges too much. Maybe a little wine and some soft Willie Nelson to set the mood. She would then explain the Sadie Hawkins Day rules and, gently, ask him to marry her.

They had been good friends, worked together without any serious injury, laughed a lot and were comfortable. She would spring this surprise and have him caught!

Our cowboy was not quite as slow as one might think.

Advised of the Sadie Hawkins Day mandate, he had been thinking about the situation and decided he had two options.

He didn't want to leave the country. So, true to the nature of a cowboy, he stepped up and took charge of the situation.

When they got to the high-class joint, he ate the biggest steak on the menu and for dessert he asked his girl to marry him - eventually, sometime.

With Sadie Hawkins Day safely handled, he let her pay the tab.

Visit Julie’s Web site at www.julie-carter.com