It was a color picture.  Artwork of some kind, it appeared.  It was a face shot of Judy Garland's daughter, Liza Minnelli.

"How the heck would she know about that?" I thought to myself.

"DuQuoin, I believe."

"The State Fair around Labor Day."

"Oh, I know."

Sometimes when you wait it out, time passes so slowly.  Other times so fast that you can't think of a retort.  And sometimes, you could experience it both ways.

This was one of those times.  I knew better than to ask what it all meant.  Shelledy's the one who first brought up DuQuoin, a small town in Southern Illinois about 40 miles from my hometown.  They hosted The Hambeltonian, a world class harness race that drew thousands to the otherwise sleepy village.  Along with racing was top notch entertainment including Liza.

I knew she knew the context of the picture.  I could see she had more in her lap.  I wasn't about to reveal anymore than absolutely necessary.

"Ok, what else do you know?"

"Oh no.  You tell me."

"Great show.  Last date.  What else is there to tell?"

She said nothing.  She took the Liza picture and carefully placed it on the bottom of the stack.  The one on top revealed Lauren and me dancing at Prom.

Or at yet another clandestine moment in my high school days.