Homecoming: The weekend I literally went home

‘Ello mateys! Not quite sure where today’s greeting came from, but I’m fairly certain if I linked that salutation, it would bring you to the opening song for Sponge Bob Square Pants. Oh hell, in case you’re curious…here’s the link. Well anyways, I am still recovering from a very sleepless weekend. But anyways, my latest shenanigans involve Over the Rhine, Court Street, Athens (not Greece, but better), and nostalgia.

Thursday evening I enjoyed a much-needed dinner date with my long-lost friend, Beej. Instead of opting for a hit ‘n run joint, we decided to check out the downtown Cincinnati scene. We grabbed a brewski at a corner pub in Over the Rhine, before heading to a classier joint. Luckily, I was still sporting my work duds and fit the dress code by default. Beej on the other hand, not so much. We decided he should’ve work a tuxedo t-shirt in order to give off a classy, yet “I like to party vibe.”

Precious.

Friday’s festivities were a doozy. I worked until five, picked up fellow Bobcats until my white Echo (golf cart) looked like a clown car, fought the battle of rush hour traffic, and finally arrived in the Promised Land that is Athens, Ohio, for homecoming weekend. Friday evening looked a little somethin’ like this:

Hangin' with friends.

Witnessing Ohio University’s Marching 110 perform during primetime hours at bars (Still kickin’ myself for not snappin’ a pic. Sigh.).

Scheduling mini meetings with old roomies:

Chosen location to meet: the College Inn. Perfect.

The evening ended with a few roommates from junior year (and myself) celebrating our reunion at the place we found most appropriate–our old house. Can you say rendezvous while experiencing deja vu?! We acted like we owned the place and even ordered pizza. Homecoming in the most literal sense of the word. Oh sweet nostalgia.

Saturday morning came too quickly; however, unlike most, I waited ’til the sun rose to put my party pants on. A few of my comrades awoke at the ripe hour of 4:30 a.m.–yes, as in the morning, to begin their homecoming festivities. Insane? Warriors? The cream of OU’s partying crop? I haven’t quite figured out the proper adjective to describe these folks, but I’ve narrowed it down to the three aforementioned.

Later in the day I would be venturing into off to Columbus, Ohio to watch two college friends participate in the holy sacrament of marriage, and therefore kept myself respectable:

Most people respect my ability to break it down like J-Timberlake. Same difference. No?

Oh, I also watched the homecoming parade; however, found myself quite distracted by the dude attempting to scale a tiny tree:

Photo Courtesy of Ally Brown. For those wondering, that tree snapped a few minutes later.

Eventually, Janie, former El Presidente, and myself hit the road jack. In spite of the fact that I decided to chug a Coke on the way, and therefore had to pee like a racehorse–oh, and remembering that I forgot to bring my gift about 45 minutes into the drive–it was quite an enjoyable experience. The ceremony was beautiful and it was great catching up with friends–near and far–that I hadn’t seen in a while.

My fave ladies in Chi-town! Photo courtesy of Al-Pal.

Eventually I headed back to Athens with the carpool crew and felt like a walking zombie by the end of the evening.

Sunday consisted of brunch at the d-hall! Jessica Ryan, if you are reading, THANK YOU!

The weekend ended with a little trip down memory lane:

Washington Hall dormitory. Living here during my freshman year of college molded me into the fine young woman I am today. And for that, I am thankful.

Anyhoo, looks like the Sandman finally decided to make his rounds before midnight. Can I get a hallelujah?! Tune in tomorrow if you wanna hear about the latest songs I’ve been workin’ it out to lately (and you should too). Peace!

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