Alternative Homecoming with the Catholic Student Association

So last night was pretty darn fun overall with the alternative homecoming that had been put into motion by the Catholic Student Association. It all began with me talking to mom on the phone and waiting for things to calm down enough for me to head over to the church. Eventually I let mom go because S and B were parking, and so I went over to help them carry stuff. As I walked over they both waved hello to me, and began to tell me the first story I had heard about the tow trucks here during Homecoming. S has a parking permit for the church instead of for his apartment building next door, so he turned on his four way flashers as he was running laundry in with B, they were halfway to their rooms when they saw that they were being towed! Apparently the tow trucks up here circle like vultures on Homecoming for each of the parking lots with permits, so he quickly moved down to the church lot.

It was at this point he remembered I don't have a permit for it, and even though I was there for a church event, no one was calling the tow trucks, they were just appearing of their own free will, and urged me to move to a pay spot in the parking garage that doesn't charge for the weekend...and asked me if his hoodie was still in my car from Thursday night's Theology on Tap. It was, so I moved the car up to the top of the parking garage in one of the last available spots and then gave him a call as I walked back over to his apartment building. He was more than happy to let me in and I was more than happy to give him his hoodie back. So we waited in his and B's room for another hour and a half or so, swapping stories about faith and schooling, and saying how awesome grandmas' are that spoil you for no apparent reason; while there he also had me look over the stuff that was sent to him by the religious order he's been discerning with, and it is a very thorough packet of information that they want, from psych evaluations to medical histories, four letters of recommendation, all high school and college transcripts, all loan information, etc.

After that we went to see the alumni who had come back to have fun with us for alternative homecoming. I knew one of the three of them already, but the other two I swiftly felt at ease with. Again we all traded stories, and I looked at A's quote board with such gems as, "All the hot guys are gay or priests" and "I'd love to theologize your body all night long". The latter being a hilariously geeky reference to theology of the body by Pope John Paul II.

So after that point we all went over to the church for the alternative homecoming party, where we started off the evening just sitting around on the couches talking with one another until a group of us talked each other into a game of Uno; we decided to play until everyone had won except the last person. First the President, Jacki, won. Then I won. Then eventually this undergrad named Ashley won. After that another hour and a half went by before everyone at the table mutually decided to say screw it! By that point we had a lot of people and we played Mafia; despite Fr. W and I being chief suspects every single round, no Mafia member was ever imprisoned and we won the game!

After that was some poker with M&Ms as the cash, and then root beer pong. Or it was going to be root beer pong until someone realized the ping pong balls would get sticky, so we ended up doing water in red cups instead. I don't know how drunk people play that game with beer, it's hard to get balls inside cups while perfectly sober!

Following that, and some dancing to J's iPod everyone parted ways except for five of us, who ended up going down to Philadelphia Street to watch all the drunks and to see the heavy police presence that was out for the college's homecoming. A police cruiser on each corner minimum, mounted cops on horseback, a cop by the door of every pub. Once we started walking back to campus we made sure to take the route by frat row, where there were constant cries of, no joke, "Dude, just cooperate! Cooperate with the police okay! We're going to come and get you soon man, just cooperate! Don't give them any trouble, okay?"

After getting back to campus we kept walking around and chased a rabbit at one point! Just for the heck of it, and almost chased it into a residence hall by accident as one person was trying to go in for her coat. Eventually we ended up going to Eat N Park at 4am because we were all pretty hungry, and enjoyed a nice breakfast. By the time I got home it was 5:30 in the morning, and my net was finally back up after Comcast died for another 12 hours, but I was too sleepy to do anything. And that was my long Saturday!