Reporting after one of the best weekends in recent history...
WOW, what a weekend. I wish I knew how to post pictures on this thing (someday, I'll learn), because my oh my do I have a lot of them. Ask me to see them sometime-SERIOUSLY. Friday night was Brandis' birthday party, which was a nice time-lots of laughter, lots of drinking, and an amusing trip to Denny's at 3 a.m. with Brandis, Jess, Leigh Ann, and Cheryl. Springfield has long since began to grow on me, as well as UIS-not because it's the same as Chambana, but bc I can like it and appreciate it for what it is. After all of 2 hours of sleep, it was time to get up and head over to Chambana for HOMECOMING! I was sad to miss the parade on Friday night, but I wanted to be able to be at Brandis' party.

I thought I was going to die when my alarm went off, but miraculously I dragged my exhausted body out of bed to prepare for the day. Angela came over at 8:30, and we headed out soon after. After a short walk to the stadium and meeting up with many of my friends at the dwindling CR tailgate (the game had already started!), me, Ang, Lori (my sister), V, and Nat headed to our seats. We ended up losing, but of course had a good time. It was awfully windy-I've forgotten how freezing Chambana can be in the fall. Highlights of the game were most definitely Nat sticking an "Illini For Bush" sticker to the Iowa mascot's helmet (and causing their fans to freak out trying to rip it off-LOL), and of course halftime and CHIEF!

I don't care how old I get, or what happens, I will never grow tired of the 3-in-1 tradition. If you're from U of I, you know what I mean. Chief does his traditional dance at halftime, while the stadium stands and (seriously) everyone roars, "CHIEF!!!" After he's finished, we all raise our arms in a half circle and put them around each others shoulders very solemnly, then procede to sway back and forth while singing the alma mater...
Hail to the orange,
Hail to the blue,
Hail Alma Mater,
Ever so true!
We love no other,
So let our motto be...
VICTORY, ILLINOIS...VARSITY!

You can't really explain it...but singing the alma mater and honoring Chief at halftime is a special time for everyone...alumni and current students alike. You can't explain the energy of the crowd or the feelings of love and respect in the air for our beloved alma mater...it's one of the most honored traditions of any school in the United States, and uniquely our own. Even the Iowa fans shut up long enough to stand and watch solemnly...the little kids behind us watching the game with their dad were asking him about "what the Illini fans were all doing", and their dad told them-"It's their tradition. Be respectful."
Like they say...
"From the inside looking out...you cannot explain it. From the outside looking in...you cannot understand it." And that's true. It's just one of those things. Ask ANY of us-we'll tell you. I'm so proud to be an ILLINI! Like we always say...once you're an Illini...you're always an Illini. Take that, you dirty hippies!

Anyway...after the game, me, Nat, Lori and Ang headed over to Panera for soup, sandwiches, salads, and assorted drinks. Very yummy as usual. Following this, me, Lor & Ang headed to Lori's dorm to rest for a few hours and then get ready for a long night of fun. After getting ready, we headed out at about 7 (all dressed up and cute as could be!) and picked up Nat, Amanda, and Jill (Amanda and Jill had SUCH cute costumes!-Amanda was a 50's girl and Jill was a bee!). After picking up the girls and much screaming with Amanda and Jill (we hadn't seen each other in quite awhile), along with singing to R. Kelly's "Ignition" (remix-and don't ask...it was just our song and a looooong story), we got to Murphy's where we met up with Diller, Diller's gf Meagan and V. It was great seeing Diller-he looked kinda exhausted, he's soooo busy right now, but he is the most awesome of guys and seriously one of my best friends from Chambana. We all hung out for about 3 hours, and I took tons of pictures and had a WONDERFUL time catching up with everyone...Car bombs (our traditional Irish pub drinks), good conversation, and reminiscing-even if that meant my old friends sharing stories w/ my Springfield friends about the old days...lol. After Murphy's, me, Angela, Lori, and Natalie headed over to 1004-and if you've ever heard me talk about U of I you know I've mentioned 1004 and their famous parties...and last night was no exception. It'll go down in history (in MY mind) as one of the best 1004 parties ever. At the party we met up with Dan and Joe, who are both awesome friends that I miss tons. They're the most hillarious guys I've ever met and I honestly don't know how I can stand not seeing them that much anymore! I MISS THEIR ANTICS! Anyway, it was just like old times, with a lot of dancing and crazy conversation. After awhile, we moved to the kitchen (our own personal V.I.P. room-lol), where I got to catch up with Dan and Joe, while Lori, Angela, and Natalie continued dancing and getting hit on my random guys out in the living room. Me, being more of a fan of small gatherings than large, greatly enjoyed hanging out where I was at, and was eventually joined by Lor and Ang, where the 5 of us (D&J included) goofed off late into the evening. Dan and Joe also totally manged to blow my "Sweet Conservative Amy Luhnette" cover-not that I'm not, but they have many a crazy stories from my UIUC days, that is for certain. I've calmed down quite a bit since entering grad school, but it's always fun to revisit those times. After a long evening consisting of crazy dancing on all our parts, wrestling, tickling, vomiting (poor Dan), Spanish-speaking (me, Joe, Ang), and shameless flirting (Lor and Ang w/ D&J's old roommate John Tyler-whom they find insanely hot-seriously), it was time for some rest, and after dropping my boys off to get some sleep, me, Lor and Ang headed back to Lori's room at around 4 a.m. for some much-needed rest.

Today was spent recovering, talking, and various running around Chambana. This weekend just goes to show that you don't have to be drinking to have a good time (as I prove quite regularly). I enjoy reuniting with the Chambana gang (even though we all keep in touch really well via phone and IM-God bless it), but this particular weekend, I'm certain, will go down in our memories as one of the all-time best ever.

I love Springfield...and to all of my friends here-I love you guys! But to all of my Chambana friends-I love you too, miss you, and cherish all of the times we spend together-and I am so GRATEFUL that ALL of my good friends, ya'll included, are only a hop, skip, and a telephone call away!