Blur - exanded (Halloween)

Alright, so let me take you all back to Friday... well, let's do Thursday. So Thursday night, our department has an impromptu happy hour... except when our dept has an impromptu happy hour, it's like weak. Wait, did I say "it's like"? I guess I meant IT'S GAY (no offense to those that like the same sex - I support your rights but the use of this terminology was impossible to pass up). Most of them are married or have kids so by the time I got to the happy hour which was around 6:30, there were 3 people remaining... 2 of which left shortly after I arrived. Fortunate for me, one of the guys on my team came a little later and then two of my buddies showed up so then the party was on. The bar we went to seemed to wanna get rid of the Sam Adams Octoberfest so it was $4 for the tall glass all night. What a deal! So, we started pounding drinks as we started arguing politics. I won't go into where I stand on the politics stuff until my next post but needless to say, most of our discussions recently have been all politics and our group has a wide array of uber liberals (though I don't think he considers himself that) and fairly conservative republicans... which makes the debates that much better. At one point, I was talking to my friend sitting across from me while the other two on each side of me were arguing with each other also... basically, the conversations are flowing across each other and it's like a yelling match followed by uncontrollable laughter at the ridiculousness of the situation. Well, part of the night also included the discussion on what I should dress up as for Halloween. See, tis the night before Halloween and I still didn't have a costume... and we were going to a costume party at my buddy's the next night. Well, that was the plan but I wasn't gonna go if I didn't have a costume since I'd be like the only one and I would feel lame for not embracing the spirit.

Initially, I thought about going as Kobayashi, you know, the hot dog eating former champion.



I figured I'd buy a Nathan's Hot Dog t-shirt, put fake ketchup and mustard on myself (yes, I know they don't put condiments on theirs but it's for effect) and have a couple of fake hot dogs, put the rising sun headband and voila, kobayashi. But, the props were hard to find and purchasing those things required some planning which I didn't do so that was out the window. So, when Friday morning rolled around, I needed to figure out quick what to be. And I'm one of those guys that don't really like to get a costume at a costume store... not that I want to make one but I want to play upon the big news of the year or some headlines that most people would immediately understand. (I was eminem one year, Backstreet boys another, and then a few years of just generic shit like the surgeon looking for a hot nurse, some alien costume, etc) I thought about somehow incorporating the demise of wall street but I couldn't think of anything clever at the time. But I wanted to dress up in something where I didn't have to go to a Halloween specialty store... and then it came to me.

So, as soon as I got off of work, I ran around to a few sports stores and a toy store in search of all the gear I needed. After 3 different stops, I was ready. With a leash tied to a stuffed dog and me wearing football pads, a red jersey where I taped #7 on, and a Falcons baseball cap (in a gangsta sideways fashion), my outfit was complete. The dog beating Michael Vick baby! Amongst my friends, I continuously make fun of the Hokies (I'm surrounded by friends who are all Hokies) to antagonize my friends so it was perfect. It woulda been better if I were able to find a Hokies jersey but the above attire was the best I can do in a span of 2 hrs. Even better was the fact that I was able to return the jersey and the pads the very next day so the cost was merely for the stuffed dog (which the following day I gave it to my friend's real dog for him to chew up) and the Falcons cap (that I have no idea what to do with).

I think my costume was a pretty decent hit at the party. Everyone seemed to immediately get the joke, I was continuously stomping on the dog so now, it's just a matter of me getting a hold of one of those pics before PETA finds it and burns my house down. We drank and partied till like 3am when the kegs were kicked and we were able to find a cab home.

The rest of the weekend was spent catching up on little errands here and there as well as recovering and getting ready... for MONDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL!!!!!

But that, my friends, is a post for another day (or maybe later).