It Isn't Easy Being One of My Close Friends...

...and your parents might not be too thrilled about it either!

This past weekend I had the pleasure of taking a trip to my alma mater and taking my focus off school, work, and internship for a couple days. I think it was a much needed break!

Though the numbers of my friends returning for this year's weekend of Homecoming festivities was less than normal, it was still an amazing weekend! I think with the numbers being down allowed for me to use this weekend to impact friendships in a quality effort, rather than the quanity effort that it sometimes seems like when I find myself returning to campus for events ("Quantity effort" meaning trying to see as many of my friends while I'm there in the limited amount of time that I have).

I found myself spending long periods of time with each friend and getting to really reunite! I loved that!

The reuniting extented into the early morning hours of Sunday when I found myself reliving some of my late-night activities of the past...

I had been asked about a week before coming into town if I would want to rekindle the olden days with some pranking. I was fully aware of out-dated-ness at the time, and new the camo pants would need some dusting off, but I accepted the invitation. Methods, victims, even which night was left up in the air. We figured things would just come together during the weekend, as it did.

With a different crew in town and people and places having changed over the years, I knew things would be different. It would even call for a new and creative method. I do not think we fell short in our expectations!

One factor to the confusion for the victims was who was involved. Yes, I was quickly depicted as an instigator, but was I alone? Was this a case of a sole-pranking effort? Of course not! Who pranks alone!?! ;) But who was with me?

It is then that you can easily become a "target" if you're a close friend of mine...

It doesn't matter if it's 12:30 AM on a church night...if you're a close friend of mine...you're a suspect...

...you will probably get a call.

And a call my close friends in town got.

I tried to warn. I had informed my close friends, who I expected would be suspected, that I "was on the loose" (as it had been referred), but that wasn't enough.

There's nothing like being awoken in the middle of the night by your cell phone and answering it only to find yourself being accused of pranking. What makes it worse is when the cell phone doesn't only wake up you, but your parents too who are sleeping the same hotel room as you...

Oh the joys of being one of my close friends! If I only knew why these friends stick around! ;)

All in all it was a GREAT weekend! The football team won. I got to see some of my friends that I haven't seen in a LONG time! I got to spend some quality time with two of my siblings, as we watched our hometown Cardinals play some great baseball. I got to enjoy eating at some good ol' Abilene favorite restaurants. And I ended on a note of chalkin' one up for my "team" in our "pranking" efforts.

It was a great time! I look forward to my next returning trip. But apparently I'm not the only one...

I end with this. The poem I received at 2 AM as a voicemessage on my cell phone in response to my team's "victory." Though those of you not involved probably won't understand most of it, I can say this much...the revenge "threat" at the end is pretty clear. And upon that next returning "home" trip, I plan to be ready!

It's a GREAT poem! I must say! Way to go, girls!

You took the plate,
and messed with David's fate.
With the wise words of Abe,
we interpreted the dream.
Climbed the ladder,
and found the blue beam.

We went to get a late-night snack,
but had to tinkle,
So we went straight back.

We all had fun;
You thought you had won,
but 2007 Sing Song,
it will be back on

Pranking 101:
ONLY GET GATAs!

[P.S...I LOVE the "Pranking 101" part at the end! SO impressed with the tie-in to the Homecoming theme! BEAUTIFUL! Seriously! I LOVE it!]