Another Wisconsin "W"

October 19, 2011

Aside from marking another tally in the "W" column, the weekend was great because it afforded me the opportunity to spend time with friends, some of whom up and moved away without so much as a word of warning -- Nick!

Friday was a kind of last-minute reunion special for me. Being at a new school, I often miss my buddies from my previous school, Bradford. While finishing up my work for the day, I decided I didn't want to miss out on the Bradford Homecoming Parade and I wanted to check in on my drive-to-work-buddy, Amanda, who was putting on the Homecoming festivities. Despite the chilly weather and that lack of preparedness for going, I ventured over to the north side of town and took in the parade. One of my current students, who was participating in the parade and happens to be the sort of genuinely kind and nice person you rarely ever encounter, found me after the parade to give me a sucker she set aside for me - it made my day...heck, it made my week! After that fun, I was off to a dinner date. We called it a night early as both of us were yawning at the table. Imagine my embarrassment when I got to the car, looked at the clock and saw it was barely 8:30.

Saturday, I was up early to get myself and the rest of our crew to Madison in order to prepare for another Badger victory. Our friend Nick, who likes to call us Mom and Dad, joined Brian and me for the game. His awesome girlfriend Allison also came along. Before the game, we met up with my friends Katie and Ryan. Katie definitely took the opportunity to point out my over-the-top amount of Badger gear. The six of us had quite a time getting revved up for the game. I was supremely excited when I turned around and saw Uncle John, Aunt Margaret and my father-in-law, Bill. We all chatted for a bit and then it was off to the game. The Badgers were dominant against Indiana, and though it wasn't a close game, it was still lots of fun. I enjoy cheering for my team, and I was able to do quite a bit of that!

Sunday was a much more relaxing day. Brian and I decided to forego our typical trip to the gym and slept in, made breakfast and lounged about for a bit. Then we were off to the grocery store. How wild, ha?! Once we were back home, we got situated for a little family visit from my in-laws. They came by for dinner and watched the first part of the very disappointing Brewer game. It was really nice to catch up with my parents-in-law - they even watched a climbing video clip (from 60 Minutes) with us.

By the time Sunday night rolled around, I realized a few things: I was exhausted, I am a Badger fanatic and I wish the weekends were twice as long.