Radio Ga Ga

So, once again, I found myself in Champaign, Illinois this weekend. I was downstate for a graduation ceremony at Illinois State University (my undergrad alma mater) and then went to U of I to visit the rest of my friends there. First stop was to see my friend and business partner, Shampooh (Ben Garbe - aka, $uck$ex, NBL, or DJ Tanner), who was graduating too. Always a plus, Ben had on a red dress shirt and a yellow-ish tie (he looked like a professional Winnie the Pooh). Then, I jumped over to Casa de Lawton for a cookout. Now, when I was driving, Planet Paul (name to be explained later) called to let me know about this cookout at Lawton's. I was expecting the traditional cookout with a grill that would be waist-high. Nope, there on the balcony was the little kettle grill people use at tailgates. Gotta love cooking that close to the ground. Fitz was there too, which was cool, as was my personal Dr. Gonzo, Brant G.

We enjoyed hot dogs and burgers while watching the Clone Wars on the Cartoon Network. This cartoon is awesome because it fills in the time period between Episodes II and III. Ricker finally woke up and showered (poor Ry was on a 36-hour finals bender), and we headed over there for beer pong and caps. I was going to head out of town early so I could get home. CPR (yet another name to be explained later) and Fitz all knew that I would stay. I didn't play caps - I am not good at the game, nor am I down with the lingo.

After several games, we all managed to get moving to the White Horse, a local watering hole on Green Street. Now this is where I begin to realize several things. All of us have a connection - a little piece of heaven known as WPGU (one of very few commercial radio stations run by students). Now, the guys of CPR first became my friends in April 2004 when WPGU celebrated its 50th Anniversary by inviting the alums down to U of I to see the station today and remember times gone by. Faster friends I have never made, and they are among the best ones I know. (Blog Sap Alert - could I be anymore cheesy and sentimental? Yes, I can. So fuck you - this is my blog, not yours). What I realized was that these guys would stand by me no matter what hair-brained idea I came up with, including the one where I quit being a lawyer and buy a radio station.

I also realized that it is not a good idea to snort salt. How did I get to that point? Well, we were toasting all sorts of things that night, and Lawton toasted with ranch dressing. The ranch was on the table for the cheese fries we devoured earlier. Too bad Jon the Cubs Fan (JTFC) showed up later and only could drink with us and not eat cheese fries. But JTFC did show up and the party was complete (yes, I know there were no girls there, but it was a guys night out). So, Lawton downs some ranch, and then I follow suit and raise him a shot of ketchup (you catsup lovers can also get your own blog because the word is spelled K-E-T-C-H-U-P). Lawton calls with his own shot of ketchup. I go "all in" with a line of salt off the back of my hand. Lawton matches. I can do no more.

We all realized that the waitress severely undercharged us on the tab. So we tipped her well. Why not? She brought us free wings earlier in the evening, so she earned it.

And what I finally realized is that I have a pretty sweet life and a bunch of kick ass friends, from U of I to the guys monopolizing my couch right now. Next thing to do is realize that I need a girlfriend.