So the deed is done: 100th Night Weekend is official over and what a weekend it was. It's always nice to see a well planned plan executed successfully, even if not everything went according to plan.
100th Night Weekend started innocently enough with a regular school day. It was rainy that morning, so I guess you can thank the Class of 2011 for "making it rain" that day. To be fair, I did spend quite a bit this past weekend (more than a months salary, but my monthly salary isn't very much to begin with, so don't let that fool you). Nonetheless, it was still a fun weekend.
The Secretary of Defense came and spoke to us that afternoon and talked about how we were entering a military that's the most capable since ever basically, but also very stressed because of all the demands placed on it. I really like Secretary Gates because it seems that he genuinely cares for the troops, a feeling I never felt for Secretary Rumsfeld.
After hearing Secretary Gates speak, I was done for the day. I wasn't scheduled to meet with my 100th Night Date until about 5:00pm, so I spent a bit of time in the room getting ready, packing, and cleaning. It's pretty funny to note that my roommate and I cleaned the most we've ever cleaned that afternoon simply because we'd have company (i.e.girls) over. Our room looked pretty spic and span at the end of it all.
I then left the barracks to go up to my car. Along the way, it started raining again, and as I neared my car (about a mile away from where I live-- up hill too) the rain had turned into snow flakes. Luckily, as time would tell, it would be a great weekend and it only snowed that afternoon/early evening.
So I get to the train station and meet up with my date on the train. As it was a Friday evening, the train was pretty packed, but probably not as packed as it could have been due to the crappy weather. I was pretty tired at this time, so I dozed off on the train for a little bit. Before you know it, we were at Grand Central Terminal. While there, we picked out a bottle of pinot grigio and a fruit tart to share after dinner that night.
Speaking of dinner, we went to the Top of the Tower Restaurant. I read reviews on it saying that the view was gorgeous but the food was mediocre, so I didn't expect too much, but I was pleasantly surprised. The view was great! At 26 stories up, and every table right next to the window, every diner has a commanding view of the sights of the East River. The food was also very good-- I had short ribs as an appetizer and salmon as the main course while my date had muscles as an appetizer and gnocchi. I was laughing at my date's misfortune as she tried one of the peppers included with her muscles-- a little too spicy for her I suppose. I don't do spicy food well at all (I sweat profusely, even with mildly spicy stuff), so I flat out refused.
That evening, we didn't do much but enjoy each other's company over dessert and wine. A pleasant experience for all.
The next day, Saturday February 26, 2011, we woke up bright and early in order to get to my date's 10am hair appointment down in Chelsea. I'm so glad I have a smart phone now, as it's GPS feature has saved me more times than I can count. It didn't take too long for my date to get her hair done, and she looked ravishing afterward and you could see that even getting her hair done gave her a great boost of confidence. After that, we decided to get lunch. I was in the mood for Korean, Korean Ramen in particular as I developed a love/hate relationship with it after my trip to South Korea this past summer (a story for another day, maybe off the record), but we decided to settle for Vietnamese food instead.
Still having some time to kill, I was somehow dragged into window shopping. As my date looked at clothes, I thought it was kinda funny seeing other guys in the women's department searching around for a chair to sit on while carrying bags in both hands. Yo comprendo.
Finally it was time to go to West Point. We were both tired, so we both were under the impression that we would both fall asleep on the train. I kept up my end of the bargain and did fall asleep, but my date was so anxious for the event that she stayed up the entire train ride up/played with the little kid from across the aisle. Great-- a five-year old kid has more game than I do...
At West Point, after changing, my date got to meet my roommate, his girlfriend, and all of my other friends as well. First, we all took photos, as is customary, of which I still have to show my mom. I'll probably forward her those photos after I type up this blog. Before dinner actually started, we had a cocktail social hour, which was a good idea, but poorly executed I think. It was very crowded, and I felt like I was in a club more than I felt like I was in a formal setting. It is kind of funny seeing college aged kids like myself pretending to be older. All I was missing was my pocket watch, cane, top hat, and monocle. Lots of fun now that I think about it.
Dinner was nothing to write home about, as it was the same "formal food" we've eaten at every other formal weekend I've had at West Point. As is customary, we also had a guest speaker, this time it was GEN Cody, former Vice Chief of Staff of the Army. He acknowledged that many of us really didn't care what he was going to talk about, as we all just wanted to go back out and have a good time, so he kept it short, sweet, and very humorous. He was right-- I don't remember what he said, but I know he said it well and he kept my attention.
After dinner, it was time for the 100th Night Show. For those of you who don't know, the 100th Night Show is a musical written, directed, produced, and acted out by firsties with a lot of inside jokes poking fun at our time at West Point. I thought it was just ok-- I've seen the 100th Night Show for other classes and I thought other classes' show had better singing and acting overall. Nonetheless, it was MY class's show and I'm glad I got to see it.
Following the show, it was time for a nice, quiet ride back to the city. We had a transfer before getting into the city though, but after that transfer, I was out the entire time. We didn't get back to the room until past 1 in the morning. Way too tired from the day's events, my date and I just passed out asleep.
Overall, 100th Night Weekend was a blast as it truly showed that our time at West Point is slowly drawing to a close. It really isn't about the fancy clothes, the hot dates, the rings or any of that-- all of that is just icing on the cake. West Point is about the bonds and friendships you form with your fellow classmates and it is truly an experience that cannot be replicated at any other institution I think. I know that at our 20 year reunion, we all will probably draw upon our 100th Night experiences with fond memories and laugh.
(This was definitely my longest blog to date-- a lot happened, and I wanted to write it all down)
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