Syd Rich: A Fratty Homecoming

Well as all of you should know, U of A just celebrated their 101st homecoming! For me, homecoming means, scholarship dinner, a parade, a football game and a whole lot of family. It was relatively the same this year but a few other exciting things happened, so you will have to read on to find out!

Friday October 23
So as usual I had work in the morning, then devotional and then dollar lunch. But after dollar lunch something pretty exciting happened: I got an internship at Tucson Local Media! The whole process was kind of strange... Last weekend I was emailing a bunch of publications to see if they had any internships open in the spring or over the summer, and I attached two of my recent photos just to give them a little taste of what I've got. Tucson local media was one of the companies that I emailed, and on Monday the photographer there emailed me back saying they would love to have me and that I needed to come in and start the paper work for it to be official. I was like... wait what? did I just get an internship? Like there wouldn't even be an interview? I was so wigged out. So I went in on Friday and I filled out my paperwork and I officially have an internship... and I haven't even talked to my internship coordinator at the University yet.... it all just kind of happened, so I am going to talk to her this week. But I am very excited!

When I was done with the meeting, my family had made it to Tucson, so I met up with them, went to lunch with my mom, and then they went to go check into their hotel before we all had to go to a scholarship dinner that night. While I waited for my mom to return from the hotel, I went to Second Amendment Sports to take a photo for the newspaper, and I brought Steph along for the ride. The people there were very nice but they really wanted to know what the article was going to say about the second amendment. All I knew about the article was that it was going to weigh both sides of the gun control issue and how it relates today. So that's what I told the employees but they just kept saying "what's the other side of the issue... I don't get it, are they against the second amendment" and I just didn't want to say anything that would make them mad even though I probably could have explained to them the other side of the issue.... but I mean there's a lot of guns in that place and I did not want to be pinned against them. But there was a puppy in the store so that made the trip even more fun, especially for Steph.

Then it was time for the scholarship dinner. Rory and I both get a scholarship from our Dad's fraternity each year, so we have to attend a dinner each year to express how grateful we are for the scholarship. These things are more for the alumni, and it's always a little awkward for the recipients, but there was good food, so I went with it.

Me and me mum at the dinner

My dad (the president of the frat), with the current VP, and the old president

After the scholarship dinner I joined Steph and Daniel as they watched Star Wars at my house. I haven't watched them in a long time, so I feel like I need to before the new one is released in December. But I'm honestly such a scaredy cat when it comes to Star Wars. If watch them during the day I'm fine, but at night every sound in the house is literally Darth Vader coming to attack me. I was getting really tired, and I needed to wake up early on Saturday so I finally braved up and went upstairs by myself to get ready for bed.... but I'm such a wimp I had to facetime Zach so there would at least be a witness when my hand was sliced off by a light saber.

Saturday October 24

Hot dang what a long day Saturday was.

At 9 AM Steph and I joined my family (mother, father, Avery, Granny, Master, Xioli) at the homecoming parade. Avery and my cousin Xioli got the jackpot at the parade because of their master waves.

You can't tell but Steph and I are sitting in a stroller, mimicking how Avery and Xioli ride in it

There's this ongoing thing with my Dad and all of my cousins. He calls himself the Big Dog, and if anyone says otherwise he jokingly teaches them a lesson The cousins all think it is hilarious so of course they taunt him. This is Xioli learning her lesson.

After the parade and some tailgating, my father, my mother and myself ran into some more family: Grandpa Richardson, Uncle Hank, Cousin Brenden. We sat and chatted with them for awhile before it was time for me to line up at the game. If you want good seats at Zonazoo, you have to line up early... even if it's an empty day game lol.

Then there was the game... what is with our defense man... We were so close to making a come back.... BUT OUR DEFENSE... oh well, it's just not our year, and I am accepting that.

Poor Steph was sick and miserable so she left 15 minutes before the game started

Raini and Emily being BFFs

Connor and Mitch trying to be like Raini and Emily

Let me just tell you all HOW FREAKING HOT day games were... and it only gets worse when you're standing. The temp was only like 86 degrees at most, but there was not a cloud in the sky and the sun was just beating down on the left side of my body (seriously I have such a strange tan right now).

During the second half of the game I was so sick of standing that I snuck way up to where my family (EJ included, he arrived later) + our family friend, DJ, was sitting. Although their seats were WAAAAY closer to the sun, I felt a lot better just because I was sitting.

After the disappointing game some of the family went to Costa Vida for dinner. This was the first time I went to the one in Tucson, it was very good as usual.

Then my family retired to their hotel. EJ, Rory, Steph and myself went back to my place to hang out and wait for Connor's "frat" party he was throwing that night. Caroline joined us at the party, she didn't know you were supposed to dress as either a frat bro or a sorority girl, so she just put her hair in a high ponytail and called it good. Steph on the other hand, really channeled her inner sorority girl.

At the party there were jello shots with 5 hour energy in them and Steph seriously had at least 5 shots of them, she goes hard, even when she is sick. There was a phat dance party in their garage, and a smoky fire in the backyard, oh and there was kool aid pong in the kitchen. It got just about as crazy as a mormon frat party can get.

I danced a lot (although I was a little salty that the songs I added in the queue were skipped over), and took pictures of the happenings, so enjoy our embarrassing mockery of frats:

Ej came to the party with 3 girls, a true frat

A shot of Coca Cola when Marcus lost beer pong

Let's just talk about how Maddy was my favorite person at the party. She actually went as a frat guy, and provided for the best pictures of the night (more below)