Friday Ramblings: Gin Buckets, Pond Hockey, and the Hall of Fame

A while back Todd and I were at a bachelor party for a very good friend. As is often the case with these sorts of events, different groups of the bachelor’s friends were thrown together under one roof for the weekend. That can be a recipe for awkward tension, but it thankfully wasn’t. Everyone got along. Really well, actually. Anyway, a few of the guys happened to be quite a bit younger than us. And one of these younger guys decided that we all had to do a gin bucket. It was an idea that resulted in enthusiastic nods of approval from the young folks. And complete confusion and bewilderment from us old folks.

It was all pretty simple. The ringleader pulled out a mop bucket (literally), filled it with a handle of rot gut gin, and bottle of Fresca. Alright, no big deal. But then he proceeded to dole out the generally unwholesome concoction by extracting it from the bucket with a turkey baster and squirting it into people’s mouths. If memory serves, the exact sound made collectively by all of us old folks at the part was “whaaattttt, err, uhhhh” Because really, what is the point?

This particular gentleman who spearheaded the gin bucket activity/debacle is a great guy and a ton of fun. He also is a graduate of a rather prestigious Northeastern liberal arts college. Initially, I concluded that the gin bucket was yet another thing that existed for the sole purpose of making me feel old and pathetic. But after some more thought, I mistakenly assumed that gin buckets were just something embedded in the social culture tied exclusively to those sorts of schools. Or to be more accurate, they were connected to my completely fictitious and warped perception of what that social scene must be like. You know, a scene where dudes with perfectly quaffed hair and chinos with embroidered lobsters on them, drink gin buckets before retiring to a yacht to do blow with a judge and argue about if its better to summer at the Cape or the Vineyard. But it was brought to my attention that gin buckets are not exclusively tied to prestigious Northeastern liberal arts schools. They are everywhere. There’s a wikipedia page and everything.

Now, I don’t like to judge others (Ed. note: not true), but WTF young people? I understand that the fiscal realities of one’s college and immediately post college years might force you to choose between the unholy trinity of cheap liquor, cheap beer, or cheap wine. And maybe that means you need to dress things up, or mask the awful flavors entirely. But the turkey baster thing is more than a touch superfluous, don’t cha think?  I mean, you don’t need to break out the crystal stemware, but you could just pour your firewater in a Solo cup and go about your business.

Sign That the Man Is Out To Get Us

Temps dipped well below freezing across much of the country this past week. And a couple of JMU students took advantage of the cold weather to play some pond hockey on campus. This surely fills your head with Norman Rockwell like images of students skating blissfully around on an idyllic college campus. And that’s essentially how things were proceeding until The Man came around and ruined all the fun. Yes, the cops had to pull the offender’s JAC card and report him to judicial affairs. Because ice skating is a violation of Judicial Affairs Dangerous Practices policy (that’s a real thing apparently). Boo! It’s not like he didn’t use extensive and time tested safety procedures such as, well, slamming his hockey stick on the ice.

Another Missed Opportunity for JMUSB

Did you know JMU basketball players were available for interviews with bloggers? We did not. Do you know who did know this? The guys behind Mid Major Madness, who unlike us seem to be motivated and capable of chasing down stories. The did a Q&A with Andre Nation. Go read it. It’s good.

The Best Thing We Saw on the Internet This Week

Please grab 2 pairs for us. Sure, they look more like the shades that Stiles wore while surfing on top of the Wolfmobile than actual Ray Bans, but we really want them. Badly.

Haley Awaits His Call to the Hall 

You might have heard already, but the Super Bowl is this weekend. That means that the Pro Football Hall of Fame will announce who has been elected this year on Saturday. And for the fifth time, JMU’s own Charles Haley is a finalist. Haley had a stellar career at JMU and went on to win 5 Super Bowl rings. Haley was known for some wild antics when he was a member of the Cowboys. Many of those antics were unfortunately related to mental illness, a subject that Haley courageously spoke about after retiring. Todd and I are no fans of the Cowboys, but we’ll make an exception and cheer for one if Haley gets the call this weekend.