Matt's Ten Year Reunion

This weekend was Matt's 10 year high school reunion. Friday, there was an after-work-watering-hole type thing at a bar. Matt went to that, but I stayed home, since a) I was sick (better than Thursday, but still fighting this cold), b) I had to pack for Kate and my trip this week, and c) our Netflix movie was a historical drama tv miniseries 1994 that Matt told me I WOULD have it watched and back in the mail so he can get something he likes for while Kate and I are gone.

Midday Saturday was the "family picnic" at a park, which was essentially a come-and-show-off-your-cute-kids event. So that's what we did! There were lots of babies and toddlers and we had fun mingling with the other young families. (There was also a little mini-tailgate off to the side, with the few bachelor guys who decided to come!)

Saturday night was a party/dance sort of thing at the Cannery Ballroom. I had been quite excited about this, given that my high school class of 21 people could not even manage to organize a time when a decent number of us could be in Louisville and get together for dinner or a party, so I will never have that iconic "high school reunion" experience like you see in all the movies--Romy and Michelle, Zack and Miri, etc. Oddly enough, that's what people kept saying throughout the event: "This is like a movie!"

It was quite a fascinating sociologial experiment and great time for people-watching, especially given that it wasn't my own reunion. I watched everyone mingling, and you could tell who had been popular, who had been dorky, and who were just the nice, normal people. Soon after we walked in, I spotted a tall, blonde girl--very stylish, very attractive--and I said to Matt, "she was the Queen Bee, wasn't she?" "Yes!" he replied, adding that when he saw the movie Mean Girls, Rachel McAdams' character had reminded him of this girl.

It was intriguing to look at people's outfits and think how just about everyone there must have taken into consideration how they wanted to present themselves to (and in keeping with stereotype, how they could impress) the people they went to high school with. The invitation had listed the dress code as "party casual: come as you like," which basically tells me nothing. I had been planning for weeks to wear a cute black dress I got before Matt's speaking engagement at Butler in April. I suggested to Matt that he wear nice pants and a sportcoat, but he was planning to go more casual--khakis and a collared shirt, untucked. As we drove there, I felt mismatched, thinking I would be overdressed and Matt would be underdressed. It made me laugh when we arrived and most girls were in cute party dresses like me, and most guys were in khakis or jeans and collared shirts without jackets, like Matt.

Sociological observations aside, we did have fun. They played 90s music, which I love, but it wasn't good for dancing, so pretty much no one danced (disappointing!) It was great to meet some of Matt's old friends, including the guys and girl who were in his band, Rimshot. One friend and I had heard so much about each other through Matt over the years that we actually hugged upon first meeting. That was cool. Another couple I really hope we'll hang out with more in the future. ("Make new friends, but keep the o-old, one is silver and the other gold..." Anyone remember that childhood song? I'm such a cheeseball.)

Here are a few pics from the evening: