Rambles In The Brambles: Vegas Reunion

During my senior year of Notre Dame, I lived in a six-man in Grace Hall. My roommates have proven to be excellent friends over the years. (Four of us live out here in Los Angeles.) We were all there last year when Sasena got married, and the experience was so pleasant that we all managed to get together this year in Los Vegas. The 2003 Grace Hall 911 reunion was held at the Vegas Hilton, on October 10-12.

Having never been to Vegas, I was a bit surprised at the town (the Strip part, at least). People were handing out pornography on the streetcorners, and really playing to the very base parts of the human psyche. The lights and architecture of the city certainly were impressive. I enjoyed playing blackjack, especially when my roommates and I shared the table. I ended up down about $70 on the weekend, which is probably not that bad.

I have to thank Andrew for suggesting the idea, and Mike Douglass for getting the reservations (and generally pushing us along). It is my hope that we can continue to get together that way. In some ways, those guys are like brothers, and I enjoy their company. It is a pleasing vision to imagine getting together with the guys every year, and maybe letting our growing families get to know each other.

	Mike attempting to surf, at Circus Circus. I had a similar incident with Dance Dance Revolution (fortunately the pictures DO NOT EXIST). Fortunately, neither myself nor the machine sustained long-term damage.
	John and Sarah Compton. They revealed that they were going to have another baby! Congratulations! They named their first boy "Mike", so I can only assume that this one will be named "Jeff".
	My college roommates. Left-to-right: Brendan O'Connell, Mike Douglass, John Compton, Mike Sasena, Jeff Borlik, Andrew Sincic. This picture was taken at the Venetian.