Sometimes I Wonder....

Do I hate iu more than I love Purdue?

The answer this week.... ABSOLUTELY!

Boiler Up

Beat The Hoosiers

iu Sucks.

Some fun clips:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ksxbwIh11Io Chad Austin Game Winner

 Ohhh Kelsey Barlow. 

And best of all.... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xeTLb6ebYvA IU SUCKS!

Boiler Up!

Melissa

Exams...

Well, it's gotten to that point in the semester when the exams have started. I have 2 this week (One Monday and one Friday) and had one last week.  I also had an OLS class.  Everything seems to be going well so far.  I've made some great friends in all of my classes which is huge for the study parties that I am sure will continue throughout the semester.

Speaking of OLS, I now have a new task. Ronnie has asked me to email him daily before class and remind him of what's going on. What's due and etc. It's funny... and it helps me stay on top of what I need to be doing too!

Hope you all have a great week! As I continue on my journey...

From Brave to Boilermaker

~M

Funniest 25 Minutes So Far

Well, today I got a taste of OLS 284. Should be a pretty easy class.  I walk in the door and I see this giant sitting in the front of the class, immediately, I realize it's one of the Freshmen on the basketball team, AJ Hammons.  The more I start walking to where I planned on sitting, I realize that the seat I am going to be taking is next to the one and only Ronnie Johnson.  Terone's little brother.  These boys are seriously hilarious.

The Professor was going through all the first day stuff and Ronnie just kept whispering to me or to himself and AJ turns around and is like BRO shut up before I give you something to shut up about. Let's just say I lost it. So funny.

Then, we were finding out who our TA's were going to be for the class and the Prof sais whoevers last names begin A-L you are with this person (Who happens to be an Asian... SHOCKER) M-Z you are with this person (The American). The funny thing about this is, Ronnie looked over at me and was like but all those Asian's last names are crazy and they get the American.  I've got a normal last name and I gotta talk to someone whose language I don't speak? Whateve. Seriously. SO FUNNY.

I hope the rest of the week goes as smoothly as the first 2 days go.  :) Now, back to watching The Hunger Games with one of my roommates.

Until later, I will continue on my journey from Brave to Boilermaker

~M

Back to School, Back to School....

So you know how during the first week of college, it's supposed to be nice and calm and just getting you introduced to everything?

Well... someone forgot to tell my Professors that. Today in every class I have some sort of assignment. It's not that the assignments are hard, or really even long, it was just a surprise that I came into a new semester with a load of homework already.

I think my classes this semester will be great. I can already tell that my favorite class is going to be my EDCI 311 class. This is an education class that I am taking this semester called Media for Children.  As a future educator, you can't get much better.  At the beginning of each class, we will be reading different picture books (yes, those do have words ;P) and really learning how we can incorporate literature and other forms of media into our classrooms. It's going to be great! :)

I'm actually going to try and keep up with the blog this semester. It really shouldn't be that bad. So, my goal is to update it every week, at least once. We will see how long this goes on though :)

Everyone have a great night and be looking for another, more indepth blog soon :)

As I continue my journey

From Brave to Boilermaker

~M

Hummel's Last Stand

I've been trying to decide how to write this since right after the game.  I had so many emotions after that game, I didn't think it would be in my best interests to write it then.  Now that I am somewhat removed from the situation, here it goes... the final goodbye.

Throughout the whole game we were right there. All but 39 seconds, and those were the most important 39 seconds of the game.  Last Sunday our last Baby Boiler took the court in what most people were preparing to be a blowout.  It was anything but that. Robbie Hummel came out on a role that I have never seen as a student.  Sure, he had the night against The Villain and the rest of the scarlet and grey in 2008, but ever since then, he has either been hurt or just had a typical Robbie game.  Quite 15 points and 10 rebounds.  Tonight, you could tell there was something special.  Rob came out with passion in his eyes and you could tell he was going to do everything in his power to keep his team in this game against Kansas.  He ended up with 26 points.  22 of those coming in the first half.  The most he scored all season.

We had an amazing half.  This seemed too good to be true.  Was Robbie and Co. finally going to get over the edge this year and beat a GREAT team? Was Kansas going to continue to shoot this awful? Can we keep this momentum? Are we really beating Kansas? These were all questions going through my head at halftime when we had a 6 point lead, it felt like 20.  We were playing so well, I didn't think there was anyway that we could lose this game and I had already thought about the chance of getting to go to St. Louis to watch the Boilers in the Sweet 16.

Then it happened.  What Boiler fans everywhere were hoping wouldn't happen... the collapse.  The Boilers this season had unfortunately been prone to a scoring drought and during that time, the lead was sometimes lost.  Tonight was one of those.  With about 4 minutes to go, I really began to feel the momentum shift.  We couldn't hit a shot anymore and finally, Kansas' shots were going in.  Their defense stepped up and with that it gave them the confidence to continue to shoot.  At this point, I begin to pace... straw in hand... just hoping and praying that this isn't going to be another heartache for the Boilers, especially Robbie who has already had so many heartaches.  I remember the last minute vividly, but I am not going to talk about that here.  Rob had a great shot, it just wouldn't go down.  Then the desperation shot at the end of the game by Ryne that would have sent it into overtime reminded me a little too much of this desperation shot by Gordon.

It was over. The team was devastated. I remember Ryne doubling over the scorers table, DJ just stopping and dropping to his knees, and Robbie... oh Robbie trying to be strong grabbing his jersey, hands on his head, chewing on his shirt trying not to cry.  You could see the tears in his eyes, and with that, I fell to my knees and cried right along with them.  Then, I decided to listen to the post game interview.  Coach Painter's opening statement might have been the best statement out of this whole thing.  "It stinks.  Losing stinks." I couldn't agree more, Coach.  Robbie and LewJack came in for what would be their last press conferences as Boilermakers.  You could hear the emotion in their voices, the red eyes, the having to pause before answering any questions.  I could tell they were both on the verge of breaking down--  at any moment.  Hearing Robbie say it hadn't hit him yet and then begin to cry, I again cried.  I think every Boilermaker felt the emotion on their faces.

Sure, last year we lost JJ and E'Twaun, but I don't remember this being as hard for me or the rest of Boiler Nation.  The last of the Baby Boilers was gone.  The one who has done so much for Purdue, been a GREAT influence for so many kids, the one who fought through injury after injury and never gave up.  Robbie Hummel was done.  I don't think I really realized how much I was going to miss Robbie until this last game.  It hit me like a ton of bricks.  I can't imagine Purdue basketball without Robbie Hummel.  But, I guess I'm going to have too.

The ReBirth is coming, they are ready.  So are we.  We will never forget everything that Robbie taught us about how to work through everything, and do what we need to do for the betterment of our team. Thank you Robbie for teaching us all of this.  Also, thanks to LewJack and Ryne for all the great memories.  It was a great honor to watch you all over the past  4 years.

Whose ready for next year?! ME!

Until later,

Ever Grateful, Ever True

Melissa

My Grandpa Was A Hero

There are so many things about my grandpa that made him a hero in my eyes.  We buried a great man yesterday.  There was an absolutely beautiful graveside service with a 21 gun salute, taps, the presenting of flags to my brother, two cousins, and myself.  But the thing that makes him a hero the most in my eyes, more even than him being a veteran, was that he was a Christian.  I am so thankful for that.  
Here is the things that I wrote for his funeral service.

There is just something about those people who pick on you for 20 years that helps you become the person that you are today.  Well, grandpa was one of those people.  If he wasn’t picking on me or telling me that he was “bigger than me” and going to be able to beat me up, he was blaming me for eating all the Oreos or ice cream.  Not only would he not fess up to it, but also while Grandma Mid was getting on me, he would stand behind her and laugh.  Even when his memory wasn’t as sharp as it used to be, when I would go and visit him, he would still torment me about school.  If you knew my grandpa Al at all though, you would expect nothing less from him. 

There were things he taught me that he probably doesn’t even realize that he did though, from teaching me how to drive the tractor to teaching me how to pick green beans and corn.  I never thought they were important back then; I just wanted to get to where we were going on the tractor so I could get off of it because it was slow and I looked forward to having corn on the cob and Grandma’s famous greens for supper later.  But those moments when I was on the tractor or in the garden with him were moments I will never forget. 

Another great memory I have of him is being with grandma during the days while he was at work.  He worked with Dad until just a few years ago.  He worked hard at home too keeping up with mowing his big yard, tending to his garden or doing Honey-Do jobs for Grandma.  I never hear him complain about having too much to do.  It just showed the work ethic that was instilled in him that I hope that has rubbed off on me some. 

Christmases were always fun with my grandparents too.  I think one of the best memories was one Christmas when Trigger was being Trigger (Running around and barking all the time) And I was like “Grandpa, there is something wrong with him, maybe he needs to go to the bathroom.”  So he says,”all right, I guess it’s time to take the dawwwwwwwwwwg out!” To this day, anytime I am having a bad day or need a laugh, I think of that moment. 

I also think about the fact that my grandpa was a solider. He fought for the freedom of not only the people back then, but for me, and you and everyone to come.  I am forever grateful for that.

One of my all time favorite things about having grandparents so close was whenever I wanted; I could just run down to their house and hang out with them.  Talk to then about the old days when they were growing up and how much harder they had it than we can even imagine.  Also, when I would be at the house and they would need to go somewhere as soon as I got my permit, I was driving them everywhere.  Taking them around and helping them do things taught me so many things.  Not only how to be a good grandchild, but also how to be a good spouse.  There was so much love shown between my grandma and grandpa.  Although I don’ completely understand the ins and outs of Heaven, in my mind, I think they are together again. 

Not only was my grandpa a great person to be around all the time, but also he was one of the best Christian men I have ever met in my life.  I am so thankful that I had the opportunity to learn from him and follow the example that he set for me and the rest of the people he was in contact with.   Most of all, I am fortunate to have had the opportunity to spent time with him and learn about working hard, how to be a great Christian, how to treat my spouse one day, and most of all how much love grandparents can have for their grandchildren.

My grandpa was a hero.  To some people, he might not have been because he didn't do anything spectacular.  He was just a normal man working hard and providing for his family.

Tuesday... almost as good as Friday

When you read this title... you're probably thinking, what in the world is wrong with this girl... Nothing is wrong with me. This semester I got the joy of becoming a Big Buddy.  What does that mean you ask... well... a big buddy is a mentor, for an underprivileged child in grades 1-5.  You get to spend 2.5 hours with them, one day a week and encourage them to work hard in school, to become a better citizen, or pretty much just be there for them.  This organization is  College Mentors for Kids aka CMFK.  I never thought that this program could have such a huge impact on my life... but it has.

The first week, we went to the school to meet the kids on their own turf and meet their parents too so they knew the person that was going to be with the child for 2.5 hours a week.  My little buddies name is Angela.  She is a hoot.  She reminds me a lot of me when I was younger.  She's helped me learn how to be even more patient than I ever thought I could be!

Another great thing about CMFK is the fact that you get to meet people from Purdue from all different majors and backgrounds and you get to become pretty good friends with them.  For example, my little buddy and two guys little buddies are pretty much best friends and they won't be apart.  So, we have gotten to know each other pretty well which is cool because I probably never would have met them if I didn't do this.  Especially since they are management and engineering majors.

So, each week we go on a "field trip" with them. The first week on campus, it was my turn.  Let's just say I was excited.  Terone Johnson is my best friend. He got me in contact with the head of basketball operations for the men's team and we set up a tour of Mackey, the guys were going to read the book of the week to them and talk to them about working hard in school. Let's just say that was adorable.  From dance offs with Robbie Hummel (he can't dance btw) to hearing DJ read and getting stuck on a word, to seeing one of our little buddies stand next to Sandi for a picture. SO CUTE! Let's just say I think I had more fun than the kids did.  At the end of the day, we made thank you cards for each of the players.  All the little girls wanted to make Ryne and DJ's... let's just say they all had little crushes on then.  It was adorable.

Those were just some of the cool things we did while we were in Mackey.  Here is my little buddy :) Isn't she a cutie. :)

Well, I'm sure I will have more to tell you about CMFK at a later date.

For now, as always...
Boiler Up!

I have a new found love for tornadoes

So, obviously I've been a little busy this semester! Good grief... it's been forever since I last posted.

So what going on at Purdue right now?

Well.. I have an exam tonight in Math, hopefully it will go well.  After that, I am going to the Purdue game tonight against High Point.  If it's anything like the last one, it will be a BLOW OUT! I hope it is just like it too :)

So can I just talk about this weekend? It was full of sports, big victories, pancakes, and rushing the field. Can't complain about that.

Let's start with Friday... the first regular season men's basketball game was against Northern Illinois.  Coming in, I was pretty sure it wouldn't be much of a game because of how big it was.  Mackey Rededication weekend, Robbie's return :), and the first regular season game of the year.  The game started off with nothing else but a tre from Robbie! It was like he never missed a beat, even though he actually missed 18+ months... Let's just say after the game we had 14 3's and a 96-34 victory.  No, that wasn't a type-o. We won by 62 points. Biggest margin in Mackey in over 50 years! It was awesome to see Robbie out there too.  Nothing like having 21 points in a mear 20 minutes of play! That's what I call affective!

Oh... and did I mention that there were FIREWORKS... IN MACKEY! Craziness, I know!

Now onto Saturday:

The morning started off with pancakes of all kinds from chef momma.  They were super yummy and the energy those gave us were very helpful in cheering our beloved Boilers onto a 26-23 overtime victory against tO$u who we have a great hatred for.  They are most known for this... Party.  Even though there was much disapproval from some alum.. (couch cough Brian cough cough) We rushed the field.  The pure joy that we felt when we won that game was so great that there was nothing to do except rush.  When you are used to heartbreak all year losing those close games, to finally win one was such a relief we didn't know what to do, so we rushed the field.  I got a picture with the one and only Ricardo Allen

So that was pretty awesome to say the least.  Then, Sunday I spent all afternoon in the library with Bre and Avery.  It's gonna be a busy week, but Thanksgiving is just around the corner! :) 

So today was a pretty special day too.  I got the cool opportunity to go on a self guided tour of the new and much improved Mackey Arena.  So pretty much what it was, was time for us to walk around Mackey with no restrictions... that was pretty awesome! We were watching the guys walk through from the upper part when we hear the tornado sirens go off..... normally, I would have been scared. But I knew since I was in Mackey I would be okay.  But, I also knew that meant we had to go to the "basement" aka the locker room area.  TOOOOO BAD! :) So, when we go down there, we see that the guys practice is almost over! So we go down to the tunnel to see what we can see, and none other than Brian Cardinal! SO COOL! It seemed like he recognized me.  When I saw him, I asked if we could take a picture and he was more that willing.  Then, when I went to put my stuff down, the older lady (okay, she was old enough to be my grandma... she reminded me of her too) started screaming... "OH MY WORD! Do you know who you are?!?!" Brian looked at her and said "Yes ma'am, I'm Brian Cardinal and have been my whole life" hahahha I lost it.  After I was done laughing, we tried to take a picture. For 10 minutes I'm sure.  The same old lady that flipped when she saw him was trying to use my iPhone to take the pic.  We had everything from videos to pictures with Brian's head cut off.  Finally, he just said "Give me the phone" so he took it.  Yeah, Brian Cardinal held my phone. In his hand. No big :) Here's the pic :)

Then, we thought we could leave, but we were wrong. Another tornado warning came out. So, with this time I decided to make another move... let's go sit by there locker room. Who knows what might happen.  You'll never guess who came out the door... none other than Sir Robbie Hummel himself :) I go over and ask him for a picture, and he generously accepts. When this happens, the only person I see around is DJ Byrd... so he takes my phone and takes the pic.  As he takes my phone, he begins to admire my phone case, which happens to be pink.  He then goes to say "OH! I love your phone case." Thankfully, he was just being stupid.  Cause, if not... I woulda been worried.  Here's our pic :) 

After that, I got to meet Dru and get a pic with him and then we got to walk out onto the court. So cool.  Here are those pics. :) 

They also had this really cool interactive thing in one of the exclusive clubs... 

This is how I compare to Robbie hahah

All in all I would say it's been a successful and very busy semester (be watching for a post about College Mentors for Kids soon) Such a GREAT opportunity! I always cherish every moment I have at Purdue and am so glad to share my journey with you....

From Brave to Boilermaker

Until next time... 

Boiler Up!

Speak Up! Anything Small Could Be Big!

While I haven’t had the joys of going to school everyday to keep me busy this summer, I definitely haven’t been bored… between working, visiting friends, and catching up with friends, I feel like I haven’t rested a whole lot.  But right now, I want to help a story that has hit close to home for me.

On June 3^rd, an IU student named Lauren Spierer went missing.  There have been many searches going on and the family is still very hopeful to find her.  The Bloomington Police have worked very hard with the family to continue to search for her, but they need any help they can get… so if you have any ways that you can help, please do so.  They are constantly updating the situation on Twitter, so follow them at @NewsOnLaurenS there is also a Facebook page that is updated quite often as well.  Just follow this link As they have said over and over again, any little thing could be so big.  So PLEASE if you know anything… call 1800-CRIMETV.  All tips will be anonymous. 

If you want to help, like I said go to Bloomington, help search.  But if you can’t… even something simple like putting up this picture will help!

Normally, my blogs aren’t this heavy, but this is something that needs to get out there, and Boilers, just think how we would feel if one of our own was missing!  So help out! 

And for now, as always…

Boiler Up!

HFLS!

The Saddest Night in Mackey Arena and the One Missing Out

 

The final night in Mackey Arena for the 2010-2011 season was one full of emotions.  For everyone involved.  It was the last time we were going to see E’Twaun and JJ play in Mackey.  This was the last game of the season.  This was a season we would never forget.  With a win, we would go undefeated at home for the first time since 1969.  But most of all, it was sad.  Because 1/3 of the brotherhood wasn’t going to walk out on Mackey Arena one last time with his brothers; he wasn’t going to get the feeling of going out there with the group of guys he came in and played one more time.  For Robbie, this was going to be a tough night.  I know exactly how he felt too.  Knowing that you couldn’t go out there and play your last night.  That is the worst feeling in the world.  While the rest of your class is enjoying playing on the court for the last time, you are standing off to the side.  Trying not to be emotional, because it is so exciting for them that you don’t want to take the importance off of them, but you can’t help the feelings you get inside of you. 

Before the game even started, I was tearing up.  Just knowing that I was walking into Mackey for the last time with E’Twaun and JJ out on that court, I didn’t know how to deal with it.  But, I knew also that it had to be tough on all of the senior members of the Paint Crew.  They have invested 4 or 5 years of their lives in this team.  They have been through the highest of highs and lowest of lows with this team.  They never walked away.  No matter what.  Reading the scouting report, it brought tears to my eyes.  Mike wrote it.  This was his last one- he made it good. 

It was game time.  There were so many emotions throughout the whole stadium.  People got there early.  People were on their feel when they came out one last time.  You could just see the looks in E’Twaun and JJ’s eyes.  They were ready for this night.  They were going to make it the best they could.  They were ready to shine one last time.  They had accomplished so much in their careers at Mackey.  So many records had been broken, Sweet 16’s had been accomplished, Big 10 Tourney Championships had been won, Big 10 regular season championships had been won.  Now, there was only one thing left. - Getting an undefeated season at home.  It wasn’t going to be an easy task.  Illinois was a team on a mission.  But, I knew that no matter how much they wanted to beat us, the guys wouldn’t go out with a loss.  But, for the first half of the first half, we were playing with so much emotion.  Too much emotion.  Illinois was all over us.  They couldn’t miss and we couldn’t hit.  I was a little nervous.  But I knew with JJ and E’Twaun as the head, anything was possible.  Boy, was I right.  JJ took over, and then E’Twaun in the second half.  He was on fire.  We started to pull away; and with 2.1 seconds left in the game, the guys got what they deserved.  They got a standing ovation from the crowd.  I got a little teary eyed.  I knew this was the last time I was going to get to see them play in Mackey.  I couldn’t help but look over at Robbie during all of this, and he had a smile on his face, but I could just tell he was wishing that it was him.  He wanted to be getting that standing ovation.  He wanted to have that moment with those guys. 

But, he didn’t.  So he was as okay with it as he could be.  But I knew that after the game was going to be even harder.

We got the win, making this the first undefeated season at home since 1969.  Just another thing to put in the memory book for E’Twaun and JJ.  The game was over, now for the hard part.  Coach Painter called out all of the cheerleaders, managers, and finally E’Twaun and JJ.  But, there was someone missing.  Standing in the line with the rest of the players, there was Robbie.  I knew how bad he wanted to be out there with those guys, he had spent 4 years of his life with these guys, they were brothers.  He was having a tough time keeping it all in.  You could just tell.  Robbie went over to T’Twaun and JJ’s parents during the ceremony, and you could see their mom’s telling him that he should be out there with them.  I’m sure that didn’t make it any easier on Rob.  But, he kept it together.  After the ceremony was over, the 3 guys came over in front of the Paint Crew and took pictures.  I snuck down there so I could get one of them, and as they were walking away, I turned my poster around.  It said “Final Four for #4”.  I yelled at Robbie so he could see it.  He had a look on his face of sheer appreciation.  He looked like he was getting ready to cry.  He said thanks, I love it; and walked away.  E’Twaun stayed around and was signing anything he could get his hands on.  That was awesome.  He took my poster right out of my hand and read it.  Told me that it was awesome how I didn’t check off the Final Four spot yet and signed it and then gave it back.  That was pretty awesome.

 

JJ waiting for his moment

 

 

 

Just another night full of great memories in the books while I am transitioning from Brave to Boilermaker.

Birthdays, signs, and ESPN

Thanks to a tweet from the Paint Crew, the IU game became a game I will NEVER EVER EVER forget!

It all started out when I was trying to come up with a creative sign for the IU game.  And I couldn’t because there is NOTHING creative to say about iu.  So I googled Purdue shirts making fun of iu and one that said “You can’t cheer for a rock unless you are as dumb as a rock” came up and I sent that to Brian.  That turned into Our Rock (The moon—Neil Armstrong… NBD) is bigger than your rock.  Yes, I know the rock is from football.  But that didn’t matter because the real sign came on the other side… on Tuesday… at about 3; and I had to be at Mackey at 3:30.  Let’s just say that was interesting.  The tweet came through about 10:30 on Tuesday.  It was JJ’s birthday.  I knew I had to make a sign since I was the 5^th group.  I knew I was going to have awesome seats. 

Before the game, I am in Mackey putting out scouting reports on seats, and just taking in the images of Mackey.  Empty.  That is something that I will never forget.  The first time I went into Mackey and NO ONE was on the court.  The lights were down.  Wow.  It was quite an experience.  But, as I am putting out the sheets, Tom comes in and says you need to get out here, your group is getting ready to come in.  I asked him if I could just stay in there, he said no.  But that was okay.  I knew where I wanted to sit, and I thought I could get there with the number we were.  I was correct.  I may have jumped down the last three steps, but I wanted that seat.  I was right on the edge of the cut out.  Right next to Tom.  Perfect.

As the rest of the Paint Crew is coming in and we are sitting there before the game, Brian gives me an awesome idea.  Go get a sharpie.  This is the one chance I am going to have to have JJ sign a sign that I made.  “He might do it, it’s worth a try.”  So I went into Heather’s office, and I got a sharpie.  Ran back in because we were singing to JJ.  I held up my sign, he made eye contact.  I knew he saw it.  That was a good thing. 

Someone is walking over to me; I don’t know what they want.  But I could tell they were from some TV crew.  But, I didn’t know which one.  She asked me how I would feel about having my sign on the 6 o’clock news for Channel 18 news.  I was game.  So, not only was I on TV because of the sign, but some of the people around me were too! 

The game starts.  We come out and beat iu.  Big surprise right?  IF we didn’t beat iu on JJ’s birthday, I was going to cry.  As per usual, the team comes over to the Paint Crew after the game, and gives us all fives.  This was my chance.  As JJ comes up, I have the sharpie out and he said “I’ll come back and do it in a sec.” I was cool with that.  But, instead of him coming back, BabyLew (LewJack, whatever you want to call him) came back over and took my sign.  I was kind of shocked.  I was like what are you doing?  But, I was like sure here. Take it.  JJ came and got it and SLAM my sign.  ALL over ESPN.  There were pictures on the ESPN website right after the game. 

It was on the highlights from the game.  It was awesome.  Then, he came over and signed it.  There were pictures of that in the Exponent.  I was a super star!  It was definitely the coolest experience I have had as a Boilermaker so far. 

Even on the bus the next day, Terone Johnson came up to me and said HEY!  Sign girl!  I was in shock that they realized who I was.  That was a pretty cool thing. 

This is just another one of the memories I will have from my first year going From Brave to Boilermaker.

As always,
Boiler Up!

Long days, Cold nights, Awesome days, and Disappointment All in One Week

There aren’t many things I wdiould be willing to stand… or sit in -15 wind chill for; but College Game Day and Michigan State at Purdue University would be one of those.  It all started Friday January 21^st at 1pm.  The lottery for seats started.  I was in class.  Does that mean I was paying attention?  Not all the way… but I was there.  When I got a text at about 1:18 I knew it was good.  Avery texts me and says we got 12^th in the lottery!  Let’s just say I was PUMPED!  I couldn’t wait!  But, I knew that meant we wouldn’t have very good seats for GameDay, which was sad.  But I was willing to sacrifice! 

I knew it was cold.diss  But you don't realize how cold -15 is until you sit/stand in it for 4 hours in 1 day. We were under a ton of blankets, and I'm pretty sure I had like 6 layers on.  But, it didn't help.  I was FREEZING!  But, I knew in the long run it would be worth it, because I knew I would have great seats for the game, which was televised on ESPN; so freezing was okay. On my break I went to grab some dinner and I get a call from Brian as I am sitting there eating that the GameDay crew (Rece Davis, Digger Phelps (Yes, there are roads that lead to West Lafayette, Digger!), Jay Bilas, and Hubert Davis) were up visiting the Paint Crew while we were camping out.  So, what did I do?  I ran up the hill from The Knight Spot to Ross Ade just in time to get my picture taken with Jay and Rece... after Kyle and I chased them down the hill!  :)

Then I got to sit some more.  Audrey and I were there from 6:30-7:30.  And boy did it get cold when the sun went down! :/  So we bundled up and watched Twilight to pass the time!

I got to go back to my warm and cozy bed for a little while... but I was back at Mackey at 5:55AM because they canceled the camping, so we had to be back by then to get in line for the role call for Gameday.  So Jacob and I got there and stood out in the FREEZING cold!  You don't realize how much the sun helps until it isn't there.  Finally we get to go inside for a few minutes and we are greeted with doughnuts!  Such a nice surprise. Especially since I hadn't eaten breakfast yet and we were going to be in Mackey until noon... at least.

FINALLY 7:45 came!  After 18 long hours, it came.  We were going inside for GameDay.  I couldn't believe that it was actually happening until i walked in there and saw the set.  WOW! I knew this was going to be an awesome day! :)  When we walk in I see a row at the very bottom with no one in it, so we ran down there and got them!  I knew we were going to get some face time because of where we were.  Right over the shoulder of Jay.  I knew these were good... but I thought we could do better.  I knew Brian had gotten a wrist band to get in the pit (right behind the GameDay set, on the floor, where the players sit.) So I asked him if we could have one, he said ask someone.  So I asked Chris (the Mackey MadMan) if he wanted to be my BFF and he said why? I said can I have a wristband?  He said for sure!  i'll go get you one.  Come down here girl.  So I did.  I was PUMPED!  But, at the same time, I felt kind of bad because I left Jacob, Caleb and Bre up in the stands... but not for long.  After a few minutes, Tom came down and said we had more wrist bands, go give them to your friends, so let's just say I grabbed 3 and was out of there.  i ran them over to Bre, Caleb, and Jacob and Brian took some over to Brad, Emily, and Rachel.  We were all on the floor!  It was awesome!   

Here are some pictures of the GameDay festivities...

One of the best signs of the day!  Bobby chairs are for SITTING!

we were taking in all of the craziness!

The team gave all of us fives and them went up through the crowd... let's just say we were all a little nervous.  Especially for Robbie and his knee!

Brother and I right after I got a wrist band!

This little boy was like running with Robbie down the stairs! So cute!

Probably my favorite picture of the day!

Once we got pumped up, it was time for the show to actually start.  It was so loud my ears were ringing.  Chris and I were taking turns leading all of the cheers so we could save our voices some for the game.  It sort of worked.

GameDay was one of those once in a life time experiences that I will never forget.  It is something I will be able to tell my grandkids about one day!

Here are some pretty cool videos of the day too.  You will have to look at them sideways though!

Digger dancing!

So after all of the GameDay festivities were over, we had about a 6 hour break before we had to be back in line to go into the game.  So what did I do?  I took a nap and rested my throat.  It sorta worked.  :)

At about 7 we went back up to Mackey to get inline and start the process of getting wrist bands and everything.  It was pretty intense.  It was probably the most excited line we have had all year.  It all started when we were standing there and the MSU bus pulled up.  What did we do? We boooooooooooooed them!  Most of them didn't pay attention, but one thug did.  He decided to show us how he felt about us... it wasn't very nice.

Also before the game we had some visitors.  Dicky V and the Schwab  came over!  i got to shake Dicky V's hand baby!

He is a funny man!

Anyways, when we finally got inside, the game plan was to go behind the officers, but since that didn't work because people were already sitting there, we decided to go 3 rows up on the opposite side.  AMAZING seats!  I was PUMPED!  :)  Brian was talking to me and he told me to come down next to him for a minute and get on TV, so I did... and I was!  People were texting me and writing on my wall that they saw me on TV!  I was pretty pumped!  i had my 10 seconds of fame several times on Saturday!

But right before the game started Tom Izzo came out and was watching them warm up, so I figure, what's the worst that could happen if I scream at him?  So I did.  And I have my sign in the air.  "The Paint Crew Burns a Hole in the Izzone"  I know he saw it.  I got a head shake and a "nope" so that's when the war really started.

He's nervous!

The game began.  I have never heard Mackey that loud!  My ears were ringing!  We got up to 119 on the dB scale.  120 is hearing loss.  That's a little nuts.  We were rocking and MSU could never get started.  It was awesome to see the boys come out with such intensity and passion! 

Even coach Painter got into it!

At the end of the day, I had no voice and the Boiler came out with a huge win over MSU!  I thought without a doubt Tuesday was going to be awesome as we went up to Columbus to face #1 tO$U.

But boy was I wrong. 

99 of my closest friends and I left Mackey Arean at 4pm on Tuesday afternoon.  We didn't get home until 4:15 Wednesday morning.  I thought I would be happy riding home, but I wasn't.  The ride up was long, but fun at the same time.  We had WiFi on the bus and were watching movies so the time seemed to pass quickly.

We finally get to OSU and we get booed as soon as we get outside the stadium.  And we didn't even start it.  We were just singing Hail Purdue while we were waiting on Mike to get our tickets.

Once we finally get them, we begin the treck upward to our seats.  Mind you, we only have about 5 minutes once we get into the stadium to find our seats and get situated.  We made it.  Right before the starting line ups.  It was pretty cool.  It was set up like a NBA stadium tough.

Yeah, that's how high up we were.  But the team could still hear us, because A.  they couldn't even sell out the stadium for the game.  B.  The fans weren't that loud.  and C.  We were CRAZY loud! ;)

Let's just say our excitement didn't roll over into the players.  They came out flat.  They looked like they didn't want to be there.  I was embarrassed and frustrated and shocked.  I had never seen a Matt Painter team come out so flat.  I think they were coming off an emotional high and they didn't come out ready to play in a hostile environment.  Let's just say I don't remember the score of that game for a reason.  It was bad.

But, they did bounce back against Minnesota on Saturday and now have a tough stretch in front of them until March Madness starts.  We have to prove something right now.  And, I think we are ready!

Until later,

Boiler Up! 

The Power of Just an Hour.

Yeah, I know… it’s been a while.  I’m sorry. I’ve been busy.  I survived my first semester at Purdue!  I got through the joys of dead week… that just makes your dead, and through the wonderful things called finals.  I am just so glad to have my first semester of college under my belt.   Now I feel like I know what to expect.  I got through my first semester of juggling everything.  I know how I need to manage my time now.  I know the ins and outs better.  I don’t feel so overwhelmed all of the time.  It’s so nice! :)

Now we are getting back into the grove after being off for 3 weeks, which was much needed, I was ready to get back to it.  Ready to get back to West Lala to see everyone and get Block 1 under way.  Even though I am taking 18 hours this semester, I think it’s going to be great!  I am really excited about my classes.  I think they are all going to be really good and HELPFUL for my major, which is always nice.  I am starting into my Education classes, which make me very excited! :)  Another great thing is, I am done by 1:30 at the LATEST!  This is so much nicer than being done at 5:30 everyday.  That was awful!  Since I am getting done so early, I can get my homework done in the afternoons which gives me more free time at night, meaning we can do fun stuff. 

Which bring me to this past weekend.  It had to be one of the best/most uplifting/fun weekends I’ve had in a while.  We had our first Friday Night Bible Study of the semester.  Justin did an awesome job and there were so many people there; it’s so great to see so many people wanting to learn about God! It’s such an encouragement!  After the study, Katherine Long, Michael Eldridge, Bryan Dallas, and I came back to my dorm and watched Marley and Me.  Such a great, but sad movie! 

Then on Saturday we got up early to head over to Avery’s house before going to the Connor’s to help them move.  Avery decided to have everyone come over before for pancakes; so Avery and I started cooking… let’s just say that was interesting.  Quite fun actually.  We were cooking for 5 hungry boys, and like 6 girls… so we made a lot!  The sad thing was, we didn’t have a griddle.  So, we used 4 little pans. That was funny! Avery was the mixer and the poorer; I was the flipper.  Let’s just say flipping was harder than it looked.  Bit the pancakes were yummy and everyone got there fill, so we went over to the Conner’s to help them move.  That was fun! And we even had a snowball fight after! :)

Then Saturday night, we decided to have people come over to watch in Bre’s words the BEST MOVIE EVER! Cool Runnings, but before we could do that, we were brainstorming.  The Michigan State game is next Saturday.  Gameday is going to be there, so we were trying to think of a creative sign to have.  ESPN was going to be there so we were trying to come up with something to go with that, but we couldn’t think of anything that was creative, made since, or the Gameday crew would let us have… so we trashed that idea.  But somehow, I said Paint Crew and Izzone (The students sections for us and MSU respectively) and that turned into this...  The Paint Crew burns a hole in the Izzone” Thanks to Kyle Newton for that! :D
        

Now, for the best part of the weekend… Monday. Now I know Monday is normally never a good day because the weekend is over, but this week… Monday was MLK day, so we didn’t have school.  So instead of sleeping all day or doing nothing, we as the college students decided to go to visit some of the elderly people in our congregation.  Let’s just say this was one of the best ideas we have ever had.  I don’t know who got more out of it.  Us or them.  I know they were super excited to see us, but I know I learned so much from them today.  Some of these people have been widows for YEARS and they still come to church, they still have so much left in them, if we will just go talk to them.  The work ethics that these people have still… WOW.  Just spending less than an hour with these people I learned so many things that I will keep with me forever… one lady told us “If you have a temper, get over it.  Because no one will want to deal with you if you have a temper.”  Just simple things like that that they have learned over the years; they want us to have it better than they did.  The want to tell us their story; they want to help us if we will let them.  I mean I haven’t been able to stop smiling thinking about what we got to do today.  Not because we went out and did something to be noticed… because that isn’t what it was about.  Today was about getting to visit people and be servants to them.  I know they taught me so many lessons today, whether they know it or not, whether they remember us being there or what are names are; I will always remember this day as such a great opportunity that I had to help brighten someone else  day.  And they did the same for me in return.  

The Road Map Has Begun

I've been struggling on what to say, shocker I know... do I talk about meeting my boys, the first game, randomly seeing the boys on campus and them yelling at me, what?  So I've decided this blog is going to be all of the above, so this is going to be a long one... but hopefully it will be a good one as well!

So, on Thursday the 14th, we got to have a Pre-Season party with the team, ask them questions, get autographs and take pictures.  That was pretty awesome.  They were so willing to sit there while all the Paint Crew went through and asked questions, and got everything under the sun autographed and then stayed after the party was over to take pictures with the people who decided to stay.

I had some pretty interesting conversations... Robbie and myself talked about our scars, and surgery, and rehab... we even compared scars. haha  But, the weirdest thing that was said was and I quote "I sure hope I never have to know the feelings that you had your senior year not being able to play with the rest of your class."  We didn't know how true that quote would be just a few days later.  That day was the WORST day I have had yet as a Boilermaker.  I thought it was a joke... a very dirty joke... but it wasn't.  Just read this from Twitter: ThePaintCrew I cant believe this RT @BTNBrentsBlog:Purdues Robbie Hummel will miss the 2010-11 season after tearing his ACL on Saturday.  There were some pretty interesting tweets after that.  It just showed the pure emotion that everyone in Boiler Nation felt.  I cried.  I called my dad and just cried.  What do you do?  Especially when you have that conversation with him just 4 days earlier?  But we have gotten past that now.  We are focusing on the team as a whole.  Not just Robbie, he wasn't our whole team and the boys will pick up the slack.  I know this.

Back to the party:  I got twitpiced.  For those of you who don't know what this is:  It is a picture that is put on twitter by someone.  Kelsey Barlow was the lucky one I got to get a picture with that night!  If you want to see the picture, and follow Kelsey on Twitter go here.

Here are some picture of the Pre-Season Party

Here! TwitPic this!

JJ was trying to be like LewJack and couldn't keep a straight face! At least Robbie was paying attention!

A good one of me and the "Big 3"

Coach Painter!

LewJack!  What a shrimp!

Freshman with the Freshmen... we got a lot of junk for this!

 

Coach Painter answering questions

 I see the guys everywhere on campus now... and some of them, especially Kelsey always feel the need to yell at me when they see me.  For some people, that is a HUGE deal for those just walking by, but I just yell back and then people are whispering to each other... "that girl just got yelled at by Kelsey Barlow or she just talked to JJ..." Yeah, it is awesome, but I guess I just take it as it comes.  Now... the first time I flipped out a little.


THE GAME! 


As I am walking up Gate B of Mackey Arena, JJ is walking by. He said "Hey! Paint Crew!" I sad "Yeah!  Good luck tonight!"  He said "Thanks I appreciate it!"  Some guy walked by after JJ went into the gym and he said "Do you know who that was?"  I said "Yeah JJ..." he was getting all pumped that he passed him.  It was funny.

So... I never thought this day would come.  The day I was in the Paint Crew during a Purdue Men's basketball game.  The year that we are going to go to the National Championship in Houston.  I got to Mackey Arena at 11:30.  I was helping work the lottery for the Paint Crew.  I was pumped!  I walk over to the gate that was next to where we were set up for the lottery and just looked in.  I had never been in Mackey when no one was on the court.  It was am amazing thing to see.  I will never forget that.  The lottery was complete.  Our group got LAST DEAD LAST.  But that was okay.  Because we were going to be in there.  That is all that mattered.

While I was waiting in my group, the guys were having their walk through, so we were aloud to go in and watch.  That was awesome.  It is just one of those things you can't explain. 

I went to my classes then pretty much ran over to Mackey.  I had to be there at 5:30 to help work, and I got out of class at 5:20 so I had to book it.  I got there, and helped get everyone in line.  Then we had to wait.  And wait... and wait. Finally it was time to go in.  I had to job of "directing traffic".  I had to tell everyone what gate to go into and make sure they didn't go into the wrong one; and make sure they didn't run.  I was so tired of saying go down to gate 8 by the time everyone got through, it was ridiculous.  I've decided that we need to make a sign that says "GO TO GATE 8!"

It's game time! After everyone gets in, I get to go get my seat... 2 rows from the top of the lower bowl... the seats weren't too bad actually.  The team came out!  We got crazy... and then Robbie came out... in a suit.  That wasn't what I wanted to see Robbie in this season, but he seemed as okay with it as he could be...

Shaking hands

Just hanging out... talking to the official book guy

It was finally time for the game to start... I think starting lineups got me PUMPED!  These biys were ready... they put their hearts and souls into this season and they were ready.  So were we.  The starting line up was a little different than I though.  E'Twaun, JJ, LewJack, Ryan Smith, and Patrick Bade.

E'Twaun

Patrick

Ryan Smith (He moved too quick)

LewJack

JJ

The Paint Crew was an awesome experience.  I was so excited to be apart of that, it was great to see how even for an exhibition game, we were so into it.

The boy's came out a little flat.  And to say I wasn't nervous would be a lie.  But, as I am looking back now, they never really got into a flow.  They were always subbing in and out.  Byrd, a non-started lead the way with 21 minutes.  JJ and E'Twaun only played 19 and 16 minutes respectively.  So thinking about that, it wasn't so bad...

At the very end of the game, Bre looks over at me and said I found Chris Kramer!  So what did I do?  I took his picture duh!  And I think this picture might be one of the best ones I've taken in quite a while...

He was getting so into it... watching him at the end of the game when the guys that don't play much were in, was just like watching him when he was on the floor... he got so into it.  It was pretty funny to watch.

The Boilers came away with a win over UIndy 82-59.  I am looking forward to what the rest of this season has in store for us.  This will be a great year!  I am sure of that!

Thanks for reading....

For now,

Boiler Up!