Always Anna

Note to self: When hanging out in Providence, remember that there are only two bars you really like in the city. And that they tend to have lines. Especially when the town is over-run with drunk PC grads….

I spent Saturday night in Providence, celebrating the fact that I’ve now been out in the real world for four years. I knew that most of the people from my class wouldn’t return for the young alumni weekend - next year is the big one, and it’s not like we know anyone actually AT PC anymore. Even the freshman we knew as seniors have graduated now. But my favorite girls and I used the event as an excuse to get together and drink heavily, which is always fun.

I’m sure you don’t care about our phat hotel room (yes, I did just say “phat”) or the fabulous shopping. The night really started when we went to dinner at Union Station Brewery - good drinks and food, and the added bonus of running into some college friends. We managed to get a little buzzed at dinner, then Ali and I went off on a mission to find a liquor store so we could drink in our room while getting ready. When we returned, semi-victorious (got the booze, but had to compromise on the mixer since apparently no one believes in carrying club soda), the radio was already blaring and there were half-naked beauties in our room. Schweet.

Ali, Nikki, Em & I drank, danced and dressed for the next hour and a half. Which was apparently too long of a time, since when we got to McFadden’s at 10:30 there was already a line around the block. After some hemming and hawing, we decided to stand in line for a little bit while we discussed other options. So we stood there. And tried to think of somewhere else to go that wouldn’t have a line. And stood there. And complained about how we didn’t “do” lines. And stood there. FOR AN HOUR. The only line movement was people leaving because they were tired of waiting. Finally, Ali took control, and led us to the bar across the street, which I HATE. But at least it had booze.

A couple of over-priced drinks and shots later, we all felt much better. Better enough that we decided to attempt the other bar we liked - Ri Ra. We ran over, with Ali yelling like a crazy person (I think the 2 foot tall mojito went to her head. Either that, or she thought she was Alexis), just in time to watch the last of the line go inside. We figured we had arrived at the perfect time, strolled up to the bouncer while reaching for our IDs, and almost fell over in horror as some old guy came out and said nobody else was getting in. At all. We argued for a minute, and tried to persuade the bouncer to let us in anyways, but it was a no go.

But then, our luck changed. A couple of friends came out looking for us! We immediately crossed the plaza to go drink at Union Station. Drinks. Shots. Laughter. Drinks. Nasty shots. The bar closed and we split up - our friends went to a house party, Nikki & Em went back to the room, and Ali & I wandered the streets looking for another bar, then food, then the hotel.

Good times.

It wasn’t the craziest weekend I’ve ever had. It wasn’t the drunkest weekend I’ve ever had. And it wasn’t the best shopping weekend I’ve ever had. But it was a lot of fun. And it gave me a great opportunity to reflect back on college, and how much my friends and I have grown since then. Sure, sometimes I miss the debauchery of being an undergrad. But I wouldn’t trade where I am now for anything. And that’s a great feeling.