We were up bright and early for Breakfast With the Bands at the
convention center. Dr. Nickens, the unfathomably funky arranger of
our collaborative piece, arrived toting a walking stick topped with a
fake emerald the size of an egg or larger. Taking turns, each band
played three songs from its repertoire. Despite our lack of manpower
-- we were about a fifth the size of the other bands -- we held our
own with "Holiday" by Green Day, Aerosmith's "Dude
Looks Like a Lady" and "Monkey Wrench" by the Foo
Fighters. The most obvious area we're lacking is that of
choreography; nearly all of the other groups had many cheers, dances
and special moves. Hopefully we can work in those elements for later
performances. Some of the best pieces were "All of the Lights"
as performed by William & Mary, "Party Rock Anthem" by
Georgia State, and "Rolling In the Deep" by VCU. Once each
group had finished performing, we all scattered and reformed into
sections by instrument, mingling with the other schools. The finale:
a massive presentation of "One Nation Under a Groove." I
invite everyone to give it a watch/listen, especially around the
three to six minute marks; the soloists' improvisation was
incredible. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jXbokulzuZY
In high spirits, Ariel, Alaric and I went on a mission to find face paint for the evening game against VCU. We were unsuccessful, but someone else had better luck procuring it. Downtown Richmond is interesting to look at. Wide brick sidewalks are lined with trees and the sounds of many birds are in the air. The air is clean smelling and clear. The mixture of shiny new steel/glass structures and vintage architecture is at once refreshing yet comfortable. At the hotel, I entered full lounge mode: open flannel shirt, cargo shorts, cold soda and AC to 64.
Back to the face paint. VCU is ranked second in the CAA and Northeastern seventh. We knew that the quarterfinal was likely a doomed mission, and we decided to go out in style. Most of the band applied varying amounts of face paint; I chose stripes, Alaric a checkered pattern. Attired in our pep band polos and jackets, draped in beads of red, silver and black, we moved out. The stadium was much nearer to full tonight, and the fans were overwhelmingly VCU supporters; outside of the contingent from the Doghouse, there were maybe twenty Husky fans in attendance. The first half of the game was withering. Through sheer tenacity and smooth execution, Northeastern was never more than three or four points behind, and the first period ended in a tie. Things began to fall apart in the second, and at one point VCU was twenty points ahead. Again our boys rallied and regained some ground, losing with a respectable 65 points to the Rams' 75. We're coming home tomorrow, leaving at seven from the hotel.
Quote of the day:
"I look like a Sith Lord." - Starkey
In high spirits, Ariel, Alaric and I went on a mission to find face paint for the evening game against VCU. We were unsuccessful, but someone else had better luck procuring it. Downtown Richmond is interesting to look at. Wide brick sidewalks are lined with trees and the sounds of many birds are in the air. The air is clean smelling and clear. The mixture of shiny new steel/glass structures and vintage architecture is at once refreshing yet comfortable. At the hotel, I entered full lounge mode: open flannel shirt, cargo shorts, cold soda and AC to 64.
Back to the face paint. VCU is ranked second in the CAA and Northeastern seventh. We knew that the quarterfinal was likely a doomed mission, and we decided to go out in style. Most of the band applied varying amounts of face paint; I chose stripes, Alaric a checkered pattern. Attired in our pep band polos and jackets, draped in beads of red, silver and black, we moved out. The stadium was much nearer to full tonight, and the fans were overwhelmingly VCU supporters; outside of the contingent from the Doghouse, there were maybe twenty Husky fans in attendance. The first half of the game was withering. Through sheer tenacity and smooth execution, Northeastern was never more than three or four points behind, and the first period ended in a tie. Things began to fall apart in the second, and at one point VCU was twenty points ahead. Again our boys rallied and regained some ground, losing with a respectable 65 points to the Rams' 75. We're coming home tomorrow, leaving at seven from the hotel.
Quote of the day:
"I look like a Sith Lord." - Starkey
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