I graduated from the College of Maryland in Might 1993 with a BA in Communications. My job prospects were pretty limited, since I didn’t have a automobile and was residing at my Dad’s home within the suburbs. I wanted a job I might stroll or bike to, and the primary one which stated sure was Consolation Suites in Laurel, MD.
I obtained a job working on the entrance desk for $5.50 an hour. 5 years in faculty, and the perfect I might do was $1.25 an hour greater than minimal wage. Nevertheless, the job did have a pleasant perk: an worker low cost at choose accommodations across the nation.
Earlier than I left that job for extra thrilling alternatives ($7.00 an hour as an Assistant Supervisor at Blockbuster Video), I reached out to my lately graduated fraternity brothers, Chris and Joe, a couple of street journey to New Orleans for New 12 months’s Eve.
I seemed into utilizing my worker low cost in New Orleans, and there was a Consolation Inn the place we might get a reduced room for $19 per night time. I booked it for 5 nights (December 28, 1993, to January 2, 1994), and our plan was set.
By Christmas, our group had grown to 6 folks. A few guys from one other frat and somebody introduced their girlfriend. I’d lastly gotten my driver’s license, automobile insurance coverage, and a used 1992 Ford Escort LX with about 12,000 miles on it for $500 down. My “new” automobile was occurring our street journey.
Along with the McJobs I used to be working at these days, I was also waiting for concert tickets and selling them while working for “Ticket Ricky.” I reached out to him, and he was keen to have me take a bunch of Sugar Bowl tickets on the journey to promote on consignment. That was good, as it could fund my journey.
The Highway Journey
On the day we have been leaving, I packed my issues and went to the native AAA workplace to get a TripTik, a flipbook with the map for our 1,100-or-so-mile drive from Annapolis, MD, to New Orleans, LA.
I had just a few hours to burn earlier than driving over to choose the blokes up, so I tucked into the sofa to look at the film Fandango. The film was about 5 faculty buddies from the College of Texas occurring one final street journey earlier than getting into the true world.
The film was set in 1971, when characters our age have been nervous about having to go to Vietnam. Our unsure future wasn’t fairly as perilous, however nonetheless scary.
Our drive right down to New Orleans was a very good time with a rotation of some cassettes and plenty of laughs.
Once we rolled as much as the Consolation Inn on Chef Menteur Freeway in New Orleans, I spotted why I had gotten such an incredible deal. It was in a fairly sketchy space, and the lodge was in tough form. However we didn’t care; we had a spot to remain that may be about $20 every for 5 nights, in order that was superior.
The second automobile arrived shortly after us, and the six of us settled into the lodge room with a “Do Not Disturb” signal on the door for the remainder of our journey, so the lodge wouldn’t understand we had so many individuals jammed in there.
Almost Drunknapped to Mississippi
The bunch of us had Hurricanes and Turbodog beer day and night time, in addition to plenty of Cherry Bombs, which have been maraschino cherries in Everclear. I believe they have been $1 for 5.
As we bar-hopped on New 12 months’s Eve, in that period earlier than cell telephones, all of us finally misplaced one another. I ended up with a bunch from the College of Southern Mississippi, and we turned quick buddies.
From what I recall, it was loads of enjoyable, and as midnight approached, I used to be chatting with a girl with an cute Mississippi accent. We ended up kissing because the clock struck 12, and I used to be smitten.
She requested if I’d prefer to hop of their automobile again to Hattiesburg, MS, and I used to be actually near becoming a member of them. Thankfully, I had a second of readability and realized I had my automobile keys, so if I disappeared throughout state strains, nobody might take my automobile and rescue me from over one-hundred miles away.
My final kiss of 1993 and first of 1994 was not meant to be the rest. Oh nicely, I nonetheless had plenty of Sugar Bowl tickets to promote.
Sugar Bowl Tickets, Dr. Pepper, and Theft
The Sugar Bowl tickets have been transferring properly. It was a giant matchup with the #8 Florida Gators dealing with the #3 West Virginia Mountaineers. I used to be feeling actually good, apart from my hangover, as I bought tickets for extra money than anticipated and was dreaming of a tidy revenue from the ticket gross sales.
There have been nonetheless like twenty tickets left on the afternoon of January 1, 1994, as I bought them just a few blocks from the Superdome close to Tulane College College of Medication.
A few guys pulled as much as a stoplight and requested how a lot I used to be promoting the tickets for, and I walked over to point out them what I had. In a flash, the man within the passenger seat swiped the tickets from my hand, and the driving force floored it.
I chased after these thieves in useless, and in a single final try and cease them, I hurled my bottle of Dr. Pepper in the back of their truck.
All of that cash simply drove away from me. I used to be going to finish up adverse from this journey after I labored out how a lot I’d must pay out of pocket for the stolen tickets. I heard some man on the sidewalk laughing and seemed over.
He stated, “That was a waste of a wonderfully good Dr. Pepper.”
It positive was. Now I used to be out many tons of of {dollars} in tickets, in addition to my drink. These monsters.
By the point the sport got here alongside, we purchased some low-cost tickets to get in and salvaged the night time. Really, it was an superior night time. We obtained to see our first faculty bowl sport with Florida beating down West Virginia 41-7 as we sipped Mint Juleps.
The Lengthy Journey Residence
After the sport, we continued our partying on Bourbon Avenue for one final night time earlier than driving dwelling within the morning.
Over time, folks in our group regularly headed again to the lodge room to get a little bit sleep. I neglect what time I made it again, however I used to be the second-to-last one to get there.
By morning, we have been nonetheless lacking one particular person. We have been attempting to determine what to do as check-out time approached, and we obtained the vehicles packed up. Simply then, the lacking man wandered up, and he was nonetheless drunk out of his thoughts.
He had a good time partying till the final minute, which meant he wasn’t going to be sharing the driving duties anytime quickly.
The journey dwelling in my automobile was not enjoyable, with all of us heading again to work the subsequent day. I believe we could have gotten dwelling after midnight, or at the least it felt prefer it. Again to actuality and my lifetime of underemployment. However issues would get higher a yr later once I moved to New York Metropolis.
Nonetheless, I beloved a line from Kevin Costner’s character, Gardner Barnes, in Fandango… “There’s nothing improper with going nowhere, son. It’s a privilege of youth.”
