(no subject)
So we went to Chattanooga...and now it's over.
...EXCEPT NOT REALLY BECAUSE WE'RE GOING TO NATIONALS!
Although it was a completely nervewracking experience, I had more fun in Chattanooga than I've had in a long time. We got there Thursday afternoon (I survived all our flights!) and checked into the hotel. After checking out the room where we'd be presenting, we all went out to eat with Porter and Jay, our professors. It was quite a walk to the restaurant, but it was totally worth it...Chattanooga is gorgeous! After dinner we did a quick run-through with Porter and Jay and then went to bed early so we'd be rested.
We woke up early Friday morning, got dressed in our suits, and went downstairs to present. We totally kicked butt! I felt absolutely confident that we'd place in the top three after our presentation...the judges said that our campaign was "revolutionary" =) After our presentation, we watched other teams present before lunch, and after seeing them, I was even more sure that we were one of the top teams there.
Then Alabama stepped in and screwed everything up. Their presentation was flawless. The production quality of their ads was unbelievable. However, our campaign idea was strong...we had the better plan. We just had to wait and see whether the judges would judge based on strategy or showmanship. I've never been so nervous before in my life.
After all the presentations were finished, we all went to the hotel bar and Porter bought us a round of drinks to take the edge off. We hung around in there for two hours, and then went in to the ceremony to hear the Top Four announced.
"Best Presenter Award. goes to Alabama."
"Fourth Place goes to Loyola"
"Third Place goes to Alabama"
HOLY CRAP! At this point, I could barely contain myself anymore. I wasn't even concerned with who got number two. When I knew we beat Alabama, I knew we'd be number one. It took everything I had not to jump up right then. I think I almost ripped Hunter's arm off.
"Second Place goes to Memphis."
"First Place goes to L..."
As soon as we heard the "L" in "Louisiana," we erupted. I was jumping up and down screaming like a fool. There were tears everywhere, including from some of the guys. All I could keep saying was "WE DID IT! WE DID IT!" We grabbed the first place trophy, and spent the next fifteen minutes trying to calm down. Porter came around giving us all bear hugs...he was absolutely ecstatic. Jay shreaked like a little girl. It was an experience that I'll never forget.
Once we finally got ourselves together, we all went out to eat again with Porter and Jay. One of the girls on our team brought Jello shots with her, so everyone did those...including Porter and Jay. Talk about something I never thought I'd do with a professor. We ended up waiting like and hour and a half for a table, but it was OK because we had a blast just hanging around the restaurant bar and talking with each other. When we got back to the hotel, we broke into the swimming pool to go swimming, but the security guard came and kicked us out before we'd been there for too long. So...we just went to bed instead. We were physically and emotionally exhausted.
The flights back yesterday went OK. Our flight from Chattanooga to Atlanta was delayed, but thankfully we didn't miss our next flight to Baton Rouge. We were practically running through the terminal to make it on time. Our flight from Atlanta to Baton Rouge encountered some bad weather, and since were were on a small commuter jet, I felt every single bump. Pretty scary.
Anyway, we got home, changed really quick, and all met back up to go to Trent's (another guy in our class) b-day party at the Loft at Perkins Rowe. The food was amazing! Afterward, we all went to Boudreaux's and Thibodeaux's downtown and danced with the live band. It was an absolute blast. I don't think I've ever had so much fun in my life.
...which brings me to my current state of depression. Although we've still got some work to do before Nationals the first week of June (which are in Atlanta, BTW), our team won't be seeing nearly as much of each other anymore. While having free time will be a welcome visitor, I'm going to seriously miss hanging out with everyone all the time. You don't realize how much you enjoy hanging out with people until you won't see them anymore :(
-lindsay