so you want to be a true aggie?

A year ago this month, I was getting ready to leave USU for good.
As anyone who attends USU knows, becoming a True Aggie is somewhat of a token of pride. (If you care about that sort of thing. Which I happen to know that I do.)
Here's how it works: There is an "A" pedestal on campus, and in order to become a true aggie, one must stand atop the "A" under the full moon at midnight, and pucker up for someone else who has already become a true-aggie. So one passes on the ritualistic tradition to another. (And then you get a little card, to make things official. I pretty much did it for the card... just like I only ran my half-marathon for the t-shirt. Let's move on.)

Here's the card! I'll show you what it says later

Well, I was about to leave USU forever. And I wasn't going to leave it empty-handed. I mean come on. I wasn't about to go grow up and eventually tell my kids that I went to Utah State for two years and didn't come out a True Aggie! I lived a little, thank you very much! I had fun in college! It wasn't just spent pulling my hair out at the library! That is what I will tell my children, and they will believe me. It will be a powerful life-lesson for all.

So April rolled around. I had been on several dates, and they were all... just.. no. Nobody I was really dying to lock lips with. If you want to hear some funny stories, ask Mal, I was a total wreck that semester. 
 Feast or famine, ladies and gentlemen. Finally, it was my last month at USU, and it was time to take action.  Some people just show up to true-ag night and kiss some random stranger. I wouldn't put it past myself to do that, but I am also not really ready to jump on the Epstein-Barr-bandwagon (that is just a fancy name for mono).
Luckily, I had a good friend who learned of my predicament and kindly offered his...services (ha, ha). 

(Things got a little complicated when some random guy decided to ask me out that night...
I had been planning true-ag night for a month, you guys. It was serious business. But of course I wanted to go on the date, so... I simply told the guy I needed to end it early.
I believe he was under the impression that I was going to go home and study for an upcoming test afterwards? Not intentional)

Awkward moment #1: Seeing the date-ee that I ditched, at True Aggie night. Woops.

Anyway we got there. I envisioned it to be all...I don't know... classy? Soft moonlight, starry sky, kiss.. great.
Well... whatever. It was definitely not classy.

I knew my anticipation was wrong as soon as I saw the tacky wal-mart twinkle lights. Blegh.
There was no soft moonlight, in fact, there was just the opposite: bright stage-lights. Everywhere!
And there was a huuuuge line for the "A."  So many people. So much tackiness in one place.
So not waiting in that.

Midnight approaches. I am fine.
Suddenly everyone starts counting down! (tacky again!) Suddenly I am not fine.
You guys, I totally froze. I started freaking out. There were people everywhere, but fella and I were just standing in this huge open area under the blaring lights, and I felt like everyone and their dog were staring at us. The rest is kind of a blur, because I honestly had no idea what to do.

Well, as soon as midnight struck of course fella knew what to do and promptly kissed me and that was that. All things returned to normal, I got my card, and we went home. Anticlimactic? Maybe. Worth it? Definitely.

This is what I was envisioning, except perhaps with a popped foot for dramatic effect. Classy, right? Just look at that dress.

This is what I got. Note the hoards of people and the BLINDING lights. No thanks.

I must say that experience was just..memorable. To say the least. And now I have my official card, so it's all good, and I am content.  Also, mom, don't look him up. He's married now. haha

So if you want to be a True Aggie? My two cents? Just do it. Everybody loves kissing. You burn like 6 calories a minute when you are kissing. It's just a win-win for all. Just go into it prepared, though. Realize that it is kind of for the experience, and it is definitely not sophisticated or romantic or any other such adjectives. Mazel Tov to you all. You only live once, so get out there and do something about it :)

Winner!