January 26, 2002

500th night

For all those who do not know what 500th night is, it is a West Point tradition which marks 500 days until graduation (or 490 as the case may be). This is one of the newer ones, it's only been around since 1965. I think I like the way it was originally. Usually things get less institutionalized with time, this event did not. It started off an off post, civilian clothes, winter session event for bored cows (juniors). It has evolved into another class weekend. This is the third class night that I've had to attend, every year has one. For the plebes, Plebe Parent Weekend. For the yuks, Yearling winter weekend. The firsties are special, they have two, ring weekend in the summer and 100th night in the winter. The typical weekend has a mandatory banquet and optional ball Saturday evening. Picture this, approximately 1000 cadets, their Tac teams and their spouses, the big brass, and the swarms of high school aged girls, excited because they can wear their prom dresses for a second time.

Don't get me wrong, I have nothing against high school girls, I was one at one point. It's just one, they are college aged boys. Two, I'm in my loveboat uniform and not even regarded as a girl so I'm going to be harsh. Three, some of these girls just don't know how to dress. Beyond just tacky, there are the girls who have the dress but not the chest to hold it up, the ones who have their white bras tackily showing because their burgundy dress needs a different style or none at all, the princesses wearing their faux jewelry and tiaras, and then those who do not know how to do their makeup or hair.

A female cadet made the observation, "the only cadet girls who have a date to 500th night are engaged." This statement is probably 95% true, where the remaining 5% is accounted for by the girls who went with people from other service academies, their cadet guy friends, other cadet girls, and the almost negligible number of girls who have a civilian date. The final option is so small because, a) the majority of cadet girls who date, date cadet guys (and are engaged, or close to being), b) they don't have a boy friend, period, and c) the do have a boyfriend but it is not desired to have him attend (why would he want to and why would you want to have him see you in the loveboat getup?). I am category B after being category A for a little while.

Lot's of drama surrounding this weekend. After my loss of category A status, I asked a friend if I could hang out with him, but then he hinted at wanting category A status so I had to ditch him. That's a whole other story in itself that I don't feel like going into right now. There's the story of my roommate's attempt at A status, which ended with her getting dissed (old word) because the guy took another civie girl behind her back. This is linked to the story of her friend, who had something similar happen.

The guys were adjoined at the hip, so if one did something it was sure that the other would too. Anyway, roommie's friend is close friends with one and they made out at a party and she realized that she had feelings for him.. She tells him this and I don't know exactly how he reacted, but it was enough to string her along without commitment. So she'd been waiting for him to ask her to 500th night, when in one of their classes together, he announces that he got a radio station to screen dates for him and his friends. A low blow to my roommie's friend because he'd rather go with a complete stranger than ask her. So she tells my roomie to ask the guy she was interested in if he was one of the "friends." The guy says no, but she finds out from other sources he has a civilian date.

In addition to that, my roommate is having a fight with one of her friends because of the way she reacted to a joke. She fits the Jersey stereotype, as she responded "that's F*ing bs, I could have..." it goes on with more colorful language. They were supposed to sit together for the banquet. My roommate went out drinking with some guys in my company the night before and was jokily asked to be his date. Her joke was about that. Anyways, if the chick had apologized I would have felt sorry for her, but she hasn't. I think it's for the better, she doesn't appreciate my roommie's friendship. And there are some other issues with her that I won't get into. As it turned out they ended up in the same hotel in NY city and our table for the banquet was right next to hers, just little bit of friction there.

Enough with that. So my roommate and I step out of our building into South Area. South Area has two barracks that face each other, we live in Lee, the other is Sherman. Some guys and the civie dates were strolling though and all the underclass was hanging out the window hooting and hollering. Of course when they spot us someone yells, "there go two trou!" Trou is a term for cadet girls, coined from our gray uniform trousers.

It really sucks.