Last weekend was the chapter’s Spring Banquet. This year, we held it at the Millennium Hotel in St. Louis. The banquet itself was good, but the events before and after made the night especially memorable.

Early on Saturday, Minufo, Jenn, and I drove to St. Louis early so that we could play the role of tourists. The plan was to go up the arch, so we did. It was a bit of a disappointment. Just another high observation deck. Ho-hum. I found the structure to be much more interesting from the ground. Awe-inspiring, really.

After visiting the arch, the three of us ate lunch at Caleco’s. The “Caleco Club” with pasta was excellent. The service was impressive (in a good way). That eatery is definitely going on my “places to eat” list for St. Louis.

After a short stroll around the city, it was time for banquet.

It turns out that our banquet room was next to a prom banquet room. I’m not sure what was worse: the fact that I felt old because all of the prom-goers were so young, or the fact that I wasn’t old enough so as not to be confused for a prom-goer.

Whatever the case, the dinner was good. Backing up a bit, I found out while in the hotel that my car, which I left back in Terre Haute, had been pranked in my absence. Vince, one of my little brothers, was the apparent mastermind behind the operation. Understandably, I was a bit apprehensive during banquet about what condition I would find my car in once I returned.

The car turn out alright. Photos were taken, of course. I found out more of the story later in the evening, and I must say that I was impressed by the amount of planning that transpired. I ended up cleaning the car up at 3:30 a.m., because they had stuffed my bed sheets into the car (gotta fill some space with other than newspaper, ya know).

Back to St. Louis…

After dinner, a group of my Brothers and I went walking around the riverfront area. We stopped by the arch, we saw some of the old parts of town. We talked and soaked in all the sights. After walking around for an hour or so, four of us decided that we wanted to look out from the hotel’s observation deck. Back to the hotel we went, and up in the elevator we flew, until we got to the restaurant on the 28th(?) floor.

The place was classy, and we felt appropriately dressed in our suits. The restaurant had another notable trait: the dining area rotated. Vosmek, Saunders, Wojo and I decided to stay and enjoy dessert there while watching the world go by. The experience reminded me of my favorite memory from Scouting: sitting on Tooth Ridge in New Mexico with a couple of my good friends, watching a thunderstorm far off in the distance roll across the desert. Looking out across the river and at the lights of the city, with the tranquility of the restaurant and the camaraderie of my good friends, rivaled that experience.

The night drew to a close, so Wojo and I headed back to the Haute. I’m glad I wasn’t driving, because I kept drifting in and out of consciousness. I would say something to Wojo, and then, in mid-sentence, I would have to think hard about whether or not I was actually talking and, more importantly, whether or not I really said what I thought I previously said or that I merely dreamt it. Not being certain of the line between reality and my dreams is, in hindsight, somewhat disturbing. At least there wasn’t a repeat of the Winter 2003 banquet.