If you didn't know already, there are approximately 29 days until college graduation and until I enter the wide world of adulthood. For each of the remaining days leading up to my commencement, I want to dwell on one life lesson I learned as a student at UNC-Chapel Hill. These stories will range from the emotionally poignant to awkardly bizarre. I know there are many of you out there that are leaning towards hearing about the latter. Mona's humiliation makes your day, I'm sure. punks.
Let's get started.
Life Lesson #29: You are not a true Carolina Basketball Fan until you've embarrassed yourself in front of a National Championship Player...and lived to tell about it.
Time: Freshman Year, Fall Semester
Where: In front of the Bell Tower
Why?????: Because I'm an idiot.
What happened, monapoly?: I was walking back to the Union from Freshman English with a new friend, weaving through a crowd of students rushing to their next class. I was gaining momentum and had gotten the crowd-weaving down pat, pushing past the skateboarders, iPod junkies, and valley girls when I suddenly had to pull the breaks.
I almost ran smack dab into the back of Jawad Williams, senior b-ball player who was considered amongst other things the best looking man on campus. (don't believe me? check out the facebook group). For a guy who's head blocked the sun and had skyscrapers for legs, Williams was moving slower than Hyderabad traffic. I couldn't get around the guy and in my defense didn't know who it was at the time. All I knew was that he was in my way.
"Why was this boy taking his dandy time?" I wondered. he was looking down at something. I stretched my neck to see what had the kid so fascinated. Then I saw it. her. whatever. His girlfriend. All I thought was, "Man, I hate it when really tall people go out with short people. That girl doesn't even hit his shoulders."
My friend was staring at me in a way that indicated panic and an activation of her fight-or-flight response. It was then I realized crap, I had said that comment out loud. Really out LOUD! Jawad turned slowly around to glare at me (or rather down at me) and I could have melted from how much heat I felt in my face.
Providence must have been feeling pity for me that day because the crowd finally thinned out and I ran past him to hide behind the hedges surrounding the Bell Tower. My friend explained to me that "OMG that was Jawad Williams. Come on Mona, what do you mean who? The basketball player! I can't believe you did that!" His looming shadow finally passed by us and we made a beeline for the shelter of the Undergrad Library. No Basketball Player would be found there, surely. (Zinnnnng!)
Well, what can I say? That year we won the championship against the best team in the nation: Illinois. I saw Jawad celebrating on TV with the team and thought if I hadn't embarrassed myself so badly that day, I would never have looked him up later and gotten so into college basketball. What a wonderful outcome to a terrible guilt trip resulting from sheer embarrassment.
My conclusion? Keep your thoughts about mismatched couples in your head, lest they turn out to be future millionaires and all you have left are these awkward stories on a free blog.
No comments:
Post a Comment