I don't think I'm allowed to have alcohol anymore.

Well, as Hunt puts it, "You're allowed to have alcohol - just not beer from a bucket that people have been reaching into all night."

I suppose that's a fair compromise.

I have only recently recovered from my hangover that resulted from Tuesday's night of theatrical awards and debauchery.

Surprisingly, these two events (the awards and the debauchery) were unrelated.

The awards ceremony is the annual gathering we have in our troupe to elect a new Board of Directors and to generally pat ourselves on the back as we lay all of the year's in-jokes (or most of them) down to a quiet summer slumber.

This year, as is the case in many year-end troupe celebrations, the theme called for members to get all dolled up. (Ostensibly, the theme was "Oscars", but in reality that's silly since we're a theatre organization and should be giving out "Tonys" or something...oh, whatever.)

The end result, as is often the case, was a large number of techies wearing their nicer pair of dirty black jeans, and a few people going all out with sequins and spangles.

Hunt did "the Kevin Costner" thing (much as I hate to draw any parallels between the star of Waterworld and my beloved boyfriend) - a blazer, white T-shirt, and jeans.

I chose a burnout blue velved halter top with sequins and rhinestones at the bottom, along with a gauzy knee-length black dancing skirt. I also experimented with "smoky" eye makeup, which proved a bit overly dramatic until it faded naturally.

We were an interesting pair.

The evening itself was nice - I felt a little more out of it than some past celebrations, but then again, I wasn't running for any Board positions nor involved with the previous Board, so that was to be expected.

I had been nominated for Coolest Veteran, and while I didn't win, a very cool person did, and I'm content with that outcome.

I did end up getting what was technically my first award that night - Into the Woods was awarded "Best Performance by an Ensemble Cast", and we all got awards for that. Even though it was with a group of other people, it still made me feel nice. I never got awards at these things before - I'd walk out with all of the responsibility and none of the recognition. But such is life.

Of course, it's nice just to be nominated, right?

Lak and Mayhew also made an appearance, and they seem to be in much better spirits. I'm glad - I'd hate for our parting to be on a sour note.

In general, it was a funny and enjoyable evening, though it ran a bit long, and it gave me a perfect excuse to dress up nicely in my own clothes for a change.

---

After the ceremony, Hunt and Lak and I made for home to make some mixed drinks. There was no troupe after-party, but that worked out rather well, because there was a large party for our grad school program nearby. I changed into sandals, we mixed some screwdrivers, and headed on our merry way.

The party was certainly an experience. We made quite an entrance, Lak and I dressed up and Hunter...walking the casual line.

Crash was just so perplexed at the fact that I was wearing more eyeshadow than normal. :)

We mingled for a bit, and then I joined a game of Bismarck (a drinking game where there's a glass floating in a bucket of beer, and you take turns pouring - whoever sinks has to drink) after a conversation with fellow student Jon-Paul about my exposed shoulders.

I had only just finished my screwdriver (with about 5 shots of vodka in it) when I sank my first glass. After chugging my second, I pulled out of the game, confident that the damage had been done for the night. Indeed, I didn't drink any more, but still managed to get drunker as the night went on thanks to the wonders of the human endocrine system.

The liquor gave way to a madcap evening, with dancing, flirting, firebreathing, holes in the wall, more dancing, more flirting, and the culmination of the evening - the homosexual peep show.

You'd think we were six or something, but we started hearing rumors that Corey, the department's resident homosexual, and Gabe, a heterosexual who had recently broken up with his girlfriend of a year or so, were hooking up in the host Cecile's room.

When Hunter told me this, I didn't believe him - Gabe definitely likes women, and he had been flirting with me all night. On his urging, I opened the door... well, that mental image isn't going ANYWHERE, despite the fact that I remember little about the rest of the night.

Gabe was straddling Corey on the floor, doing some kind of writhing dancing thing. Gabe's back was to me, but Corey was making this happy-dazed face, and...

Well, yeah.

I remember leaving the apartment, and I remember flirting with a few gentlemen. But that's about it. I remember what we talked about (Hunt and I) on the way home, but I don't remember insisting upon sleeping on the bathroom floor - or how I got myself back into my bedroom.

ah, wacky times.

I can tell from the way people have asked me about the evening in the past day or so that I wasn't too bad, but that it was obvious that I was quite smashed (like most everyone else at the party.) I'm told I danced alot, and I had my arms around someone at one point.

Sheesh.

Really, all of the post-party attention has been devoted to Gabe and Corey. Hunt told Gabe what happened today - Gabe didn't remember a thing. No one except Corey knows what else went on behind those (mostly) closed doors, and I think the rest of us, especially Gabe, want to keep it that way.

In any case, it was quite fun, but I don't know as I can handle that kind of fun again at the hot tub party another student is throwing on Saturday.

One step at a time. Got to finish my work first.