The Unfadable Class of 2000

The day of the reunion, I dropped off all the decorations into the ballroom. Then checked into our hotel room to get ready while I waited for the rest of the girls to get there to help decorate. I was already tired, and the party didn’t even start yet. I was up at 5:30 that morning, because I had a hair gig for my friend’s wedding in Berkeley, but I was too nervous to even realize that I was running on fumes. LOL As soon as all the girls got there, we headed down to the ballroom to start decorating and placing the place cards and name tags in alphabetical order. We blew up balloons to make balloon bouquets for each table, and bigger bouquets for the DJ table. We stacked the donated text books in the middle of each table, and tied it with a silver glittery ribbon; we placed tea candles around the books; we tied the balloons onto the books. Before we knew it, the party was going to start in 20 minutes so we all went upstairs to finish getting ready.

(Our clever color coded place cards and name tags.)

(Our creative name tags.)

(Our text book center pieces.)

(The DJ Set-Up)

(Our Giveaways. Home videos from our Senior year of high school.)

When we got back downstairs there were already a lot of people mingling. Dorothy and Carmen were manning the check-in table passing out place cards, name tags, and DVDs. The DJ was already set up with two LCD screens set up on each side. He was the sh*t!!! He played songs that were played when we were in high school, accompanied by the music video. The photographer was already taking pictures of the guests. Teachers were already catching up with former students. I can honestly say, it felt like we were in a reunion they have in movies or on TV. It was great! Milan was the MC for the night, and might I add, the best MC ever!!! He was cracken jokes and getting people to participate. Lots of people were saying they remembered him being quiet, and here he was 10 years later, a terrific public speaker. I’m not surprised that he’s now one of the leaders of a fraternity in San Jose State. During dinner, we gave a preview of the DVD that was given out as favors. You would hear a lot of laughing, a lot of “eeewwww”, and lots of “oh my god!” Hahaha. We had a slide show of pictures people sent to us from high school.

We even had a mini rally! I’m happy to say that every single person participated. It was the perfect ice breaker. We had to walk around and find a partner to talk to (preferably someone you haven’t spoken to in a while), first topic was, “what did you wear in high school that you would never wear again?” Then you moved on to be a group of three and the topic was, “what job did you have during high school?” Then you moved on to a group of four and the topic was “who was your high school crush?” Hahahaha! We found out many girls loved them some Mr. Baham, and the guys were crazy over Ms. Kulkarni. Finally we ended up in a group of eight and had to sit at a table. At the table we found two packs of Bubble Yum gum, index cards, and toothpicks. The goal was to make a sculpture with the gum, then have the best sculpture of the group be presented to the whole class. All I gotta say about that is, there are so many “creative and artistic” people in the Class of 2000. LOL The final game was pass the lemon using no hands. Honestly, I suck at this game. LOL That’s why in high school I refused to participate in it, because I knew that I wasn’t any good at it. 10-years later, I still suck at it. My boobs held up the lemon longer than my chin and neck put together. LMAO! I was willing to cheat for my team and pick up the lemon with my hand and place it back to my neck, because there was no way I was gonna have my friend Johnny grab it from my boobs. Hahahaha. Even with his wife’s (She’s one of my BFFs.) blessing! Hahahaha! F*ck that! No thank you! LOL After the rally, we opened up the dance floor, while everyone continued to mingle and get drinks at the bar. Everyone had so much fun, that no one wanted to go home. After we closed off the ballroom, everyone shifted to the bar in Houlihan’s down the hall. Everyone stayed there until the bar was closed. Some people still didn’t want to go home, so the party migrated to IHOP across the street. LOL

(Mr. Sal and his unforgettable Burton P.E. jacket.)

(The bar made lots of money that night. LOL)

All in all, this was the most fun I’ve had in a long time. It was a roller coaster ride to get there, but it was all worth it at the end. Jenille and I had nightmares for months. Each night was a different nightmare always with the worst case scenario. We had so many doubts that we could pull it off, and it turned out way better than expected. What did I love most about this reunion? There were no groups. Everyone was spread out. Everyone was mingling with people they didn’t hang out with in high school. People reconciled. It was my ideal reunion. The next day, I found people were adding each other on Facebook. Seeing that made me feel like this reunion served its purpose. So many people were able to reconnect that night. Everyone kept asking us, “What are we going to do our next reunion?” or “When’s the next reunion?” I kept telling myself, “Never again.” But with the bond that Class of 2000 has, how can you say “I quit?” I chose to go to my 10-year reunion, because years ago I taught myself that tomorrow is never promised. People come and go everyday. You never know what tomorrow will bring. So if you have an opportunity to experience a milestone in your life like this, then don’t pass it up. You’ll just be left with the whole “shoulda,” “coulda,” “woulda’s.” Who wants to live like that? Not me.

PHILLIP & SALA BURTON'S CLASS OF 2000's
10-YEAR REUNION

July 10, 2010