Okto-Beer-Fest 2009

So, I survived my first legal Oktoberfest! It was so much fun, not only getting to legally drink on the sidewalk, but i also got to see a lot of friends. The last few years I have had to miss out on Oktoberfest because of my job at Perkins. I was a bar server for the overnight shift, and last year I had to work from Friday night into Saturday afternoon. By the time I was done with work, I was too exhausted to even think about the parade. This year, that was definitely not the case. I put in my 2 weeks notice at Perkins just in time, my last day was 2 days before the parade. I was still training at my new job, so they didn't even bother scheduling me for such a busy weekend.
By some divine miracle, I got Saturday and Sunday off, and got to completely enjoy my Oktoberfest experience. I think that is a must as someone living in LaCrosse. You have to fully partake in the parade and all of downtown's glory at least once. I picked up my mom and her friend, and was at the parade right when it started at 10am. That was also when the drinking began. This was great because we met up with my grandma, grandpa, and extended family. Working and going to school full time doesn't leave much family time, so I was really happy to see all of them. After hanging out there for awhile and scarfing down some brats, me and Jenna headed from the North Side, over the viaduct, and down towards Festival Foods. We were meeting up with all of our really good friends at their spot, and we got to run in some friends we hadn't seen in awhile along the way. It was a blast seeing all of our old friends that came back to town for the parade.
The parade was so much fun, and I'm sure the beer helped. After the parade, we went to a cookout and I had more brats. I don't know if I can ever eat another brat after this weekend. After filling up on food and beer, I took a nap to regroup, and went out at 7pm and started all over again. The bars were insane, and me and all of my friends had such a great time hanging out, and running into people we knew. I finally called it quits at 1:30am (yikes). Luckily I had the nest day off, so I ate a huge breakfast with all of my hungover friends, and slept away most of Sunday.
I hope your Oktoberfest was as awesome as mine, and I hope you enjoyed hearing about all of my legal escapades during the parade!