Entries this day: San_Antonio San_Antonio_Rally_by_Mike_Moren

San Antonio

1997 San Antonio rally review by Rob

The slugless San Antonio Rally, 31 October - 2 November 1997 was a most entirely excellent rally.

Special guests Drake Baer and Gregor Faron were flown in from Metro New York District to attend as normal advisor and youth, as part of a "district exchange" program to encourage communication in YRUU between the districts.

The first night was normal high energy rally bounciness, with PHUUFs for some of the rally virgins, toe tags to identify touch group affiliation, Surge, chocolate, mugbook picture taking and everything else that starts a rally.

After most everyone had arrived, Arlene and I got to lead the rally virgin meeting, which we did just before the main opening circle. Given the number of PHUUFs that had been given, the new youths were a bit nervous about what we planned. (Fact is, nothing was planned; we led the meeting ad lib fashion) We assured them they had nothing to worry about. I started by simply describing the indescribable value of the community, and how it all works just with the Big Four rules. We empowered them to say NO if they were uncomfortable, and to simply have a great time at the rally. I think it went rather well.

After the main opening circle, we just played and did whatever until like 3am I think I went to bed. Maybe 3:30.

The next morning, we had pancakes and cereal for breakfast. Yay!

The morning workshop I attended was Q&A with Drake and Greg.
They asked us to present any problems we see with YRUU programming at a district or local level. We did so and during the workshop, we basically compiled all the problems and broke into groups and solved each of them. Amazing! We felt the workshop was so successful and worthwhile that Drake offered to transcribe our work and email it out. I will put it on our webpage when I receive it.

The afternoon workshop was tarot card reading. There was no organization to the workshop, but people got out all their cards and did readings for one another. I brought my Runes and did about 6 readings for people. Pretty much everyone was quite impressed with the appropriateness of the Rune readings.

During the day I drummed with Austin R on Jon W's drums. We jammed for about 15 minutes outside in the yummy sunshine. We attracted a small crowd, including Jon who clapped at the end; I got warm fuzzies from that.

I also got to play with Stacy's diablo, a spinning yo yo thing that she often brings to rallies.

My personally coolest moment of the weekend occurred in the 20 minutes before the worship service. I lay down to take a nap and my brain was so excitedly awake, while my body was so tired, that my body instantly fell asleep and my brain stayed awake. Cool. I love that state of consciousness.
I tried something I've been wanting to do for a while: to simply move my etheric body out of my physical body. I focused gently on my arm, trying to raise my etheric arm without moving my physical arm. As usual, it wasn't working. Then something tinked my memory about visualizing what I want. (My brain said, "visualize what you want.") Oh yeah- I had forgotten. Thanks, brain!

So I visualized myself standing in the room. Instantly, my body began the tingling, oscillating, spinning feeling that I've associated with out of body experiences!

"Oh this is cool!" and "remain calm" went through my mind.

I set up a quick protection field around me just in case anything wacky might happen otherwise.

I visualized exactly what the room should look like, and I kept feeling the tingling oscillating, but never got much past that. I was too excited to let the process happen. Soon Wende walked in to wake me up for the worship. I told her with as much excitement as my sleepy physical body could muster about my experience. Wow.

The worship was a pagan ritual celebrating the day of the dead, when the veil between the world of the living and the world of the dead is most thin. Nice worship, but it didn't result in emotionally charged sniffles and tears around the room as most youth-designed worships do.

Soon thereafter, I greatly encouraged Tia to begin the YAC meeting; I didn't want to be up all night meeting, and I especially didn't want to deal with the possibility of us not getting the YAC stuff done this weekend.
We met and invited anyone who was interested to join. A bowl of toasted pumpkin seeds was a salty welcome addition to the meeting.
The main thing we determined was when to have elections for YAC members. We planned to elect 2 youth that night, 3 in Houston, and 3 youth and 1 adult in Oklahoma City.

During the YAC meeting, a group played Silent Football! Without me!! Oh, the things I do for YAC....

At around midnight or 1am, the talent show was one of the funniest I've attended ever. Kriscott and Aaron did a guitar duet, which was excellent of course. Jennifer and Dane did a poorly lip-synched Japanese fighting movie, _San Antonio Saki_ with Kris and me doing their voices. That was so hilarious since it was totally ad-libbed.. Kris and I were just making up threats and curses and craziness

"Your mother is a side of beef"
"I have attacked great lizard and killed it with one blow from my psycho fist punch"
"Ouch! You have broken my leg!"

Ya had to be there...

It turned out way funnier than I had expected; certainly the lateness of the hour magnified the funniness factor.

Steve F played "Rocky Raccoon" on guitar, a YRUU favorite.

Shawn (sp), a graduated YRUUer played guitar "Dead Puppies" and a capella "If I ever fall in love again" and something on piano.

Kimmi played something on piano which just grabbed the emotions and anticipations I loved it.

Some of the newer youth heard I could tell The Clown Joke, but more youth were like, "no! no! no!" so I didn't.

Then, much to my surprise, San Antonio Saki Part II was performed. This time, Kris and I did the voices from our comfortable prone positions in the audience, and this time it was funnier. It started out just as,

"I have returned from the dead to seek revenge!"
"I will again put you to death with my evil fist!"

and then Dane started to get crazy and rip off his shirt, so I was all

"Oh yeah, mother fucker? I'm gonna kick your fuckin ass, bitch!"
"Bring it on, tough guy!"

or something like that.

I was deleriously laffin' after that. So nutty funny.

Somewhere during the show, "Improv Tag" was started. At first the scene was two ditzy preppy girls and then it turned to someone having a baby and Chris asked me to do his voice when he froze it. So he goes "freeze!" and walked up there and I do the same voice I used for the San Saki Antonio, "I have come to attack you and your family!" That was pretty funny. and then it went to shit when Bryan and Shawn were looking at a huge pile of shit. Aaron goes, "freeze!" and both Aaron and Scott walked up with their guitars and kicked both Bryan and Shawn offstage and began to play. I loved it!

But even better was Chris A who froze them halfway through the song and kicked one off the stage to continue the game!

It got crazy and then everyone walked off stage, and of course people yelled "freeze" at the empty stage...

After a few more talents (or not) people wondered at someone placing garbage bags on the stage. What could they be planning? Then two six-packs of Surge appeared onstage. From my comfortable prone position, I lept toward the stage. I'll challenge anyone at a Surging contest! Turns out that the contestants were already chosen: Aaron I and Jason F. They started chugging; Jason with grimace on face, and Aaron with one hand on his hip, gently drinking and appeared almost to be taking his time. After a moment, several members of the crowd rushed the stage to greedily partake of the tasty beverage under the guise of helping the competitors. I joined, and gulped one of Aaron's cans. Soon all of Aaron's were empty and he was announced the winner after 1 minute and 36 seconds! Amazing!

Jason later told me that no one helped drink any of his, which I thought was surprising and actually kinda funny.

The next morning after cleanup, we had donuts and talked talked talked until we simply had to leave. We stopped by Taco Cabana for lunch and got home around 2:30pm. I slept until 7am the next day.

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San Antonio Rally by Mike Moren

1997 San Antonio rally review by Mike

Ok, first tera little picked me up at my house in plano at about 4 pm friday.

Then tera and nathan sexton and i drove down to san antonio. it was kinda bad though cuz tera's car doesn't have a clock or a radio, but we survived. Anyway, this is a good part. right before we got to the church, we called from the texaco station and got bryan beck on the phone. we told bryan tera got lost in waco and somehow ended up in this small town called sealy somewhere near houston.
So bryan ran around the church looking for a map and we drove to the church and tapped bryan on the back, said hey bryan what up? bryan almost started crying. it was hilarious....

anyway, friday night we got there really early so there wasn't much going on for a while. but opening circle was really good, they read a summary of what samhain was and then everybody wrote a little samhain resolution and taped it on the wall. then broke into touch groups, that was fun i guess.

rest of night, nothing much happened.
Oh hold on, we watched South Park which was really good, i had never seen it before since i dont get cable.

In the morning, had breakfast, the apple jacks were REAL good stuff. The morning workshop I went to was the discussion with Drake Baer and Greg Faron, the guys from Metro NY District (Princeton UU Church). This was really good, we got to discuss a lot of the problems the Southwest District was having and some solutions. I think it really helped me out...

Lunch was excellent, i loved that turkey. Afternoon tarot workshop was awesome, those cards were really weird, they predicted my life so well i was shocked! then there was the smoking workshop, i didn't go, but most people who did go said it was a lot of propaganda that they had already heard 10 million times before, a waste of time...

Then dinner was awesome, yet again. I got deja vu looking at the dinner table, cause it looked exactly the same as last years. then sat. nite was really busy. The YAC meeting was interesting, my first. the bylaws were passed by YRUU, so the age range is increased to 20 and YAC is going to be 8 youth and 4 adults now. Then there were yac elections and after some confusion Maia Cudhea and Nathan Ryan were elected. Then the talent show.......

that was basically the night. in the morning, clean up and breakfast. Very fun rally.....

Mike Moren

PS This isn't really part of the rally, part of getting there, but on the way down there i had to listen to tera sing her silly song she sang to her kid:

I'm a Unitarian Universalist
Oh Yes I am
I believe in the
inherent worth and dignity
of every woman and man..

Ill sing the tune 4 anybody who wants....

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