The Most Wonderful Time of the Year

Friday night was our grad student Halloween party and pretty much the night I have anticipated all year. The party itself was a tad lame (they were actually CHARGING for beers---after all the $$$ we pay to go here!!!), but the people and the creativity with costumes made it all worth the while. Here are some pictures of the party and of the preceding pumpkin carving for your viewing pleasure...



Seung, Seung's friend whose name I cannot recall, Lisa, Leia, and Carrie carve scary pumpkins. I think I mentioned earlier that Seung's friend thought the intent was to WEAR said pumpkins on one's head for Halloween...


Am I a good Go-Go Yubari? I think I looked pretty damned scary. Sadly, only about 10 people at the party actually got it. I love the fact that Seung went as "A Mexican Guy." He was particularly excited about his faux mustache. Lisa went as a...um...actually I'm not sure. I forced Casey to wear those cat ears that I fashioned out of construction paper at the last minute. Vishnu went as a very convincing "stressed out Nepali grad student."



Lara went as an elegant (and busty) Audrey Hepburn from Breakfast at Tiffany's and Melissa was a gypsy. I was sad they couldn't find last-minute costumes to join me in the Kill Bill costume trio. Meghan (the one who looks thuggish) was Lil' Red...Riding in Da Hood. She even had a basket that was "packin' heat"---that's slang for "carrying a gun," Mom.
My Bengali Buddies Arnab and Koushuk. No costumes? I asked them why they couldn't "represent" for their Bangalee brethren and come up with something. Arnab sure can break it down on the dancefloor though! More evidence that Bengalis are pretty much the coolest people in the world...
My fellow T.A. Trevor (dressed as Braveheart?) and his short n' sweet wife Mariella from Peru. I literally didn't recognize him when he walked in.

Some of the second year women won the prize for most original costume. I have to hand it to them, I never would have dreamt up "suggestive street signs" in a million years. Kudos, kudos.
The guy in the pink sweat suit is Matt. He went as "My Little Pony," and his outfit was so hideously bad and unintnentionally scary (he somehow found pink face paint)that he won the prize for best costume. I still cannot discuss the Pony situation without disintegrating into laughter. Before the party, he begged Meghan to go in on the costume with him as "his comb."