The other day, Micah and I set out to the park for a picnic and playtime with a couple of our best buddies. We had a wonderful time, but on the way home, I kept having flashbacks to another picnic with another bestie. And I thought I'd share my memories with you. Before you continue reading, you should know that this story has absolutely nothing to do with anything. It is completely random. Let's start with an introduction. This is me with my fabulous friend Haley, circa 2004. This picture is from our senior year at Mississippi State, and no, I didn't regularly wear pigtails. We were at the BSU Barn Party, a phenomenon which merits its own post.

We were roommates for two years at State, and we shared lots of common loves, including a love for pretty paper and entertaining. You can shop Haley's stationery line in her etsy shop, and you can enlist her party planning expertise via localMINT events if you live in or around Nashville. She's a great friend to have. I bet you wish she was your friend, too.

Haley and I were communication majors at State together, which meant that we took a little class called Small Group Communication from the one and only Hank Flick. Hank is a, how shall I say it, different kind of professor. His personality, and assignments, are notorious at Mississippi State. Particularly an assignment for his Small Group students.

Every semester, Hank required his students to intentionally violate the norms of society and then write a paper describing what you did that was so out of the ordinary and how people reacted. When it came time for Haley's norm violation project, she decided on a picnic. In the middle of the Drill Field (basically the middle of campus). With stuffed animals.

Haley was not interested in performing the norm violation alone, so she somehow enlisted coerced me to join her and her stuffed animals for a tea party in the middle of campus.

It was hot.

We were embarrassed.

And NO ONE paid us any attention.

The norm violation flopped because so many people were used to communication majors doing crazy things for Hank's class. Essentially, we violated the norms so much that it became normal to see communication majors doing weird things.

And that's the end of the story. Haley has pictures. She refuses to share them with me.

Sometime I'll tell you about MY norm violation project. It involved a bridesmaid's dress, tennis shoes, and a basketball court.

Until next time, grace and peace.