Welcome back to the column, it’s now day two of Homecoming week! As you can clearly see, PA takes HOCO seriously; not many other schools have the energy and traditions we do. From the bonfire to the dance itself, the school makes this time of year extremely exciting. If you’re new to the school or you’ve never attended, I hope this column encourages you to join us in some fun, and I highly recommend being active during this time!

Today’s spirit day was a little odd, to say the least. It’s a cool concept, but I’m not really sure why we’re dressing up as “salad dressings.” With seniors as Greek dressing, juniors as ranch dressing, sophomores as thousand island dressing, and freshmen as blue cheese dressing, this entire theme was chaotic.   Why can’t we do a “rhyme without reason day?” Or even “anything but a backpack day?” Regardless of this weird theme, I did see a lot of participation, so it looks like maybe it was a decent idea. I’m going to be honest, I didn’t participate today. I’m not sure I have anything “ranch” themed in my closet. If you’re a sophomore or a freshman, you were lucky today; all freshmen had to do was wear blue, and the sophomores got to be cute in tropical clothing. Even the seniors had a cool concept, togas are kind of sick. Maybe just us juniors got done dirty and I’m a little salty. Well, enough of my jealousy, just know, regardless of random spirit days this week never fails to enthuse me. 

While there were no events today, the teachers sure did make an effort to entertain all of us. Without telling any students, the staff devised their own plan to shock and even embarrass all of us. For the teachers, today was 6-7 day, which has to be a crime. You take one of the greatest memes of this generation and put it on the back of our teachers’ shirts. Tragic. They tricked us successfully; I didn’t know anything about this plot of theirs until the second block, when I walked down the hallway and spotted sixes and sevens on all of their shirts. I guess this is just another element to the frenzy that is HOCO week. 

Here’s another reminder about HOCO hall participation. Please show up and show out! With your help, your class can win the competition and gain a reputation that you’re the ones to beat. If you’re artsy or just want to be more involved, there’s no easier or more fun way to do so than attending a Homecoming Hallways meeting. Each hall theme is: freshmen as Snow White, sophomores as Shrek, juniors as Hansel & Gretel, and seniors as Aladdin. 

In general, today was one of the less eventful days of the week. However, there’s so much more lined up to just prove my point that this week is unbeatable; nothing compares to the energy HOCO week gives or the memories it creates. Tune in tomorrow for a breakdown of the third day of the week and the bonfire in the lot!