home sweet home?

if you didn't know before, know now that i am a graduate of the illustrious howard university. i love my alma mater and am SO glad i went to howard u. i would even go so far as to say that if more people had the experience i and so many others had while at howard, our race could be uplifted a lot quicker.
now that i've gotten that out of the way i can talk about homecoming. in the wee hours of this morning (3:29 am) i received a myspace friend request from one, "U CaN't Fit a rubba BaNd around a MIlliAn!!!" (yes. really.) i was pretty sure i didn't know him but i looked at his page just to be sure. in his headline he expressed the *most* excitement over the arrival of howard homecoming and advised guys 'not to bring sand to the beach'. of course i had to look and see if he had actually gone to howard. . .i think you already know the answer. he didn't. i know that howard's homecoming doesn't get mentioned in rap lyrics (2 songs now if my count is correct!) for the academic reputation of the school. i mean, i partied EVERY night of the week of homecoming my freshman year (and still went to my 8 am classes). i withstood the lines, the crowds, the 'show your purple panties and get in free', and everything else. why? because it was fun! you get to party with new people, there are always celebrity sightings, and you have stories to tell (or not tell!) your kids. . .
but this year i think i'm showing my age--most of my friends are not coming into town for the festivities, i already live in the district so i drive by 'home' on a regular basis, and so when i think of homecoming this year all i can think of is the mayhem that is dc during homecoming. the lines, the parking, the traffic, the jacked up prices just to hang out (honestly, it's a recession, who would pay $100 + to get into the club???), and not to knock the yacht ride--i did it last year--but i am far too old to close the club. it is my bedtime far before the lights turn on--but if you're held hostage on a boat, you have no choice but to be there until the party is over hours later! all of this leaves much to be desired. . .and this sentiment is echoed for lots of people this year.
add to that, people like my new wanna-be friend (wbf), who have no affiliation with the university (except for the fact that they're also historically black) but will travel far and wide to be here for homecoming and it drives home the point that howard homecoming isn't really *my* homecoming. . .it's EVERYone's. i mean, i can't go on the yard to try to catch up with the people who did come into town (btw, did you notice the yard is separated by age--the older people are way in the back away from the stage and the performers we have no clue about) without having some random person taping my behind as i walk, or being grabbed by the guys who are trying to scoop up the sand on the beach (to run with wbf's analogy). ugh. i feel tired just thinking about it.
but i feel bad about not being excited, after all, there is no place like home. right?