The glory that is Purple Cow

While bovines may come in a variety of shapes and colors, purple is usually not one of them.

Unless of course, it is February - then it is time for the Purple Cow to make itself known.

Originally, it was a Golden Cow, still very much a rarity.  It was a chance for two rivals - Hickman and Rock Bridge - to bring it on, lip-sync style.  Who knows how long Golden Cow existed, but for a time, the winners would compete against MU students who were raising funds for RAMS - Rockin' Against Multiple Sclerosis.  In 2009, the Golden Cow was metaphorically killed, and the Purple Cow emerged from the ashes.  Purple Cow aligned itself with Courtwarming week and the king candidates started raising money for the True Life Film Fund.  It became an epic night of entertainment and philanthropy.

This time instead of students competing against each other, they competed against teachers.
Three brave teacher groups gave us some soul (Phil Overeem, his student teacher whose name I have forgotten, Brock Boland, Bill Snead), channeled their inner boy band (Ryan Pingrey, Doug Gordon, Greg Gunn), wondered what was "Zigga-Zig-Ah" (Cat Scholten, Lisa Nieder), http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dv72U_DiCJ8&feature=related mocked the stereotype of a school marm (me), and mimicked the angsty antics of students (MacKenzie Everett-Kennedy, Andrew McCarthy, Cassandra Leuty, Kyle Clower, and Laura Guerdin).  The students didn't know what hit them - "The Wannabes" earned 3rd place and the inaugural trophy went to "Students Vs. Teachers...For Real" (my group). http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5zJuvDh8424&feature=related

Though they talked a lot of smack claiming a rigged voting system, the students still couldn't handle the teachers for year two.  The 2010 trophy went to the musical stylings of Cat Scholten, Lisa Nieder, Doug Gordon, Ryan Pingrey, and Greg Gunn.  (Alas - there is no youtube evidence of this beautiful work of theater.)  Third place went to my group - the Dan Foldberg (not to be confused with Dan Folgelburg.  One was a musical balladeer, and the other one was a result of a random wikipedia search when my group couldn't figure out a name).  The Hickman Vs. Rock Bridge basketball themed number featured Andrew McCarthy, David Aulgur, Katie LeVota, Bill Snead, MacKenzie Everett-Kennedy and myself. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-2h66kEV1vA


The third time was the charm for students - winning a very close battle in 2011.  "The Night of the Living Bovine" was an epically staged, choreographed piece of brilliance.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hwobOTdIbrU Lady Gaga came in second, giving everyone a glimpse of how sturdy Mr. Gordon could be in homemade 6 inch platforms and a hula hoop skirt. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2RpOLMqfy1Q.  "Flirty Dancing", my group, earned third place with a heartwarming story of a nerdy girl finding revenge on the guy who dissed her....Oh yeah, and a pseudo-flashmob with the Cupid Shuffle.  Check out Ashton Honeycutt, Katie LeVota, Sam Kriegel, Marcus James, Cassandra Leuty, Kelley Schwartz, Emma Lopez and me at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jhv68KFGscE

And last night was a night of sweet revenge.  Purple Cow returned to its origins and we enjoyed that sweet trophy again.  Parachute Pants Meet Arena Rock brought together me, Katie LeVota, Emma Lopez, Sam Kriegel, MacKenzie Everett-Kennedy, Cassandra Leuty, Nate Armer, Kristin Fite, Jaque Griffin, Eric Johnson, Andrew McCarthy, Dolores Obregon, and Erica Steinbach. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-fcA70d7Dok.

I am so very proud looking back on these videos.  Not just for the years when my group won, but for the camaraderie this event brings to Hickman.  I am proud of the students who spend hours learning choreography, cutting music, and watching hours of music videos to prepare.  I am proud of my school which has created this awesome tradition.  I am proud of my colleagues who have brought so much laughter and who remember that life is fun.  I am proud of the Columbia community who supports our efforts and help raise money for a wonderful charity.  And I am so very proud of the estimated $4300 raised by Courtwarming candidates this year for the 2012 True Life Film Fund winner Bully.

MacKenzie Everett-Kennedy, Emma Lopez, and I donned a variety of tattoos to achieve our Arena Rock look.  These aren't going away anytime soon.