So what in the world is the story here?  Well..here is a legend of unprecedented party-house leadership that led to hazy memories for thousands. This is the story of my college-life glory year at an off campus house at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis MN.

While my best friend Chad and I were  living in the college dormitory, we couldn’t get into any of the “fraternity” parties to save our life.  Let’s be honest, why would the frat-boys want to invite a bunch of guys to their parties.  So, we’d walk down University avenue, trying to get into the hopping parties but wouldn’t be allowed in because we weren’t “brothers”.  So, we made our own fraternity.  The next year, we rented the biggest, baddest house we could find closest to frat-row and named it “D.O.A”, which of course, was a sarcastic take on the medical term D.O.A. for “dead on arrival”.  We even found an old boat decking at a flea-market, painted our name on it and distressed it to taste.  It hung over the fireplace.  (notice the photo of a visit from my parents.  Don’t I look so innocent in my 90’s grunge flannel and pony tail).  We wanted to have our own little fraternity where everyone was welcome that wanted to have a good time.  We actually considered prohibiting fraternity members, but decided against that, because it was against our house motto of having a good time…..all the time. (click story title to keep reading)

We took over two levels, building custom bars, attainable to everyone from every direction.  Chad and I sat down the summer before and methodically laid out a plan to throw the best party and college student had ever seen.  And we did…..many times over!  We first identified what we hated about college keg parties.  We didn’t like poor circulation, bad music, lack of access to the kegs, poor lighting, lame atmosphere, lack of laboratories and lame crowds.  We by far, overcame every one of these issues with flying colors.  In fact, Chad continues to do this for a living in a similar form, very successfully (email me for details).  We took extreme safety precautious, that were unheard of at college parties.  For example, we hired “rent-a-cops” to keep order, we had egress fire-ladders at each window and we set up fire extinguishers in each room.  On top of that, we install lit “exit” signs above many doorways. 

We were the regular stop for 1994 college party-seekers at the University of Minnesota. At first we had to promote ourselves, slipping paper fliers under door rooms and telemarketing key people every week.  Every Friday for 7 months we filled our house with so many party-seekers, that you could barely move through a room.  We were king.  And good at it.  In fact, we gave free beer to the first guys that arrived to off-load the beer truck and carry the 165 pound kegs to their locations.  At one point the liquor store called and put us in contact with the regional Budweiser distributor so that we could be furnished with neon signs, custom cups, promotional materials, including banners, posters and party favors.  We covered everything.  We had it down to a self-working science. 

I will never again be involved in anything quite like that.  It was the time of my life and can not be replicated again.  But, we set out to accomplish something very specific and the results blew me away.  Now, if I can only learn to apply that drive elsewhere.