RIOT GIRLS: WRANGLER PATCHES!

Posted by Lori~

Graduating from high school for both Ethne and I was bittersweet…we were ready to move on, and sad too because we had a FANTASTIC high school experience.  Our last summer spent together pre-college was filled with lots of memories and trust us LOTS OF RIOTING! 



Sumo wrestling at our after-grad party!  SO ANGRY!  SO RIOTING!



Ethne and I were and are planners and we were all set to attend college as freshman, but we both picked very different collegiate paths. 

Our HS football cheer team (I am on the left and Ethne is right next to me)

I was set to attend Dickinson State University in Dickinson, ND.  What you need to know is that DSU is the rodeo capital of ND and FULL of cowboys.  I am typically not a cowboy kind of girl, but this college was sure to be just right for me.  (I did learn how to jitterbug and 2-step during my 2 years at DSU (eventually I did transfer to MSU Moorhead located on the border of Fargo, ND)).

Ethne on the other hand headed to St. Olaf College, a private Lutheran Norwegian college, located in Northfield, Minnesota.  No cowboys at St. Olaf College—mostly just preppy Scandinavians. 

We were set to head to college and we devised a plan.  A mission!  A competition that would include Lots of RIOTING AND FUN!  The challenge was to gather wrangler patches!  There would be a winner (What? We are not sure!)  But any chance to riot was right up our alley.  Now first, you must be thinking, is this really even a legitimate competition?  Well, I must say I thought that my Blue Hawk Rodeo College would give me an advantage. 

And so we set-out on our quest.   Now, a wrangler patch I soon discovered is a sign of honor for a cowboy.  He would wear that patch prominently and it was an indicator that he wasn’t taken (at least this is my interpretation of the entire thing).  So, I would ask and of course the typical response was no.  But, I will say that I did get a few patches from a few nice cowboys.  (On another note…wrangler patches are to be removed with something other than a scissor—you get the picture).  And so I was failing at this mission and of course Ethne was failing at this mission.

That is until we hit a house party in Williston together (our hometown).  This was of course during our first year of college and would meet the requirements.   Score—it was a cowboy party!  And I am ashamed to say (sorry cowboys living in Williston who threw the fabulous party), but we hit their closet and went to town…and left with a nice collection of wrangler patches.

I held onto those patches for several years, and still may have them somewhere in my college collectibles.  Ethne on the other hand…