Editor's note: Purdue forward Laura Meadows, a 6-foot-3 fifth-year senior who transferred from Kentucky in 2000, will share a weekly diary with ESPN.com throughout the season.

Dec. 3, 2001

My team and I were welcomed back into the flatlands of Indiana last night after our five-day jaunt to New Orleans and Baton Rouge.

	Meadows

The games against Tulane and LSU went well. But because I enjoy soliciting the sympathy of strangers, I will instead mention the perilous beginnings of my adventure. Somewhere around 7 a.m. on Wednesday, the nasty flu virus that had plagued our volleyball team and had found a home in the body of our precious Coach Curry, decided to descend its wrath upon our dear fifth-year senior (AKA me).

So while my teammates were serenading each other with a beautiful version of "Lean on Me," Coach Curry and I had the opportunity to hang out in the rear of the plane. Though the kind flight attendants supplied pillows and blankets and compassionately overlooked the fact that my seatback was certainly not in an upright position upon landing, I cannot honestly say that I will look back on this time with fondness. However, the real source of my bitterness stems from the knowledge that my teammates dined on frog legs and alligator that night. I mean, seriously, how often does such an opportunity arise? And who in the world first decided that eating something as unsightly as a frog would be a good idea?

The trip undeniably had its highlights, though. New Orleans has these great restaurants in the French Quarter where you can eat outside on decks. We ate at one on Friday afternoon and we could hear the jazz from the band at the café across the street. They were playing Louis Armstrong and Miles Davis, and it was fabulous.

Some of my teammates were severely frightened by the silver spray-painted people who would lurch at the passersby, while others attacked their shopping with such vigor that they never noticed these bizarre human statues. Beth, ever the bargain-shopper, found a stand in the flea market that specialized in colored sunglasses, so she is now the proud owner of pink, green, red, blue, and orange shades.

However, the purchase of the trip had to be the Colombian parking sign Shereka Wright found for Erika Valek (who is a Colombia native). It accompanied us everywhere we went.

After our game Sunday, we had a minimal amount of time to catch our flight. The Baton Rouge police department sympathized with our situation and granted our bus an escort to the airport. I will not be able to adequately explain the extent to which our egos inflated as the blue lights of the police motorcycles cleared all excess traffic from our path. One of my more realistic teammates ruined the moment for me, though, when she mentioned that if anyone actually knew who occupied the bus they probably would not have moved out of the way. While it was a valid point, I will always cherish the few moments of importance we were granted.

Less than two weeks until the end of the semester -- the race is on. I hope the week goes well for everyone. Bye.

For more on Laura Meadows and the Boilermakers, visit Purdue's official athletic site.