Graduation and Other Details
My apologies for the lag in updates. I temporarily lost access to my blog for awhile following Blogger's shift to Google accounts. Long story short, my passwords didn't synch up, and only now did I get around to re-setting it. So if you've passed by and were perturbed by the lack of new blogs, fear not. I didn't crash the site, die in a car wreck, or slip into a diabetic coma. I'm alive and well, and hoping to do better at keeping this thing updated during the summer months.
So brace yourself, because you're in for a long stretch from me...
As you've no doubt deduced from the title, I graduated from Furman University almost two weeks ago. My home away from home is my home no longer, and I bid a sad farewell to all the things that made Furman such a special place to me. The buildings. The lake (I escaped getting thrown in for my birthday, thank goodness). The Bell Tower. The ninja ducks. Dining services (I exhausted my meal card during the last week of classes). Term papers. Late-night cram sessions. But most importantly: the people.
My Furman career had a very unusual beginning. I was a commuter day student as a freshman, and I missed out on nearly every ritual that goes with what we Furmanites fondly refer to as "Orientation Week." Hall parties, midnight serenades, fountain hopping (the latter of which is now banned), that sort of thing. Placement tests and advisor meetings were the only things I didn't (and unfortunately couldn't) miss. I felt very much like Furman was a continuation of high school in my first year. Only harder. I'd go to class by day and make the 35-minute drive home in the afternoon. The only reason I had to extend my daily sojourns to campus were the ever-necessary Cultural Life Programs (CLPs) required to graduate. Those are ridiculously easy to get, but we still get cases where students come to advisors, some in tears, because they can't graduate short of one or two CLPs. The required number is supposedly to be reduced in a year or two. I guess that's a victory for those who complained.
Anyway, it wasn't until sophomore year that I officially joined the Furman "Bubble." Man, those first few days were brutal. As much as young up-and-coming college kids look forward to independence (i.e., being on your own, but not really because your parents are still paying for you to live away from home), it's not five minutes in the dorm by yourself before you start to miss home. Not so much fun then, isn't it? That's when life looms large, and you get your first taste of the real world ahead of you. One in which you have to learn how to survive more or less on your own.
Fortunately, I wasn't completely left to the wolves, so to speak. I found a support community in Baptist Collegiate Ministry, and I made most of my lasting friendships there, many of which continued on through junior and senior years. Classes weren't quite as overwhelming once I learned how to handle them, chose my major, and grew comfortable in my environment. I believe it was one cool evening in October 2004, coming back to McGlothlin Hall after BCM, that I could finally call Furman 'home.'
And so, two weeks ago, I bid that home goodbye. Not for good, though - I will be taking graduate study courses at Furman over the summer and fall. But grad school is never quite the same as undergrad life. Most of the fun and joy gets sucked out.
Graduation Day itself was very nice. My parents and I went to the morning worship service at Daniel Chapel (I attended chapel a lot during sophomore and the beginning of junior year before I decided that I needed to stick with FBC). It was a fitting and uplifting service as my former Religion professor, Dr. CroweTipton gave a great sermon, and all of the chaplains laid hands on the seniors, prayed for and blessed us. My parents enjoyed it a lot. After graduation practice (in which I was furnished an extra rain ticket simply for attending, which would come in handy later), we went home for a while to meet Gran and Anna Kate. I got to open many wonderful cards and presents from family and friends, whom I'll never be able to thank in adequate words for their kindness and thoughtfulness.
We then returned to Furman for a reception in the Watkins Room. I hoped to meet some of my old professors, but save for Dr. Menzer, that was a bust. Undeterred, we went out to the lake overlooking the Bell Tower for a little picture time. Check out my Facebook profile (click on the badge) to see the results - as you can tell, the pictures got much silllier the longer it went on. But we didn't care - we were having a ball :) After the semester I had, I think I was entitled to a bit of fun.
About an hour later, we ate a formal dinner in the Dining Hall where we found out that the graduation ceremony would be moved to Timmons Arena due to the threat of rain. Blame Tropical Storm Barry for breaking the 25-year streak of ceremonies out in Paladin Stadium. But everything went fine - I sat on the front row and cheered many old friends as they passed by to get their diplomas. Of course, for my family and Anna, it had to be tediously long watching 630 seniors (not counting the Masters grads) walk up and down the stage, but we survived. We capped the night off with a leisurely snack supper at Pizza Hut. Appropriate in that it was the first place we dined at when I came to live at Furman. All in all, an evening to remember.
There are many more things I could say about graduation. Maybe I'll devote a future blog to delving into more detail, but this entry is already getting huge, and I have other things to touch upon.
I'm not really working this summer, and so I've been able to spend lots of time with Anna. We've gone swimming at the Holly Tree community pool and with Susannah and her boyfriend Kyle, seen Surf's Up at the movies, gone on Lake Greenwood in her Dad's boat, eaten homemade spaghetti, watched her high school Oklahoma! production, seen Pirates 1 & 2 and played Badminton at her Mom's house.
But the most exciting event is just a day away. We're going on a cruise around the Caribbean, with stops at Costa Maya, Belize, Nassau, and Cazumel. I am extremely pumped about that, if you couldn't tell. Excursions will include parasailing, biking, and kayaking, with the option of more that we can sign up for on the ship (like maybe snorkeling). And of course, on the heels of that is Vacation Bible School - no one is happier than me to have Anna helping this year! Our theme is Game Day Central: Where Heroes Are Made. We have begun gathering materials to decorate the chapel already, since we won't be getting back from the cruise until the Sunday before VBS. It'll be a whirlwind two weeks, but we're ridiculously excited about it!
So brace yourself, because you're in for a long stretch from me...
As you've no doubt deduced from the title, I graduated from Furman University almost two weeks ago. My home away from home is my home no longer, and I bid a sad farewell to all the things that made Furman such a special place to me. The buildings. The lake (I escaped getting thrown in for my birthday, thank goodness). The Bell Tower. The ninja ducks. Dining services (I exhausted my meal card during the last week of classes). Term papers. Late-night cram sessions. But most importantly: the people.
My Furman career had a very unusual beginning. I was a commuter day student as a freshman, and I missed out on nearly every ritual that goes with what we Furmanites fondly refer to as "Orientation Week." Hall parties, midnight serenades, fountain hopping (the latter of which is now banned), that sort of thing. Placement tests and advisor meetings were the only things I didn't (and unfortunately couldn't) miss. I felt very much like Furman was a continuation of high school in my first year. Only harder. I'd go to class by day and make the 35-minute drive home in the afternoon. The only reason I had to extend my daily sojourns to campus were the ever-necessary Cultural Life Programs (CLPs) required to graduate. Those are ridiculously easy to get, but we still get cases where students come to advisors, some in tears, because they can't graduate short of one or two CLPs. The required number is supposedly to be reduced in a year or two. I guess that's a victory for those who complained.
Anyway, it wasn't until sophomore year that I officially joined the Furman "Bubble." Man, those first few days were brutal. As much as young up-and-coming college kids look forward to independence (i.e., being on your own, but not really because your parents are still paying for you to live away from home), it's not five minutes in the dorm by yourself before you start to miss home. Not so much fun then, isn't it? That's when life looms large, and you get your first taste of the real world ahead of you. One in which you have to learn how to survive more or less on your own.
Fortunately, I wasn't completely left to the wolves, so to speak. I found a support community in Baptist Collegiate Ministry, and I made most of my lasting friendships there, many of which continued on through junior and senior years. Classes weren't quite as overwhelming once I learned how to handle them, chose my major, and grew comfortable in my environment. I believe it was one cool evening in October 2004, coming back to McGlothlin Hall after BCM, that I could finally call Furman 'home.'
And so, two weeks ago, I bid that home goodbye. Not for good, though - I will be taking graduate study courses at Furman over the summer and fall. But grad school is never quite the same as undergrad life. Most of the fun and joy gets sucked out.
Graduation Day itself was very nice. My parents and I went to the morning worship service at Daniel Chapel (I attended chapel a lot during sophomore and the beginning of junior year before I decided that I needed to stick with FBC). It was a fitting and uplifting service as my former Religion professor, Dr. CroweTipton gave a great sermon, and all of the chaplains laid hands on the seniors, prayed for and blessed us. My parents enjoyed it a lot. After graduation practice (in which I was furnished an extra rain ticket simply for attending, which would come in handy later), we went home for a while to meet Gran and Anna Kate. I got to open many wonderful cards and presents from family and friends, whom I'll never be able to thank in adequate words for their kindness and thoughtfulness.
We then returned to Furman for a reception in the Watkins Room. I hoped to meet some of my old professors, but save for Dr. Menzer, that was a bust. Undeterred, we went out to the lake overlooking the Bell Tower for a little picture time. Check out my Facebook profile (click on the badge) to see the results - as you can tell, the pictures got much silllier the longer it went on. But we didn't care - we were having a ball :) After the semester I had, I think I was entitled to a bit of fun.
About an hour later, we ate a formal dinner in the Dining Hall where we found out that the graduation ceremony would be moved to Timmons Arena due to the threat of rain. Blame Tropical Storm Barry for breaking the 25-year streak of ceremonies out in Paladin Stadium. But everything went fine - I sat on the front row and cheered many old friends as they passed by to get their diplomas. Of course, for my family and Anna, it had to be tediously long watching 630 seniors (not counting the Masters grads) walk up and down the stage, but we survived. We capped the night off with a leisurely snack supper at Pizza Hut. Appropriate in that it was the first place we dined at when I came to live at Furman. All in all, an evening to remember.
There are many more things I could say about graduation. Maybe I'll devote a future blog to delving into more detail, but this entry is already getting huge, and I have other things to touch upon.
I'm not really working this summer, and so I've been able to spend lots of time with Anna. We've gone swimming at the Holly Tree community pool and with Susannah and her boyfriend Kyle, seen Surf's Up at the movies, gone on Lake Greenwood in her Dad's boat, eaten homemade spaghetti, watched her high school Oklahoma! production, seen Pirates 1 & 2 and played Badminton at her Mom's house.
But the most exciting event is just a day away. We're going on a cruise around the Caribbean, with stops at Costa Maya, Belize, Nassau, and Cazumel. I am extremely pumped about that, if you couldn't tell. Excursions will include parasailing, biking, and kayaking, with the option of more that we can sign up for on the ship (like maybe snorkeling). And of course, on the heels of that is Vacation Bible School - no one is happier than me to have Anna helping this year! Our theme is Game Day Central: Where Heroes Are Made. We have begun gathering materials to decorate the chapel already, since we won't be getting back from the cruise until the Sunday before VBS. It'll be a whirlwind two weeks, but we're ridiculously excited about it!
posted by david @ 4:09 PM
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