Closing a chapter....

Today I make my final drive (1 hour and 15 minutes) to Iowa State for my hooding/graduation. It is bitter sweet. I am happy I will not have to make that drive unless it is to tailgate at an ISU game, or because I have been asked to come to ISU for professional reasons. But, I will also miss seeing Ames on a regular basis. Many of my college friends still live there. Also, I have made some great friends in graduate school along the way, and not going to Ames regularly means that I will only see them when I have time for them. As opposed to, randomly running into them in the hall, popping my head into their office to ask if they want to go to lunch, or working on projects together. I will miss that.

I will also miss being a college student. I won't lie and say I wasn't happy when I took my final exam, or when I finished my dissertation. However, college course work has always been something that I have completed with an enjoyable amount of effort. I am just now coming to the realization that when I cross that stage today, I am essentially ending my chances of being a college student again (with a few exceptions in mind). With that in mind, here are a few things I remember fondly about my college career (PG-13 rated, in no particular order):

• Beer
• Dr. Lempers, & Wickrama
• Meeting my wife 
• Statistics (404 specifically)
• Pita Pita
• Mickey's
• Welch Ave. Station
• Nancy endless supply of Cheeze Its (until she got pregnant, that baby has really altered by diet)
• Man Salads
• Intramurals
• My undergrad friends
• My graduate friends (Stimpy and Katy actually fit in both of these categories)
• Halloween parties
• Living History Farms race with Stacy and Jen
• Tuesday's with Molly
• Getting up on Saturday to drive to seminars
• Kate and Stimpy's couch, floor, and odd cot in their upstairs bedroom
• Nancy and J's futon
• Ireland
• Stimpy, Katie, Nancy, & J's endless hospitality
• Bowser, Poppy, and Bo-kitty
• Cocoa
• Anything related to Hazel

There are so many more things that have faded with the passing of time, but those stick out the most in my memory. And to end on a happy note, a list of a few things I am excited to get to now that I am a "big boy."

• Long-term employment (at a University as a tenure track professor)
• Statistics (the gift that keeps on giving)
• Knowing I will be living in the same house with my wife for the forseeable future
• Living in a community for an extended period of time
• A steep decline in my driving responsibilities 
• Beer
• Karl, Murphy, and Gus
• Making new friends
• Making new memories

That is it everyone! Have a great Holiday season! I have a feeling 2011 is going to be a great year.

P.S. Here is the ISU fight song.