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If you haven’t noticed, take a look at our new blog header. If you don’t know what I’m talking about, scroll down to the post below. Rhian and Nancy have already told us what they think. Thanks ladies! For this TT 13, I thought I’d list memories from college (Grinnell College, Grinnell, IA) and grad school (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, CA). My grad school is hosting a reunion this week, which I won’t be going to. It’s a bummer, but can’t be helped. I didn’t make any of my college reunions either (which sucks too). But, I adored my college and grad years. There’s something special, almost alive, about being on a college campus and breathing the air there. If I had to say what I loved the best, though, it would have to be the friendships I made. I met some terrific people at both schools and hopefully I’ll be having a mini-reunion with my Berkeley pals this summer. Grinnell 1…. The Scream– Friday night, the week before exam at 7pm, everyone would go outside and scream their heads off to release the tension of preparing for the next week’s finals. There are days I wish I could go outside and do that today. The downside of living in an apartment and wanting to maintain good neighbor relations. LOL! 2…. The cold– NY winters didn’t prepare me for Iowa ones. I can remember coming back from break and wondering if my fingers would fall off in just the block distance from the bus to my dorm room. 3…. The landscape– The midwest is flat with occasional rolling pastures. None of the woodsy hillsides and moutains I grew up with. 4…. Four am bakery runs– Pulling all nighters makes you hungry. You could make a run downtown to the bakery and get freshly baked donuts, hot from the oven. Yum. Wonder if you still can… 5…. The diversity– Grinnell might have been in Iowa but it had a student body representing almost all fifty states as well as several foreign countries. We went there to study and then all left to scatter around the globe. Good people. 6…. The computers– I’m dating myself here. Every dorm had computers available for students to use, plus the library and computer center. I’m sure it’s exploded in size today. But I remember having to type papers with .lim rm 10, .lim lm 10 or something like that where you had to define all the commands to format your paper before typing. Apples soon arrived (only a few–remember the ones with the tiny screens?) and were really popular, so I stuck to the .rm etc. and dot matrix printer. U.C. Berkeley 8…. Bancroft Avenue and the eclectic stores and crowds 9…. San Francisco and all there is to do there and see. Gorgeous city. 10….Napa Valley. We would drive up, purchase wine and the makings of a picnic and sit outside drinking and eating under the sun. That’s a memory I’d love to revisit soon. 11….Tahoe– Three hours away, a wonderful weekend getaway. Ski in winter. Water sports in summer. Casinos. Relaxation. 12….The food– just about every ethnic cuisine was ten minutes away: Thai, Japanese, Mexican, Chinese, California cuisine (hey it counts too 13…. U.C. Berkeley– for me the school raises memories of The Graduate, of protests from the sixties, of social and enviornmental causes. The school is what it is because of the faculty and students and I loved every minute of the experience. Notice I didn’t say much about the studying or the classes. Gee, why do you suppose that is? LOL! Sure, I learned a lot in college and grad school. Forgot a lot too. But the memories of people, places and things, just don’t fade. |
). You name it, it could be found if not in Berkeley, then across the bridge in San Francisco.The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!
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Greetings from the other wine county, Livable, Lovable Lodi, the Zinfandel capital of the world. C’mon over . .. we had 54 wineries at last count, plenty of parks, a lake, bed and breakfasts & a very quaint downtown with fine dining choices.
Congratulations on being published!! WOOHOO!!!
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Enjoy reading your post. Happy TT!
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University was such a blast (both times round) but what I miss most about my time as an undergrad were all the trips we took. Weekends were made for road trips!
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Wonderful list! It made me go back to my college days. Those were the times…
Thanks for visiting my TT. Sorry I didn’t answer your questions yet; I haven’t forgotten!
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i went four years ART college – oh yeah, the memories! GRIN!!!!
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LOVE the new header; funny, I’m about to dump the eyes from my avatar and you’re adding them!
As for the TT… wow, you brought back memories of my own undergrad and grad days. Thanks. It’s hard to forget how much fun it was (especially when I drive through the Pitt campus fairly regularly on my way somewhere else), but it’s neat to see that so many experiences are universal.
Except the Scream. What a brilliant idea!
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I think I feel one of those screams coming on now…
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Screaming in your car is always an option
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Man, we got a 24 hour Krispy Kreme across the river.
Now I want hot fresh donuts.
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Now those are some great memories, sounds like you enjoyed yourself (if not at the time, at least in looking back!). Sometimes we just have to scream… even now, I find myself screaming in frustration (usually from something my children did!)
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I loved college, the best years of my life! I still dream about going, last night the whole family moved into the dorm…
My son goes to the university where my husband and I met, I so want to be a student again. I can’t imagine how easy it would be with computers.
Thanks for the trip down memory lane.
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I enjoyed college, too.
It was a hundred-degree turn around from high school, which I loathed! I enjoyed reading your list.
Happy TT, and thanks for visiting my blog!
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Bakery runs sound like fun!
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I’d love the chance to be in college again. The freedom, the ideas, everything…
By the time I got to grad school I was married and working fulltime, so not nearly as much fun.
Thanks for the walk down my own memory lane.
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How did we ever graduate? We were too busy having fun! Happy TT!
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I can barely remember my college years…
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I loved university. We played cards and had a lot of laughs.
Now Grad School I actually had to do some work.
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What a great idea for a TT. We miss you here in the USA, Gabriella! I’ve only ever lived here in Southern California, so I can’t imagine living through real winter!