Reunion Reflections

- Time tempers the annoying characteristics of your classmates while not completely subduing their endearing ones

- After 20 years, it's obvious that those nerdy, bookish types may have had the right idea in high school

- Conversely, if they had tried to enjoy themselves just a bit more then, they may have had more fond memories of high school

- Not everyone is as jaded and cynical as I am ... and that's a good thing

- You still seem to care what the "popular kids" think of you ... and that's annoying as hell. But it doesn't change the fact that you feel that way.

- People reach their defining moment - that moment where things start to fall into place - at vastly different times

- The preconceptions you had of some people in school tend to greatly underestimate or overestimate what they end up doing. Some of those quiet types end up having the most daring, adventurous lives.

- Skanky, smelly small-town bars may not be the height of sophistication but they make up for it in entertainment value and $1.50 beers

I had a great time despite my low expectations going in. Like most of the things I've been afraid of in my life, I've found the best way of handling them is head-on. If I felt nervous about the reunion, it was obvious to me that I should go. Hopefully I exceeded expectations (or at least changed people's perception). I believe I did that. And suprisingly, everyone exceeded my expectations.

I really get stuck in a rut where the only people that I meet are my clients. I don't really have co-workers any more. The friends that I do have are ones I made at my previous job over 10 years ago. Reconnecting with friends from long ago before any of this is not such a bad thing. And that's all that I'm going to say about that ...

"The Little White Town"

Heathen -- these are for you:



Heathen said, " ... Stanton's nickname is "The Little White Town." Supposedly the nickname refers to the fact that all the houses are painted white, but I think there are some other reasons for this nickname as well (My mom was born in 1941 and remembers that there was a big stink when she was a kid and a Catholic family moved into town and one of their kids started dating a kid from the town)."

Yep, you pretty much have it pegged. They might as well be the "little white bread town".

Reunion Night #1

Ah ... high speed Internet connection. We're now at my brother's place in Red Oak and he works for the local cable provider. So, he gets really cheap high-speed Internet.

Night #1 of the Reunion was an informal get-together at one of the local bars. I figured I should go to it so that I could get out of the way the awkward first meetings where everyone is trying to guess who the other person is. I was terrible at identifying most of the women in my class. Most of the men look pretty similar -- maybe just a little heavier with a little more hair on the chin and a little less on top (not unlike myself).

I probably looked the least like I did in high school, which provided much amusement and surprises. But, my showing up seemed to be well-received.

Most of the spouses (including my own) looked a bit like deer caught in headlights. It's tough to come into a situation where you really don't know anybody. Add on to it the fact that the bar was having karaoke that night and it was loud as hell. So, it wasn't very easy to have conversations. But all of the spouses that we met were very nice. An interesting side note - one of the girls in my class is married to Dr. Jerry Punch, ESPN NASCAR and college football reporter. Early in his career, he was instrumental in saving several racers' lives because of his medical training. He was a genuinely nice guy and didn't have any of the airs that you would fear that someone who is a little famous might have coming to a small town.

I had to suppress a laugh when I was talking with one of my best friends from high school. He's a very avid hunter and certainly leans to the right on the political spectrum. He's not really political, but you know where stands. Anyway, I asked about his sister who was a few years younger than us and that I knew pretty well. She's working for the Department of Natural Resources for the state of Iowa. He commented that she was definitely liberal and that he sometimes clashes with her on environmental issues. He said that she's out there "trying to save the planet". Inside my head, I'm elated at what she's doing. But I didn't want to make this weekend into a forum for my world views.

We had a good time and I was genuinely pleased to see everyone. As I suspected, there didn't seem to be a lot of extra baggage. I'm looking forward to the official Reunion tonight.

High School Reunion

Here goes. We're flying out tomorrow to Iowa for my 20 year high school reunion this weekend (Red Oak). I don't know what to expect. I'm sure I'm going to stick out like a sore thumb ... the hippie long-haired liberal among a bunch of restrained midwesterners. But I could be wrong.

My internet access will be spotty, but I should get a chance to post a few times while I'm gone.