It’s the day after our annual party and the day that Gaelen returns to Purdue after a week for Spring Break. Time to reflect and record a few things while on the five hours to West Lafayette, Indiana.
I’ve started to think that the quality of a party is judged, not by how much fun the people who attended had, but instead by who did and didn’t show up. My thinking comes from conversations I’ve had after our Annual Spring Party: “weren’t you surprised that so-and-so came” and “it’s odd that so-and-so didn’t make it.” For example, our immediate neighbors have decided not to engage in neighborhood activities and a party is included. That’s interesting to me because the idea of “separateness” isn’t really part of the ethos of our neighborhood. The person in the next office from mine also didn’t attend. I got some confirmed "I will attend" from a variety of people who didn't show up. I know it isn't unusual -- just sets me thinking about the people who have the conversation "should we go or should we stay. . ." the evening of the party. If they answer "stay" then your party is disposable in some respects.
Neither of the alderpersons I invited could make it, but they get a pass because of how busy they are. I was thrilled to see Rich and Lori Hamann after many years – proof positive that the Facebook connection is not just for people in their twenties. Most of the success of the party – Heidi thinks there may have been 90 people there at one time, is built around getting the neighbors to attend. eVite proved to be unsuccessful for most of the people in their 50’s for a variety of reasons – for a combination of technical and social reasons.
The trip to Purdue started around 9:50am this morning – usually a five hour affair, even with minimal stops. Gaelen has the captain’s chair for the drive down so that i can blog a bit and make some notes. It’s March 22nd and it’s a cloudless Spring morning. In Madison there’s no snow on the ground anymore but the lakes are still covered by a thin glaze of ice. There’s open water right at the shore so soon the ice will begin to melt and we can think about throwing the pontoon into the water. The grass is still dormant in both Madison and all the way to the state line giving the landscape a brown. lifeless look. With no leaves or buds on the trees yet, southern Wisconsin has a pretty barren look to it. Purdue isn't that far south, but seems to be in a different world: the grass is green, the trees are in bud and folks are outside in shorts. The only people outside in shorts in Madison are people you wouldn't want to be with anyway.
Gaelen had a good week off but worries that his co-op program opportunity will not come through. It’s been a few weeks since his last interview and there have been no calls or further contact. He’s already thinking about alternate employment for the summer – too bad, because the co-op program is part of what makes Purdue special.
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