2017 Summer July 24 Monday

75 degrees this morning  Walk 34:48 minutes

Walk was very comfortable weather wise this morning.  Pace was 6 seconds slower than my goal.

Another Courter Reunion over, the 70th Courter Reunion.  Over the past 20 years of so, the Courter Reunion has become somewhat of a marker for me.  A chance to just talk about events in our lives and, more internally, a chance for me to review my past year.  

Over the years it changed from an afternoon event to a weekend event.  The weekend is much better, since you have a chance to just relax and talk with people without concern about only having a brief amount of time to talk with everyone.  

I also leave with the feeling that now I have a year before the next event to finally lose that last few pounds of weight I have been trying to lose, finish that project so I can brag about it or whatever.  

Of course, like everything, the internet and Facebook etc. have impacted the Reunion as we are all more up to date etc.

I did get a chance to go to Wichita State University.  It was somewhat of a trip down memory lane, although obviously much had changed and I would recognize little snippets here and there of my past.  

Of course, I only spent about 15 months there, but the impact of the experience of getting my Masters Degree, having the military service behind me and the feeling my life was starting (career wise etc.) was larger than the 15 months I spent there. 

I did recognize the theater where I saw “Carnal Knowledge”, it still is showing movies.  None of the places I lived are standing anymore.

The campus itself was an experience because it had changed enough that really didn’t recognize any patterns, but I recognized many of the buildings etc. and I realize some of the buildings may have never made it to my conscious mind while I was attending school there.  

There is a Starbucks, either on campus or extremely close to campus (I am actually sure it is on campus) which I am sure was not there when I was on campus!

I didn’t have any regret about the campus, I was very pleased that it has changed in the many years since I was there, and mainly changed for the positive with what I see as a facility to prepare current college age students for their future. 

I did recognize the McDonalds (obviously much upgraded, probably several times in the past 43 years) where I would occasionally eat.  I was trying to go to school on the GI bill benefits and it was an exercise in learning how to spend as little money as possible!  McDonalds was a way of eating out without spending a lot of money on basically decent food.

I did try working part-time and realized it would be better for me to bear down and finish my degree and start work rather than to worry about having money while I was attending!  Also, it probably helped my studying that I didn’t have a lot of money to run around and had adequate time for studying without a job!

I wish I had kept a journal then.  I would like to have some sort of document that indicated my thoughts and feelings at the time, and not through the lens of the history of the time since I graduated.  

But like everything else, even if I didn’t start back then, I am glad I started when I did! 

I expect the Courter Reunion of 2018 will be here before I know it.  I like it because it gives me a chance to think about the events of the past year, where we have been and where we are going.  

That’s it for now, Monday, July 24, 2017.