Picture This (#4) - Cogent's Graduation

Be prepared - this could be (IS) long...

Fleighund's girlfriend SGE dropped he and I off at the airport Thursday around noon where we flew in a fairly small plane (no movies, no TV, no radio, barely one flight attendant) to the International Sunport. Why you ask, when we were going to Middleton? Because it'd cost almost twice as much to fly into the Middleton Airport and there's only 50 miles between the two towns. We rented a Toyota Corolla that drove like a "quadriplegic mule" (thank you for that image Fleig) and sailed into town with much oohing and aahing. (Not so much.) We checked into the very quaint America's Best Value Inn - Lamplighter Inn (if you know what HSIA stands let me in the club):

It was a really nice room and not at all expensive. I give you Fleighund unpacking:

We then proceeded downtown to meet up with the boy for who all events centered this trip. (He was graduating, what did you expect?) As architects will, we noticed the buildings and how this town (unlike a lot of places) has a very distinct vernacular. Here are some buildings that caught my eye (after the first 50,000 however, one does not take so many pictures):

We ate some dinner (at the Ore House) while Cogent was in his last class [seminar] ever, Fleig-y spent a whole lot of money, we walked around downtown, met up with the soon-to-be-graduated and stayed up way too late for old fogeys like ourselves. Friday morning Fleighund and I had some time to ourselves so we decided to visit Las Vegas.

--Funny story, on our way from the airport we passed a lot of signs for streets with the same name as in The Jungle; Jefferson, Martin Luther King Jr., Alameda, etc. Then we started passing signs for cities with the same name as around The Jungle; Valencia, San Jose...then we passed signs for CUBA and MADRID. (The aliens could not have chosen a better state) When we saw the sign for Las Vegas - 61 miles...we knew we had to go--

We were hoping there was going to be a big WELCOME TO LAS VEGAS sign, but this is the best we could do:The main drag of Las Vegas. I had heard the Strip was flashier:Local police in action:Court House:And the bank of Las Vegas: And that was Vegas baby! It looked like a storm was coming in on our way back; we heard thunder and saw lightening but it didn't rain much, a few sprinkles here and there. Awesome cloud formations though:We met up for lunch (at 3pm - so Jungle-y), were introduced to Cogent's family and a got a tour of the campus. It is really a gorgeous place.

Entry sign:Cogent's dorm from across the arroyo (you can't see the Christmas lights in this photo but they will show up later):A pavilion between the road and a parking lot:

Student Center:

Fish Pond & Bell Tower (each senior rings the bell once for every page of their senior paper when they turn it in. 25 was not the longest paper this semester - no wonder the campus is up in the hills...):

Cogent giving us a mini seminar on Euclid:

Cogent's dorm room from the inside:

The view from Cogent's balcony (nice - and there are the Christmas lights):

We surprised Cogent in his dorm by arriving before he got out of the shower. (It is an oddly trusting place - people leave purses, laptops, phones on tables or floors and come back to them hours later...doors are routinely left unlocked, even houses not on the campus...) To avoid the screaming and fainting I will not be posting the image I snapped so you'll have to use your imagination for the rest:

There was a reception at 5pm for family and friends to meet the dean and faculty:

Dean saying thanks for coming:

Totally unrelated to me, Cogent's niece was so adorable I must have taken hundreds of pictures of her:

Jon Robert (OMG I totally have a crush on this guy) and his mom:

A crowd of friends, Fleighund, Jessie, sister-in-law:

Some people whose names I don't remember but are important to Cogent:

He is a really personable guy and so there were lots of friends (particularly of the female variety) to say hello to:

That evening was the Commencement Waltz party. I didn't know youngin's (these kids are mostly 18-22) still danced the waltz. And not just the waltz - I happened upon a couple doing a west coast swing to a rap! (Not an easy thing) Where was Tarzan when I needed him? Oh yeah, back in The Jungle earning the bacon that let me come to this shin-dig...fortunately for me Fleig and Cogent can also dance. This is us Viennese-ing:

Jon was sweet enough to take this photo of us and Cogent's girl Jessie:

Again we stayed up way too late talking. And then came the moment we were all there for, Commencement!

Cogent puts on his tie:

Looking pretty by the pool: The processional leader:

Cogent before:

The Dean welcomes us all and thanks the parents:

The keynote speaker N. Scott Momaday (a surprisingly self depreciating poet):

Cogent from The Jungle, hooded:

Diploma-ed:

As a Bachelor of the Arts:

Cogent, B.A. after: Family at lunch:

Congratulations sugar!:

The afternoon was for family stuff and moving out of the dorm. Fleighund and I escaped the manual labor by going downtown. It was Community Day with tons of activities and performances:

We met up with his family for dinner and then searched for the requisite party. I now remember why I never went to fraternity parties in college...if you aren't drinking or smoking there is little to do. We met some people we will never see again and let Cogent say good-bye.

Sunday it was time to go home. We shopped some more at Jackalope, got to spend some singular time with the graduate and got a nice man to take a picture of the three of us:

Tarzan met us at the airport and was I glad to see him!! Fun as the trip was, as happy as I was for Cogent and as glad as I was to be there, it stinks to go places without Tarzan.

This is is me glad to be back and also really glad I went.

(P.S. It's 6:27pm now)