Well after four days kicking it old school at the OAM reunion, I can pretty much safely say that I absolutely picked the right school to go to. It's interesting because all my friends who didn't go to OAM all feel pretty ambivalent about their reunions. But bring up the subject of an OAM reunion and any alumni will get all excited about the idea of hanging out with other OAM alums for a long weekend.
I was trying to think about why it's such a big deal for us on the drive home while listening to some podcasts of This American Life when it hit me - OAM is a lot like summer camp*. It's such a bonding experience among those who attend that anyone who is outside of that world doesn't really appreciate it in the way that those who were there did. That's why I didn't mind so much that the GF couldn't come - sure, it would have been fun to have her along. And no doubt she would have gotten along with everyone smashingly well**. But while I was watching the other spouses/sig-others who were their just tailing around after their Alumnus/a-partner, I kind of felt sorry for them, because they really don't understand the way we do.
In other reunion-related news, My Friend and his New York Show actually brought it to campus for reunion and I was once again on the winning team. This makes me 3-for-3 in terms of entries-to-victories and so now I'm afraid that the next time I'm in NYC and try to play, he's going to put me on a bad team*** to prove that there's no conspiracy theory. Maybe this is a sign that I need to retire now that I've got my third championship and go play minor-league baseball like Michael Jordan...
* Naturally this idea hit me while listening to the TAL episode about summer camp.
** Thereby adding to the list of my friends who like her more than they like me.
*** Either the one populated entirely with deaf-mutes or (perhaps) a team of salt-and-pepper shakers.
I was trying to think about why it's such a big deal for us on the drive home while listening to some podcasts of This American Life when it hit me - OAM is a lot like summer camp*. It's such a bonding experience among those who attend that anyone who is outside of that world doesn't really appreciate it in the way that those who were there did. That's why I didn't mind so much that the GF couldn't come - sure, it would have been fun to have her along. And no doubt she would have gotten along with everyone smashingly well**. But while I was watching the other spouses/sig-others who were their just tailing around after their Alumnus/a-partner, I kind of felt sorry for them, because they really don't understand the way we do.
In other reunion-related news, My Friend and his New York Show actually brought it to campus for reunion and I was once again on the winning team. This makes me 3-for-3 in terms of entries-to-victories and so now I'm afraid that the next time I'm in NYC and try to play, he's going to put me on a bad team*** to prove that there's no conspiracy theory. Maybe this is a sign that I need to retire now that I've got my third championship and go play minor-league baseball like Michael Jordan...
* Naturally this idea hit me while listening to the TAL episode about summer camp.
** Thereby adding to the list of my friends who like her more than they like me.
*** Either the one populated entirely with deaf-mutes or (perhaps) a team of salt-and-pepper shakers.
Comments
I also miss everyone - yourself included. And I have no regrets about forgetting to invite Jiggity. In the end, I did him a huge favor (which he acknowledged on the ride from the airport last night).