Delenda Est Carthago: Picture Day gets a Master's Degree!

In June 2001 I received my Master's Degree in History from Portland State University. Okay, that's not exactly true. My degree, which is hanging on my wall, says that I received it in December 2000, and that's strictly true. But they had no graduation ceremony in December 2000, so I had to wait until June to get my fancy "hood" and walk on stage while my name was called. Oh well - it gave my parents and sister a chance to visit, and June in Portland is a lot nicer than December, after all.

This first picture is when I received my "hood" in a small ceremony in the history office. In case you're wondering why I'm using quotation marks, well, the "hood" is just the strip of fabric that you wear over your gown. Mine was green and white because those are, apparently, the colors of history. Who knew?

As my parents were visiting, we went out to fine restaurants. And my mom took pictures! This is my dad, me, and my brother-in-law Mark. My dad looks much younger, interestingly enough, since he shaved his head. That's weird.

This is Krys and my sister. I haven't seen my sister in years. It will be good to see her in June.

Here is the ceremony, which was held in the Rose Garden. I wasn't too jazzed to go, because thousands of people were graduating, but my mother insisted. But here's the thing: my parents left early. MY PARENTS LEFT EARLY!!!!! They didn't actually see me walk up on the stage and get my diploma. And it was my mother who wanted to leave! She was bored, which didn't surprise me, but if I had to stick it out, she should have too. This was in the age before any of us had cell phones, so I had no idea what was going on. We had taken two cars, so I just drove home and found them there. Boy, was I peeved. Thanks, Mom.

We took some pictures on our front lawn. You get a good view of my "hood" in the first one. Krys looks nice in the second one, doesn't she? It makes my presence more bearable.

These last two pictures were taken a few weeks later. It was at a bar that my co-workers and I went to after my last day of work. I had already gotten my teaching job in Tempe, so we knew we were leaving Portland (boo-hoo!), and so we all went out and I didn't have to pay for alcohol. I love these two pictures, because they show me being goofy and (probably) loud, which is how I get when I drink (and often when I don't drink). I'm not a mean drunk at all - I'm boisterous and more talkative (if that's possible) and have far too many theories about life. This was the last time I got really sick while drinking. My friends were buying me shots of Jägermeister, which I love (or loved, back then), and I had one too many. Have you ever been drinking, and you're feeling perfectly fine (drunk, but fine), and you take one more drink, and it suddenly comes rushing up? Of course you have! I had six shots of Jägermeister in a couple of hours (and maybe two beers), and I was feeling great. I was a bit apprehensive about the seventh shot, but someone bought it for me, so I felt obligated. Boy, was that a mistake. My night was pretty much over after that. Whenever I get that drunk (every five years or so), I stop drinking for a very long time. This was the last time I got drunk, because by the time I might have been ready for it again, we had the kids and I just wasn't interested. I haven't had Jägermeister since, and I doubt if I would feel sick when I smell it, but I don't know. I have no interest in drinking that much these days, but this was a fun evening (until the puking). I miss those guys, and I miss Portland. I'm a bit sad that I couldn't find a good job there. Oh well.