Senior Hurdles

Author: Allison Hertel

Wilson Phillips. Probably not a band you've thought about recently (unless you watch too much VH-1). Well, on my trip to Sunday River this past weekend my roommate Jess and I listened to a '90s mix CD, and it had a quality Wilson Phillips song on it ("Hold On" for those fans out there). I hadn't heard Wilson Phillips in a very long time, though I still own their tape. The point of the story is that we listened to that song twice during the car ride (singing loudly — it's amazing how well we remember songs we haven't heard in years) and then on our walk up the hill from Ridgeline on Sunday night we heard that very same song coming from the social houses. Is there a Wilson Phillips revival? I'm not complaining, but someone needs to investigate.

A couple of friends and I went my sophomore year to Sunday River, and this weekend's trip was an attempt to repeat the success —hopefully without the subzero temperatures and extreme wind. The weather cooperated and, again, we had a fun time. It's amazing how much more fun skiing is when you can feel your feet and fingers and you don't have to worry about the pipes freezing in the condo every time you leave. Unfortunately two friends from the first trip couldn't make it. But Jess and I decided to go anyway and met a friend of mine from home there. Coincidentally a few Midd alums (Class of '01) were also going to Sunday River, so we all met up.

Actually, let me go off on a little tangent about Midd alums (I will get back to my point eventually). They are everywhere. The Career Services Office tells you that alumni are all over and willing to help you with networking, the job search, etc., but even more than that they're just everywhere. I ran into them all the time when I was in Washington, D.C., last spring. I saw people running in Middlebury sweatshirts. I ran into recent graduates in the grocery store. I went to a coffeeshop/bar owned by an alum. A woman living in my apartment building was a Middlebury grad. I used to bring her cookies and she would tell me what Middlebury was like when she was a student. I ran into a lot of Middlebury people. and it didn't stop in D.C. A few weeks ago I was skiing at Sugarbush and met a recent alum on the chairlift. So, I wasn't surprised that a group of alums was going to be skiing in Sunday River. They keep popping up all over.

But back to my point…Seeing my friends that graduated last year hammered home the idea that in a few short months I, too, will be an alum. This group of friends seemed a little nostalgic for Middlebury. Unfortunately in the real world your friends don't live on your hall, there aren't Pizza Styx and the closest thing to a McCullough dance party is a club with an expensive cover charge. To get back to my point (and yes I think I have one)…It was encouraging that these alums had stuck together and were already having little mini-reunions (OK, so a lot of them were living in Boston, but one of them came all the way from Oklahoma for the weekend).

That will be one of the toughest parts about graduating — my friends will no longer all live in one place. Right now we don't even have to put shoes on to visit each other. In a few months we won't even be in the same city. Just last night we were talking about how we'll have to pick a reunion weekend far in advance and stick to it.

But enough about graduating. I'm looking forward to the next stage of life, but I'm also looking forward to one more semester of school. I plan on working hard and playing hard (sound familiar?)I apologize for the ramble. After Feb break, I should be better able to put a few coherent sentences together (it's sad when J-Term wears you out; maybe I'm getting old). Until then I leave you with a quote that my good friend Rob put in an e-mail last week (he wanted me to use it in my novel/creative writing thesis, but I'm not sure yet): The early bird may catch the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese!