August 15, 2009

Jake, son of Martha my daughter, is graduating from college today, from North Texas Univ in Denton, TX.

I woke minutes before the alarm rang at 6 AM. This happens often for me, and I wonder if the alarm clock makes some kind of noise just before it rings. Graduation is at 9:00 in Denton, TX, 45 minutes from here. (People commute from Arlington) Martha and Jeff will leave home at six, arriving about fifteen or twenty minutes later. Jeff will take us out for champagne brunch after the ceremony.

Martha and Jeff picked me up at 7:30 and off we went to Denton. Arriving early we drove thru McDonald's and I had a Mcflurry. We parked. We had to climb up steps and down steps to get to our seats in the coliseum. Graduation ceremonies are not particularly inspiring. As a faculty member I sat through 18 in Carbondale. (The president believed all faculty needed to be there.)
First the graduates marched in. Then the president spoke. Then the provost spoke. Then several deans and misc people spoke. The deans presented the grads to the prez who granted the baccaleureate degree. The grads marched across the platform, their names read one by one. That gave everyone a moment of glory.
The grads rose and thanked the people who had suppoted them by clapping. And the grads marched out again.
We drove into Fort Worth to Taverna. We had sparkling Italian wine. I had French toast. What a feast day this has been.
At noon everybody went home to take a nap.

I slept for two hours. Got up and checked email. Slept for two more hours. The dogs got bored and we went off to the dog park. When the sun began to go down, they started running, with Buddy and the white pointer named Chance. Judy and Ken came. Happily Holly sat downover under the shelter and we were in the corner of the park.

I am so tired. 9 PM. So tired.





BOOK REVIEW
Kenneth Abel, *Bait*
I got halfway thru this book before abandoning it, too noir. Well written, altho I hate flash backs every other paragraph. After a while it began to make sense and things began to come together. I read the last few chapters. The protagonist is a cop in narcotics division (Boston PD). His partner is killed in a drug bust and he starts drinking heavily. DWI he is involved in an accident and kills a mobster's son. Convicted of vehicular homicide, he is sentenced to 18 months in a hospital. When he gets out, he awaits his assasination. And I cant take it anymore.


Hugs, Dr. Liz