Nathan Graduates!

Baaah, bum-bum ba baaah, baaah . . . Can't you just hear the Pomp and Circumstance? Does it make you think of Donald Duck too?

Nathan graduated last week in a typical long, boring ceremony that every student dreads and every faculty member dreams of (just so they can show off their nifty-colored robes and hoods). The two hours were made bearable by a few special facts: I was sitting with my sister, who got me giggling so I couldn't stop (ow!), and Annalee (only a week old) slept through the whole thing. Of course, seeing my sweet hubby walk across the stage made it all worth it, and I was so proud.

But it all kind of had the Pomegranate Effect. Have you ever eaten a pomegranate? They taste delicious, but by the time you go through all the work of getting to the blasted fruit (and then spitting out the seeds) you aren't able to enjoy it as much as you thought you would, and you think, "Why don't they sell the fruit part ready-to-eat?" Or in this case, why don't they dispense with the self-important windbags and let us all just see and cheer for our friends and family that we came here to see? The smaller ceremony the day before (just for the LPNs) was much more entertaining, because it was all about the graduates, not the high-and-mighty-dull speakers.

After the graduation we all went back to the school cafeteria for a reception, and to enjoy nutritious snacks.

It was a lot of fun, until Annalee woke up. I never realized how hard it is to find a place to nurse or change a diaper! I'm sure I'm going to be learning this lesson everywhere I go. We stayed just long enough for Nathan to open some gifts and for me to wolf down my grapes and cheese, then we booked it for home, exhausted. In the words of Marian, in one of my favorite books, "I have never disliked anything so much as I have disliked this hole in my side." Or in my stomach, as the case may be. Amazing, how something like a little trip to the store leaves me completely worn out!