Hello and welcome to an absolutely gorgeous, sunny Saturday here at the Wannaskan Almanac. Today is October 23rd, and, boy, have we lucked out with the fall weather, or what?
I am exhausted, folks. Aside from driving all over the state this week, the Senior 2.0 and I just did a double double header of college tours, which, if I understand my baseball terms correctly, means that we toured four schools in two days. Plus one today. Even the Senior needs a nap.
Between the Oldest and Senior 2.0, I have visited 25 unique universities and colleges. Touring colleges is kind of like going on a vacation. You pull out the map and make a plan. You star your stops and gather information. You hopefully click on the ubiquitous scheduling calendar and hope against hope you can get a day and time slot that will work in your master plan. Once you have the itinerary established, you start scouting lodging options - and let me tell you, the prices of Airbnbs have gone up so they really aren't that much of a savings than a hotel, especially if you factor in breakfast. (Hot breakfast is a MAJOR accommodation perk when you've been visiting as many colleges as I have.) Before you know it, it's time to hit the road. You're all like, "Aaaahhhhhhhhh. We are finally on your way." You may even feel a breeze ruffle your hair.
Hitting the road - a truly glorious feeling.
Thursday morning, as we stepped onto the first campus of the weekend, I sighed contentedly, enjoying the incredible, unbelievable luck of a brilliant blue sky paired with a perfectly crisp autumn day, the fall colors gracing our beautiful state with not one, but two encores.
"This should be my job," I told the Senior. "I should make a business of schlepping kids around to visit colleges. I love this."
I snagged a coffee while he scored the best swag yet - a hammock - and off we went on our 9 AM tour.
College tours are like first dates: your best guess of how it's going to go is rarely in alignment with the actual experience. If you think it's going to go great, it's awful. If you expect the worst, it's surprisingly not that bad. Even if you're neutral, the date usually lands in the land of "meh" or "wow."
The first school turned out to be surprisingly delightful and a real consideration for application. The second school was decidedly "meh." I postulated that perhaps the second tour of the day, no matter the school, will always get shortchanged. Despite feeling fresh and well rested in the morning, both the Senior and I were considerably fatigued by the afternoon. I even took a nap between sessions.
I was curious to test my theory the next day, wondering if the third and fourth school would elicit the same emotional response, that is to say, "Yay!" in the a.m. and "Yawn" in the p.m.
Not so.
The morning tour - the one I was feeling especially excited about, got a solid "meh" from the Senior. He actually felt guilty about it as if he was breaking the heart of a perfectly nice girl. "I wanted to like it. But, I just wasn't feeling it."
With this bleak result (and another car nap), I assumed the afternoon tour would be a downhill of disappointment.
Not so!
The kid actually perked up and said, "I'm surprised by how much I like it!"
And sometimes a person gets lucky and that date hits the mark and one's optimistic sixth sense is rewarded with a sense of confirmation that, yes, this is "The One."
At the last school we visited on this MEA stretch, while I was fighting my sleepy stupor by fueling up on my umpteenth information session coffee and doughnut, half-snoozing through the campus tour, the Senior leaned over and said, "I'm really lovin' this, Ma. I'm feeling that fire in the belly."
Which just goes to show that love is strange. What you think you'll love, you won't, and what you think you'll hate, you love.
Of course, I, his mother, knew. "I totally called it," I told him as we browsed the bookstore. Of all the schools that we visited, I really had thought this one would be his favorite.
It may have taken a lot of "dates," but I think the Senior and I are both feeling like this trip was a win. On the drive home, we'll probably reflect on the highs and lows of the trip - a "high" when we lunched at the best little sandwich shop in the city; a "low" when I lost my favorite mask. As the miles close between here and home, our minds will gradually shift away from dreamy thoughts about the future to the practical to-do lists and homework that await us at home.
And our beds. We'll be looking forward to sleeping in our own beds. And sleeping in. And maybe taking a nap on Sunday afternoon.
Sort of like the bittersweet end of a good vacation.
On This Day
Historic Highlights (credits)
Happy Birthday to You!🎶
Remembering You
You're lucky to go on these tour and you gladly admit it.
ReplyDeleteBack in my day we had to content ourselves with brochures.