Pride is a Difficult Thing

I had a meeting in Danbury, CT today.

Not much came of it and I sort of felt -- I don't know -- befuddled after it was over.

Or down.

My alma mater, Western Connecticut State University, is only about a mile from where the meeting was so I decided to drive over.

I'm proud of the things I've worked hard for. I have an Associates Degree from Westchester Community College to go along with my certification from the Connecticut School of Broadcasting.

There's a longer story in there, perhaps for another time.

I worked hard to achieve my degree, holding a full-time job as well as working in radio at times.

Yet there's this weird lack of pride when I think back on it. My degrees are in a firebox and I've never displayed them or even taken them out.

So today I thought I'd walk into the WestConn bookstore to see if there was a sweatshirt or some item that might give me...something.

But, of course, one look at the prices convinced me that this plan was a no.

So I left.

I'm proud of the achievement. I always will be.

And it's nothing against the school. It gave me exactly what I wanted: a degree.

But I suppose it's that I never really had a "college experience," I guess. To be honest, I've stayed in touch with literally one person from WestConn, and that's only because she's Sean's mother.

There are no stories of frat parties or drunken idiocy. No sports games or spring break trips.

So there's no alumni weekend.

Nor have I ever broadcast a game there.

And I don't even have a damn sweatshirt.

(This all applies to Westchester Community College as well)

Pride is weird.