Choices
I made a choice tonight. Not a very significant choice, I believe, but a choice nonetheless.
Every once in a while, I check my alumni email account. I'm not the most active of alumni - I'll pay my dues and give some money to the telemarketing efforts (if only because I applaud the efforts of the undergraduates calling me), but I haven't attended too many Dartmouth alumni functions in the DC area.
There was a gathering at a Nationals game last year, I believe, but I didn't attend. There are apparently meetings on a semi-regular basis, but I've neglected them. In all honesty, the only reason I RSVP'd to this particular event was because I noticed that it was at the Chophouse Brewery and that there was an open bar for an hour.
Yesterday, I read something that made me re-evaluate my plans for tonight. For some reason, the fact that Peter Gammons was making his return to ESPN was so compelling that I was considering giving up some good free beer (and in particular, Oatmeal Stout . . . ).
All today, I weighed my choices at work. I could watch Gammons's triumphant return from an aneurysm, and rejoice that for the last few weeks of the season, baseball will just feel right again. Baseball Tonight on ESPN is nothing without him. And the sport itself feels a little off without his presence, even though his participation has been reduced in recent years in terms of impact. Gammons, more than anyone else, from Joe Morgan to George Will, is the elder statesman of the game.
Gammons. Or Dartmouth alums? I haven't interacted with more than a couple of alumni my entire time here, even though I'm well aware that there are events in the area, and a sizable alumni population. Part of it is laziness. Part of it is because there aren't enough alumni in the area I actually want to interact with.
In the end, I went to the event. Strange as my college experience was (especially towards the end, what with the burnout and all), I still miss the feeling. And 500 or so miles from Hanover, gathering close to what must have been 150 alumni on the second floor of the Chophouse Brewery is a pretty good approximation.
Add in Oatmeal Stout and Amber Ale and it's even better (romanticized, I might add, considering the Natty Light we could expect in a frat basement).
So I'm home now, after partaking in the open bar for an hour, and tallying an Oatmeal Stout and two Amber Ales in the hour's time, and having some good conversation with my fellow alums. After not having lunch, I'm not entirely sure how I got home, but here I am. Watching the Tigers / White Sox tilt on ESPN, listening to a Johnny Cash album, and waiting for Sportscenter, when I will hopefully see Gammons, back at his usual post, at which point all will be right with the world.
Every once in a while, I check my alumni email account. I'm not the most active of alumni - I'll pay my dues and give some money to the telemarketing efforts (if only because I applaud the efforts of the undergraduates calling me), but I haven't attended too many Dartmouth alumni functions in the DC area.
There was a gathering at a Nationals game last year, I believe, but I didn't attend. There are apparently meetings on a semi-regular basis, but I've neglected them. In all honesty, the only reason I RSVP'd to this particular event was because I noticed that it was at the Chophouse Brewery and that there was an open bar for an hour.
Yesterday, I read something that made me re-evaluate my plans for tonight. For some reason, the fact that Peter Gammons was making his return to ESPN was so compelling that I was considering giving up some good free beer (and in particular, Oatmeal Stout . . . ).
All today, I weighed my choices at work. I could watch Gammons's triumphant return from an aneurysm, and rejoice that for the last few weeks of the season, baseball will just feel right again. Baseball Tonight on ESPN is nothing without him. And the sport itself feels a little off without his presence, even though his participation has been reduced in recent years in terms of impact. Gammons, more than anyone else, from Joe Morgan to George Will, is the elder statesman of the game.
Gammons. Or Dartmouth alums? I haven't interacted with more than a couple of alumni my entire time here, even though I'm well aware that there are events in the area, and a sizable alumni population. Part of it is laziness. Part of it is because there aren't enough alumni in the area I actually want to interact with.
In the end, I went to the event. Strange as my college experience was (especially towards the end, what with the burnout and all), I still miss the feeling. And 500 or so miles from Hanover, gathering close to what must have been 150 alumni on the second floor of the Chophouse Brewery is a pretty good approximation.
Add in Oatmeal Stout and Amber Ale and it's even better (romanticized, I might add, considering the Natty Light we could expect in a frat basement).
So I'm home now, after partaking in the open bar for an hour, and tallying an Oatmeal Stout and two Amber Ales in the hour's time, and having some good conversation with my fellow alums. After not having lunch, I'm not entirely sure how I got home, but here I am. Watching the Tigers / White Sox tilt on ESPN, listening to a Johnny Cash album, and waiting for Sportscenter, when I will hopefully see Gammons, back at his usual post, at which point all will be right with the world.
posted by Satchmo | 9:22 PM
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