Nostalgia: FCHS & QU

Two things happened ten years ago: graduating high school and going to college. I know it's sappy and all, but I admit to having an attack of nostalgia.

My ten year HS reunion (FCHS Class of 1999) was held Saturday night. I had to pass due to a previous engagement with the opera. While it would have been fun to be there, I'm hardly kicking myself for missing it. That's not to say that I look back on my years at FCHS negatively. I'll always remember the positive: Band (concerts, marching, stage band, tours), Drama Club, English w/Reavis, Choir...basically anything that spoke to my creative nature. Bottom line? I've just moved on. I've kept in contact with those that I care about and chosen to forget about (or even laugh about) the inevitable assholes a common BandGeek/DramaFreak/ChoirDork must contend with...by law, or something.

I'm actually a little more sappy-sentimental that it's been ten years since I went to college in the fall of that same year. I found out about Quincy University through a phone call from an admissions rep at the school. I learned that QU was this small catholic school in a place I'd never even heard of: Quincy, Illinois, a town which, oddly enough, I first heard of literally the same day I'd visited nearby Hannibal, MO on a field trip. QU had a small music department offering a Music Ed degree plus multiple opportunities to perform...and the town of Quincy even had an OPERA company. After some consideration, I decided to apply to the school and audition for the music program.

Four months, an acceptance letter and an audition later, I was on my way to QU for my first year. On my first day, I moved into Centennial Hall and met my roommate, John--then a history major. (He has since attained his Ph.D in history from the Univ. of Edinburgh!) I'm pretty sure we were put together for a few reasons:

• we were both Band geeks (he played Trombone; I played Bassoon)
• I'd considered a minor in History
• we both possess/ed a screwy sense of humor

John deserves a medal for putting up with so much crap (chiefly my snoring and musical theatre obsession) for 3 out of the 4 years we roomed together at Quincy. (My sophomore year, I was a douche that wanted his own space and thought Padua Penitentiary was a habitable dwelling...WRONG!) We've kept in touch ever since, and he (along with his parents) have been very supportive of my musical pursuits over the past 10 years. I was honored to be the Best Man at his wedding last summer. I owe you and Hilda a visit to Scotland, John.

I also got to know some great folks in the Music Department that year, including fellow music majors Ellie, Lisa, Ben and Canadian Steve, and Jenée...a personality not easily forgotten. I'm always thinking of you guys and the times we spent in Solano Hall...may it rest in peace.

QU was like a family member. You love it, even though at times it drives you nuts. I know that Quincy wasn't a perfect place by any means, but I think that the community atmosphere that it inspires makes me appreciate it to this day. Was I itching to move onto new surroundings after five years at the school? Surely. However, after some time has passed, I miss it.

Call me a sap, but I really do.