Weekend Update: A Lament and a Victory

This past weekend, Patrick and I returned to South Bend to attend the Notre Dame vs. Utah game.  I hadn't been back since our wedding in the summer of '09, and I must say, despite the fact that I still look younger than the average student there, walking around campus made me feel OLD (and referring to it as "the summer of '09" probably doesn't help my case much).

You've seen that image of grandparents sitting by the fire, speaking fervently to their grandchildren, "When I was your age, we had to wake up at dawn every morning and walk 10 miles in the blustery snow just to get to school..." while the grandchildren feign interest by nodding their heads, secretly wondering when this spiel will be over as they've heard it a hundred times already and meanwhile their nintendo games and computers are calling to them...?  I feel I am now to the point where I find myself relating more to the grandparent than the grandchild.  Things just aren't what they used to be.

There have been a lot of changes on campus since I graduated in 2006, the most notable addition being the Eddy Street Commons area, a new development that offers luxury apartments, hotels, a new bookstore (with a Caribou Coffee), and several eating outlets that include Five Guys Burgers & Fries, Chipotle, Jamba Juice, and even an Irish pub.  I used to take Eddy Street everyday senior year as the townhouse where I lived was just down the street, but these days it is hardly recognizable.

In addition, Notre Dame has also added a new science building (Jordan Hall of Science), a couple of dormitories (Ryan and Duncan), a new athletics complex (aka "The Gug"), and not to mention some noticeable renovations to the JACC and LaFortune.   They are currently in the middle of constructing a new 5,000 seat hockey arena.

And another discovery: the Language Resource Center in O'Shaughnessy where Patrick and I met has now been converted to a classroom.

While I welcome these improvements, part of me is reluctant to see the campus I once knew inside and out morph into something new and unfamiliar.  Part of me wishes to preserve it so it stays the same as it was in 2006, but that's about as realistic as willing ice not to melt on a hot summer day.  Such is the ephemeral nature of this world.  I must admit, however, that the new changes are quite stunning and I am a tad bit jealous of the current students who get to take advantage of them.

That said, we did have a lot of fun over the weekend.  All of Patrick's family came into town for the game, so it was great spending time with everyone.

Considering our recent upsets against Navy and Tulsa, we weren't too optimistic about our chances against Utah, so we were pleasantly surprised at the 28-3 Notre Dame victory.

The one setback was the rain.  It poured during the first half of the game (probably to our team's advantage).  Luckily Patrick and I donned some fancy ND ponchos (aka glorified garbage bags) that we bought ahead of time, which allowed us to stay relatively dry and also made us look super cool.

And at the end of the game, we stayed a bit and watched as the students rushed the field.

Ah, to be young again.

oo,