The Graduate

Dianne and I went out last night, again! Two weeks in a row where we actually went out and socialized. I had better watch out I may become just way too social. Last night there was a graduate party following work. Actually the invite came from the Japanese festival I went to last Saturday. Dianne was wondering round the festival and found a fellow Louisianan; Dianne has a most unusual talent of going out into a crowd and finding people from her home town. When Dianne finely returned with her new friend in tow and started to introduce Carmen to me I realized the person was Carmen, Marsha’s sister! Marsha works in the same office I do. I feel we have become good friends in the time Marsha has been staff. Marsha had told me that her sister was graduating this year with her masters degree. I thought that was cool but did not think much more of the graduation, ensuing celebrations and the happy times this family would be experiencing. Not Dianne though, she came back with a personalized invitation to this event, the Carmen graduation party. So Dianne drove in and picked me up after work and we made the drive over to the Cathedral of Madeline, this massive Catholic gothic cathedral. We were some of the first guests to show up. Dianne had made a Queen cake and put the cake in the kitchen with a growing pile of food beginning to grow with each new guest to arrive. In not time there were hams, cold cuts, cut vegetables, potato salad and bowels of “dirty rice”. Boxes of wine, coolers of beer and some kind of alcoholic red slush which might have been good had the day not seemed so cold, were waiting for visitors. A priest finally showed up and blessed the mess and the party began.

Dianne is a natural in groups, she is vivacious, she is great at striking up conversations, self introductions and finding a common thread between her and the person she has just met. Not me I tend to hunker down and sit at my table and blankly stair straight ahead and pray that no strangers comes up to my table and sit down. Dianne is helping Marsha and Carmen and I am guarding our table and trying to take pictures. My camera was having issues but I finally figured out it needed new batteries and I changed them. I still did not get any good images.

We stayed about two hours and figured we had done our duty: brought a cake, smiled and hugged and wished the graduate the best. Carmen was the graduate and the guest of honor and Marsha, poor Marsha looked like she was just about worked out. I know she had already put in a full day at the office and who knows what she did to prepare for this event and she or they still had to finish the party and clean up. Perhaps we should have stayed and helped but I was tired and I wanted to go home…this socialization is wearing me out.