The Last Word, or Mines Quotes Part 4 of 4

This is another "4 of 4" post, which just means that I don't really know what to say. I think I've said it in my posts from previous years (Junior Year, Sophomore Year, and Freshman Year): yes, Mines kids (and profs) say funny things, especially when it is late and we are delirious. Yes, the GP lyfe and Mines life are interesting lives to lead and would make for an interesting sitcom. But I think what I said freshman year really captures when I'm trying to say: That I think you all are awesome and that I know I couldn't have made it out of Mines without my Mines Kids.

Senior year was special, I have to admit. First, people everywhere started asking us questions like:
"How's Senior Design going?"
"Are you excited to graduate?"
"Do you have a job?"
"Do you have every aspect of the next 50 years of your life figured out?"

So thank you, fellow seniors, for sharing in the inside joke that the only logical answer to these and other questions are to look at another senior and start laughing. Or crying. Mostly crying.

Senior year was also special because we knew we didn't have to figure out the little stuff like we did the first few years. By this time, we knew school was hard, but we knew we could make it. Probably. We knew who our classmates were and what our professors might be like. I accepted that I would procrastinate everything and didn't lie to myself otherwise, yet still lamented against myself when everything was due. We realized that there were a lot more important things than homework. And we had our friends and knew who we wanted to spend our last semesters with. Okay, maybe that's not necessarily little stuff. But anyway.

Here are quotes from some of the cast of characters from my senior year, and as you will see, their quotes range on the spectrum of profound wisdom to moments of nerdy laughter. As a sidenote, each set of quote posts since sophomore year has contained at least one Pokemon reference. Never change, Mines.

***
"I'm a senior. I shouldn't have to go to class." ~ Jake

"I have to go do homework. Well, is Senior Design really considered homework or torture?" ~ Antonia

"It's so boring. I'd rather fail the class than listen to lecture." ~ Eric, on Thermo 209

"It looks like 4 questions, but it's really 40 questions." ~ Rachel, on Jeff homework assignments

"It's a lot cooler to know the Creator of the stuff rather than just the stuff." ~ Michael

"I think free food is a symbol of salvation. Like, we didn't do anything to deserve it. But it's there for the taking." ~ Craig

"The best free food is stolen." ~ Colton

"I wish the library allowed food. And by allowed food, I mean sold food. I don't understand why they don't allow food, because no one reads the books." ~ Rima

"I thought that was a box of donuts but I was so confused because the box said Reservoir Fluid Properties." ~ Amanda, on Ganaa's binder

"Let's put a unit impulse in this jelly bean system." ~ Sean

"I must sleep. It is my time. Farewell. ...That sounds like a suicide note, but you should know that I just ordered an ice cream maker, so I have a lot to live for." ~ Jayden

Colton, looking for a laptop: "I need Windows."
Me: "Story of our lives." (because Green Center has no windows)

"I want to say spiked my interest, but spike makes me think of a Green's function." ~ Elizabeth, on writing to professors for grad school

Krista: "So whether you're getting married, or going to grad school..."
Me: "Yeah, there were two choices. No one wanted to marry me, so I thought, 'Better apply to grad school.'"

"I saw you meeting new people, and I thought, 'I'm glad that's not me meeting new people.'" ~ Andy

"I have a bunch of friends. I see them every day in class." ~ Jake

"Computers aren't your friends. You have to beat the computer into submission." ~ Colton

"He's an abuser. He treats his computers like he treats his coffee." ~ CompScis in Higher Grounds, on one of their professors.

Sean: "Austin, what is geophysics?"
Austin: "Geophysics is when you bang your head against the ground [demonstrates]... and send an impulse through it...and then listen for the echo."

"I miss studying for tests." ~ Rosie, on the torture of Inversion homework

"Huygens..Fermat...meh, I don't know, I'm more of a Maxwell guy." ~ Joseph, on Seismic vs Potential Fields

"We're the three slacketeers!" ~ Rachel

Me: "Why are we so smart?"
"Because we're geophysicists."
Shane: "I think we're just not dumb. There's a difference."

"Guys we're the most attractive department at this school." ~Nik

While studying for Stratigraphy:
Emily: "What does 'coarse with some fine sediments' mean?"
Shane: "Like when a girl tells you she's fine.."
Chloe: "...She's not fine."

Craig: "The arabian peninsula is its own plate..."
Jace: "I was never good with geometry."

"Holy geology, Batman!" ~ Roy

In regards to becoming co-department head of Geophysics:
Tyrel: "When you become an admin or department head, everyone hates you. Even your professors."
Me: "Not Terry!"
Colton: "Terry still teaches. That might be why."
Me: "We can teach. You'll teach Java and I'll teach EPICS."
Colton: "Okay, perfect. You'll teach them MATLAB and I'll teach them (real) programming."

"I've slept so much lately...all that's left for me to become a Snorlax is to grow fur and start blocking people's paths." ~ Antonia, after school was over

Professor quotes:
"I was very forgiving in my grading...it was sunny and I was happy." ~ Andreas

"Keep this handy. It's not in the book, but I thought it was kind of cute." ~ Andreas

"Jeff is the fountain of all knowledge, as we know." ~ Ed

"I will continue to call is aluminium, I'm sorry. It's such a corruption of our language." Ed, on aluminum and English

"This is a Science paper. Which doesn't necessarily mean it's correct. But it's sexy." ~ Ed

"If you guys hate trigonometry, I have bad news for you. I kind of like trigonometry." ~ Paul

"When you start forgetting things, forget this last." ~ Paul, on something I already forgot

"I'll probably use them inconsistently myself." ~ Warren, on geology terms

"Back to my favorite villains, the modelers..." ~ Warren

"There is.. stuff in the solar system." ~ Jeff

"The rich get richer, and the poor form a thin veneer on the rich." ~ Jeff, on the accretionary stage of planetary formation

"You guys are all lithophiles because you're geophysicists." ~ Jeff

"In (Continuum Mechanics class) I told you all that this happened and you believed me like suckers." ~ Jeff

"I don't publish it, and no one else has either, so consider it fiction." ~ Jeff

"Science is like skiing – you have to be willing to fall if you ever hope to do anything great." ~ Jeff

Me: "Who would the bizzaro Jeff be?"
Jeff: "Dave Hale. Haha just kidding."

"I don't know if there's an easy degree program at Mines, but Geophysics definitely isn't it." ~ Dave Hale

"Woody Allen said half of life is showing up. Well, 10% of life is showing up." Dave, on attendance

"The passive voice is not liked by me very much." ~ Roel

"I expect you to write that. Treat me like an imbecile." ~ Prof. Martin

"As long as you keep your wits about you, it will be fine." ~ Prof. Martin

Five Eight Fifteen

Now a grizzled alumna, I can look back over my entire undergrad career and point at things that were awesome and things that were hard and things that I regret. My biggest regret of my four years at this school was straightening my hair the night before May 8, 2015.

The day before graduation was like any other day when one finishes their undergrad degree. You know, cramming for a seismology final in the library a half hour before it starts with a couple classmates. Celebrating with Cheesecake Factory leftovers afterwards while watching Netflix. And ending with dinner with old friends.

Ethan and I talked while Rebecca went to get something. Ethan, who had graduated last May, reminisced with me on the hard times at Mines.

"I'm so glad I don't go to that school any more," he sighed.
"Yeah," I said. Then I remembered I was done, and smiled. "Me too."

Rebecca and I remembered that we would have to wake up early the next day. Ughh. So I went home, straightened my hair, and eventually went to bed.

The countdowns on my phone were freaking out when I woke up at 7:15. Five eight fifteen. The day we had been waiting for. The day that would be a blur.

Rachel asked me when I was getting to campus. "Well I just woke up. So...7:45?" I hung my cords and stuff over my neck, hid my fanny pack under my flappy black gown, put on my wool socks and boots, and headed over. My fanny pack proved to be quite handy, filled with water for dehydrated and hungover friends, chapstick, glasses cleaner, and my phone to take pictures with.

I remember chaos. I remember being herded around like cattle. It was weird and cool seeing the class of 2015 all together in one room. Also overwhelming. I found my GP (geophysics) peeps before walking off to Kafadar to hand my parents my camera and coat. I didn't need my coat anymore because I found some ponchos. I should have grabbed 30--one for each GP kid--but only grabbed a couple.

I remember frantically calling a couple of my friends on the phone while Dawn rounded us up for the GP group pic. I remember handing Austin my extra poncho. I remember someone over the speaker system calling for various names that didn't make it to check-in. I remember trying to find my number on the floor which determined the order in which we walked out. It was very confusing because some of the GP kids were a few rows away. It just so happened I got to stand by Brady, my old friend from freshman year. (Big gulps, huh?)

Finally they herded us outside over the soggy grass down the soggy street. And that's when the Class of 2015's worst hairday started.

There is no other way to describe those three hours than "The Worst". Or maybe "The best of times; the worst of times". A fitting end to our undergraduate journey.

Our major was one of the last to walk in to the fenced-in region on the commons. While waiting, Rich, our GravMag professor, came by to say hi and tease that he shouldn't have never let us graduate while offering his umbrella. If we had failed GravMag, we probably wouldn't have been in that soggy ceremony. Oh well. We went to go sit down in our seats and I tried to get rid of the puddle before the president made us sit down in it.

The rest is blur, but I remember terrible speeches ("blah blah blah horizontal drilling...blah blah blah energy independence" and other non-motivating, non-inspirational buzzwords), soaked hair and fogged up glasses, turning back to look at Rachel whenever something in the ceremony annoyed me, putting my poncho on before the MechEs started to walk, forgetting to change my tassel until Chloe reminded me, the rainwater making a waterfall on the canopy for people to walk under, people losing their graduation hats, said graduation hats becoming flimsy, and wanting the whole ordeal to be over quickly. I barely remember walking across the stage, and remember that we were being rushed and didn't get to shake Terry's hand. I remember Dave Hale proudly smiling us on from the faculty section though, and waving to me right before we walked. When it was the grad students' turn, I remember our GP section cheering for our TAs graduating with master's degrees. And I remember everybody cheering so hard when the very last person had walked across the stage. The best part of the ceremony was when it had ended.

This is where I'm supposed to wax sentimental about how all the best parts of Mines were scattered in those four years and how getting a degree to hang on the wall from Mines is alright, but there were so many other intangible things that we don't get diplomas for that were even more valuable.
But let's save that for another post.