2008 Woodie Awards
Opening my mother's mail
Web Editor
Issue date: 3/17/06 Section: Opinion
I got a letter in the mail over the weekend.
No, this isn't an unusual occasion. The odd thing was, it was addressed to my parents. For the record, my parents have never lived at my address.
I moved out of their house nearly 12 years ago when I got married, yet, my parents are receiving mail about my impending graduation at my address.
A note to the administration of JSU: in the fall of 2005 there were 3,447 students over the age of 25 enrolled at this school. That's 38 percent of your student body who are, essentially, non-traditional students.
A large number of these people don't live at home and haven't for many years, yet you send them mail addressed to their parents.
You know what, in my house, I am the parent. Just ask Kyle.
I'd hate to see the look on the faces of the 241 students who are over 50 when they get mail addressed to their mom and dad. I mean, by now some of them are grandparents themselves.
I know that, somewhere in the databases of this university, they know I'm married and they know I don't live with my parents. After all, I had to file papers to officially change my name when I got married and then again every time I've moved.
If you want, though, I can give you my parents' address. After all, I offer their phone number to all the telemarketers who ask to speak to my mommy.
But that's beside the point. Basically, every now and then I get a little irked at the way all colleges and universities cater to their ideal students and leave those of us who came to college late in life or went into the military, or decided to have kids or decided to have a life after high school out in the cold.
But then again, that's their perogative. Just like its mine to gripe and grumble about it every now and then.
And who knows, maybe one day I'll come back as a grad student and start up a non-traditional students club. Of course, we'll be nice and let anyone join and we'll throw the best parties because EVERYONE will be legal.
But in the meantime, I'll just settle for opening my parents' mail and trying to decide if I REALLY want that frame for my diploma or if it would look just fine in the standard cover.
No, this isn't an unusual occasion. The odd thing was, it was addressed to my parents. For the record, my parents have never lived at my address.
I moved out of their house nearly 12 years ago when I got married, yet, my parents are receiving mail about my impending graduation at my address.
A note to the administration of JSU: in the fall of 2005 there were 3,447 students over the age of 25 enrolled at this school. That's 38 percent of your student body who are, essentially, non-traditional students.
A large number of these people don't live at home and haven't for many years, yet you send them mail addressed to their parents.
You know what, in my house, I am the parent. Just ask Kyle.
I'd hate to see the look on the faces of the 241 students who are over 50 when they get mail addressed to their mom and dad. I mean, by now some of them are grandparents themselves.
I know that, somewhere in the databases of this university, they know I'm married and they know I don't live with my parents. After all, I had to file papers to officially change my name when I got married and then again every time I've moved.
If you want, though, I can give you my parents' address. After all, I offer their phone number to all the telemarketers who ask to speak to my mommy.
But that's beside the point. Basically, every now and then I get a little irked at the way all colleges and universities cater to their ideal students and leave those of us who came to college late in life or went into the military, or decided to have kids or decided to have a life after high school out in the cold.
But then again, that's their perogative. Just like its mine to gripe and grumble about it every now and then.
And who knows, maybe one day I'll come back as a grad student and start up a non-traditional students club. Of course, we'll be nice and let anyone join and we'll throw the best parties because EVERYONE will be legal.
But in the meantime, I'll just settle for opening my parents' mail and trying to decide if I REALLY want that frame for my diploma or if it would look just fine in the standard cover.