Furman Weekend

Last month I joined my wife for her twentieth reunion during Homecoming Weekend at Furman University in Greenville, SC.  It was my second (third?) visit to this scenic campus,  one complete with a deep, lengthy nature trail.   I strolled with her past old dorms and classrooms.  She recalled lots of fond memories.  Of course, she was amazed at the progress that had taken place.  The school has a very good reputation for its academics, and I heard that enrollment boomed when they seceded from the South Carolina Baptist Convention back in 1990.  Ah, the fundamentalists will always have Bob Jones U. up the road.

We arrived on Friday afternoon, after a few days in Georgia, visiting family and friends.  By the way, when in Athens, check out one of the Mama's Boy restaurant locations.

Our greeting at Furman..........

The Mall area was festooned with "floats", sans wheels.  I guess they were more accurately described as "displays", yet still adorned with the usual crepe paper flowers.  Many were (being) built by fraternity and sorority members.   A small carnival down the lawn had rides and corn dogs.  We checked it out before watching a few minutes of the girls' soccer game.

My wife ran into a few old chums, one of whom's wedding we attended in '02, as we made our way toward the Daniel Recital Hall for a Jazz Ensemble Concert.  That show was unbelievable.  Furman also has a solid reputation for their music programs and it was richly earned as the musicians tore through compositions by Herbie Hancock and Miles Davis; "Tutu" was the finale. 

The next day we donned ponchos to watch the Paladins face the Citadel Bulldogs.  Unfortunately, the home team was bested 27-10.  We hung until late into the third quarter when cold, driving rain (part of Tropical Storm Nestor) and a Paladin fumble cued our departure.  We still had a grand time.  The marching band (which has some members of the Jazz Ensemble) was impressive.  Furman's football teams have won several titles, but October 19th was not a banner day for them.

That evening individual reunion parties were held at the Hyatt Regency in downtown Greenville.   About fifty came out for my wife's group ('99).  We expected a full dinner, but instead there were several hors d'oeuvres that filled in nicely.   Most of the attendees were female, with a few other tag along husbands (one of whom wrote "Arm Candy" on his name tag). I met several.  Very nice group of folks. Always the impression I got from this school.