Long, Long Time to Get Old

 

Preparing for the Graduation

 

Well the big day had finally arrived.  David graduated from California State University, San Marcos.

He received a Bachelors of Science in Computer Science.

A calm came over him.

While he prepared backstage, the rest of us lined up to get a seat in the audience.

The skies were threatening to rain but held off during the entire ceremony.

The CSMSM campus is rapidly expanding with a new apartment tower shown in the background.

Ellen Neufeldt, CSUSM President, arriving.

Other faculty arriving.

Ellen gives the President's Address.

And now, the graduation ceremony begins...

David Graduates!

And the ceremony begins.

Here are the Computer Science graduates.

Dave is the third from left, with the beard.

Getting closer!

He had added "Hello World" to his cap.  It was designed to read correctly from behind, not tilting his head forward.

"Hello World" is the typical thing a new software application spits out to prove it is working.

Walking towards the attendees after the ceremony.

He sees us!

All right Dave!

High

Five!

David Barker, Bachelor of Science in Computer Science from California State University, San Marcos.

His friends graduated with the same degree.

We are very proud of him!

Cal State University, San Marcos - 2025 STEM Graduation Ceremony - Others Graduating

Now let's take a look at a few of the other graduates that night.  Ellen Neufeldt, CSUSM President, led the parade!

All graduates that evening were from the CSUSM College of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM).

The stormy weather made for a dramatic backdrop.

Here they come!

Making a grand entrance to the crowd!

Congratulations to all of the graduates!  

They chose demanding majors that require a great deal of dedication.

The joy of their accomplishment shows on their faces.

A stadium of very happy people!

What a great presentation of very talented people.

Those binders will soon hold degrees (they were empty during the ceremony).

The white pathway really highlighted the graduates.

Some were very stoic.

Even Troy was smiling ear to ear.

Friends graduated together.

Others made the journey by themselves.

Some showed no emotion.

Some danced down the runway.

Congratulations to them all!

Also, sorry it has been so long since I've posted.  I've been having issues with Blogger accepting my posts and have been so busy I did not have a chance to track down the problem.  I think I have my finger on the issue now so I hope to post more often.

The Making of Steely Dan's "Aja"

 

Lucy's 40th Birthday

 

Lucy's family threw her a wonderful 40th birthday party recently. I was honored to be invited.

Lucy with her sisters.  These were the people who came up with the idea and organized the event.

I included this photo because is shows a natural and spontaneous conversation between them.

Lucy with her two sons - my grandsons.

An even better shot.

Lucy with much of her local family.

And now - it is time for the singing and dancing!

Introducing the first dance with Lucy.

We were lucky enough to have two of her relatives perform for us in a few of the following videos.