August 1975 ~

Moving in day at Cornell College.  Suddenly traffic quintuples and parking lots choke.  Parents wander the campus, haul stuff into dormitories, say goodbye to offspring. 

When I moved in as a freshman the year before, I packed lightly and arrived early.  Muscatine was a little over an hour from Mount Vernon and Cornell.  My mother was happy to take me and didn’t want to stay long to settle me in.  I was among the first freshmen in the men’s dorm Rorem Hall.  The upperclassmen wouldn’t arrive for another few days, giving the new class time to orient.

I had spent the previous summer working as a painter at a Monsanto factory.  I had invested some of my savings into enough marijuana to cover my first several months at college.  As new freshmen arrived on the floor I would come over, introduce myself, offer help carrying, and sotto voce invite them back to my room when their parents had left. 

Several men joined me.  Among them was Chris Dewey, who would become one of my best friends.  It was a good start to a good year.  I also met Bruce Costas, Jeff Busbey, Jamie whats-his-name from Kansas City, Jim McElvogue, and a few others whose names I can’t recall.

This year, August 1975, I was the editor of the yearbook and on campus early to document the freshmen orientation.  It was a nice introduction to my sophomore year.  I photographed orientation events and spent time with friends before the next semester began.