Brian and I just returned to our hotel after having lunch with a good friend (“Kurt”) who teaches at the University of Northern Iowa (where Brian went for undergrad), Kurt’s wife (“Amy”), and his colleague (“Ted”). We haven’t seen each other in at least 5 years, so it was a really special time and lots of fun, even though we’re pretty sure the 2 ladies sitting near us at lunch disapproved of our scatological conversation. Inappropriate talk at the table most definitely, but it all started after Ted visited the men’s toilet. Let’s just say that if a play is ever written about shitting and pissing and things that you just shouldn’t be doing while shitting or pissing, then you’ll know that the seed for that as-yet-unwritten play began with us.
After several trips up and down the aisles of one of the campus lots because Ted couldn’t remember where he parked, we wished him goodbye and a safe trip to Minneapolis where he was headed immediately after lunch for a John Fogerty concert. We then took a tour of the greenhouse on campus and saw a monkey cup or, pitcher plant (scroll down after clicking link), which is a carnivorous plant I never knew existed (see pic — they look like organic condoms, don’t they?). I dared Kurt to stick his finger inside, but he wouldn’t. We toured more of the campus while walking Amy back to her office, and afterwards, Kurt took us on an extensive tour of the various new and remodeled buildings since Brian’s time there.
I wish I was able to take pictures, but it was too cold and sprinkling out. The campus, while certainly not as large as Ohio State’s, is very pretty and has many neat sculptures sprinkled throughout the grounds. We even walked on the field of the UNI-Dome, which was the highlight for me. I touched the end zone with my finger! We took a couple of pictures there, but they were with the point-and-shoot, the cable of which is lost, and the gadget to upload pics from the memory card is at home. Kurt also took a picture of Brian and me under the conference titles sign and I’ll post those later. I wanted them to take a picture of me lying on the UNI Panthers logo on the 50-yard line, but we continued our brisk pace. As we walked back through the football field after visiting the Wellness Center, I noticed that the football players were just coming out to start practice. Kurt suggested I have my picture taken with them but Brian thought it was inappropriate and was basically a spoilsport.
All in all, it was a wonderful visit and I regret not being able to take pictures. That just means we’ll have to return during the summer and prowl the campus again.
photo [via]
