Early College Days
Duke was no picnic: I was small, young looking, and young. Boys in the dorm were girl crazy and talked about nothing but their conquests. (I had none to talk about.) So I said little.
Academic work was no problem-- never has been. I often took a bus in to Durham to see a movie; that seemed like my closest tie with my former life. I saw Casablanca, which had just come out, I believe; it made a vivid impression on me, and still does.
West Campus was crowded with military personnel:an army finance school had hundreds of men packed in the dormitories. We heard them at six every morning (ungodly hour) shouting the orders given them by the drill sergeant. The civilians got even by serenading them (very loudly at ll P.M.)
Anyway that semester was finally over. I had consumed two milk shakes each day and got up to 130 pounds.
For the summer session I took the second half of my physics course. (I have always loved college campuses in summer; they're so quiet.) Dr. Carpenter, the physics teacher was good. And I saw him in chapel every Sunday.
The Duke Chapel dominates West Campus, with quadrangles radiating out from it on both sides. Someone said it was patterned after Princeton. Never having been to Princeton I wouldn't know. Anyway the campus was super-beautiful. I had seen an air view of it in my 8th grade text book, and determined to go there. This was made easy because in those days tuition was granted to children of Methodist ministers.
Near the end of Summer School we learned that the military would basically take over the West Campus in the 43-44 year. The alternative for the few remaining civilian undergraduates was to be housed on East Campus, the Women's College.
I wasn't up for that, so I transferred to La Tech. Tech has a long history in our family. Dad lived in Ruston after his father got his law degree and attended La. Training Institute (which later became Tech).
Beside that, when they had two children in elementary school, our parents enrolled in La. Tech and got their B.A. after three years. Mother was valedictorian and Dad about fifth, I think. Of course he also had a full time job.
Duke was no picnic: I was small, young looking, and young. Boys in the dorm were girl crazy and talked about nothing but their conquests. (I had none to talk about.) So I said little.
Academic work was no problem-- never has been. I often took a bus in to Durham to see a movie; that seemed like my closest tie with my former life. I saw Casablanca, which had just come out, I believe; it made a vivid impression on me, and still does.
West Campus was crowded with military personnel:an army finance school had hundreds of men packed in the dormitories. We heard them at six every morning (ungodly hour) shouting the orders given them by the drill sergeant. The civilians got even by serenading them (very loudly at ll P.M.)
Anyway that semester was finally over. I had consumed two milk shakes each day and got up to 130 pounds.
For the summer session I took the second half of my physics course. (I have always loved college campuses in summer; they're so quiet.) Dr. Carpenter, the physics teacher was good. And I saw him in chapel every Sunday.
The Duke Chapel dominates West Campus, with quadrangles radiating out from it on both sides. Someone said it was patterned after Princeton. Never having been to Princeton I wouldn't know. Anyway the campus was super-beautiful. I had seen an air view of it in my 8th grade text book, and determined to go there. This was made easy because in those days tuition was granted to children of Methodist ministers.
Near the end of Summer School we learned that the military would basically take over the West Campus in the 43-44 year. The alternative for the few remaining civilian undergraduates was to be housed on East Campus, the Women's College.
I wasn't up for that, so I transferred to La Tech. Tech has a long history in our family. Dad lived in Ruston after his father got his law degree and attended La. Training Institute (which later became Tech).
Beside that, when they had two children in elementary school, our parents enrolled in La. Tech and got their B.A. after three years. Mother was valedictorian and Dad about fifth, I think. Of course he also had a full time job.
posted by Larry Clayton at 2:45 PM
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