Katrina here...

To paraphrase some ancient wisdom, commencement speeches originate from the belief that one should not send graduates off into the "real world" without duly sedating them first. Irony not withstanding, this very quote was cited by the commencement speaker (who coincidentally was the President of Westchester Medical Center) for the class of 2008 of Mercy College. Despite the (apparently requisite) tedious speech that followed this ever-so-witty opening, the Bauerlein family celebrated the day as only we can, by mocking mom in the car on the way down to the Westchester County Center. What could bring our spirits to such a ridiculously high level?

ELIZABETH GRADUATED WITH HER MASTERS IN EDUCATION!!!!!

(TA-DA!!!)

Perhaps the first commencement speaker didn't hit home, but I think the student speaker kindof hit the nail on the head. He spoke of the challenges so many graduate students face when returning to school to complete their Masters; of all the external commitments and pressures such as jobs, families, and busy lives outside of a 3-hour weeknight seminar. He reminded graduates and families alike of the sacrifices made, the battles fought and the very late nights and group efforts that brought each of them to that day and at that place. And as he spoke, I thought about Elizabeth matriculating in her program in the fall of 2004 and what was to come....

So Elizabeth pretty much rocks & and we're kinda proud of her. She's mostly proud of the colorful hood they give you as part of the Masters robes (which by the way are a rip off--anyone want to buy a slightly used Masters robe for Mercy College?? 1/2 price...) But don't that all that mushy stuff get in the way of some quality blogging material:

Like the creative solutions for afixing a motarboard to one's head when one doesn't have any hair (and no, Elizabeth wouldn't let me try stapling it to her scalp. And no, the stodgy women in the faculty lunch room didn't seem to grasp why the two of us thought that was comedy gold.)

Or perhaps the President of WMC who actually had the nerve to say, and I quote, "It's all about me...," to which Carol, Mom, and I retorted in unison "He obviously hasn't met Elizabeth" as Dad just shook his head in silent resignation (and Elizabeth's godson Matt slept in a vertical position which no human being should be able to maintain while unconscious).

Or the stupid woman who stood up and began fanning herself at precisely the same moment that they called "Elizabeth June Bauerlein," and how I knocked her unconscious with my chair and the paramedics had to administer CPR...okay, okay, so that last one is an exageration but the rest of it is true.

In other good news from yesterday, Elizabeth has heard from Dr. Ahmed's office that she will be able to travel to Italy this summer, even if she's not quite in remission yet. WOO-HOO! Upon return, she will either (1) have another round of VIPER (not quite another round of vino rosso but we'll do what we must) OR (2)she and I will embark our stem cell journey together. But the point is, there is Italy first. Oooo! International blogging!!! More on that in the future...

For now, we are celebrating. As dad mentioned in the car, 4 kids have Masters Degrees, there's just 1 more to go (apparently, when you have 5 children, you become checkmarks on the "to-do" list).

(PSSST!!! Come a little closer......I don't want her to hear...there's one more thing...okay okay that's close enough--we don't need your greasy face juice on the screen....Elizabeth's 30th birthday is coming up....June 11....don't forget to send some love her way....NOT NOW...on JUNE 11!)