Thoughts from Mark "Hat" Rackley

We are Jemima and Easter Yeggs.  Lieutenant Yeggs wants his son to write these reports to keep in touch when we are out having our adventures, and Rev C.S.L., my Dad, doesn’t mind an update either.

Then again, they were passengers in this adventure, but the adventure needs a back story.

Graduation was approaching at T.R.U.S.T. (Tracy Regional University for Science and Technology). I was wondering, ‘How can you be in five places at the same time?’

That is the question that Easter and I asked Dr. Kildare when graduation day approached.

His response was, “The only important graduation is your graduation as meteorologists.  I do not see Aunt Jemima getting a masters in photography.  And if you get a masters in an engineering field, then you can attend that one.  This would have been solved by you walking across stage last semester when you had all your credits in meteorology.  I am sorry, but my hands are tied.  Have all your relatives come to ours.  Then, the two of you split up and go your own way for the other one.  Wait!  You said five.”

I said, “Dr. Kildare, you go to the Sunday school class every Sunday morning.  Unless he is preaching, who leads us in prayer?”

Dr. Kildare threw his hands in the air.  “That is utterly ridiculous.  Rev. Joseph is a good friend, but he is not family.  I am not putting a halt to graduation day because of an inconvenient friendship.”

Yes, he said it that way, and it hurt.  Then, I realized that B.B. would have camera crews at the four different graduations but watching it on tape is nothing like being there.

Oh, maybe some of you don’t know how college graduations are done these days.  Each different college around the university schedules its own graduation.  In some cases, the individual disciplines within that college have their own graduation.  These venues could be large distances apart.  As at T.R.U.S.T., they had multiple campuses.  The south campus had the new baseball field under construction.  That was going to be one of the venues.  The basketball fieldhouse was another venue.  The football stadium was the largest venue.  Jemima had all Fine Arts degrees in the chapel.  There were not a lot of graduates, almost all being BFA degrees.  People would be packed in like sardines, but if the aunts and uncles fail to show, there might be enough room.

In other words, the days of every graduate sitting in one room is long over.  The BS degrees all in one room is over.

When the schedules came out, all BFA (Bachelor of Fine Arts) were in a window of 8-10.  The BS Earth and Mineral Sciences were 9-11.  And the BS Engineering were 10-12.  We had time to reach the Psychology graduations with the MSCP (Masters of Science Counseling Psychology) being among the degrees getting their diplomas after lunch.  But the parking lot would be full by the time we could get there.

The idea of getting our degrees all on the same day, by walking onto the same stage multiple times, was gone.  It was replaced by a nightmare.

But that was weeks ago.  We were again in Dr. Kildare’s office.  He confirmed that the Fine Arts college would not have so many graduates as to go past 9:30 that morning.  “Meteorology and Atmospheric Science will be the last degree field to obtain degrees in the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences.  We will reserve places for our parents and Stormie.  And two aisle seats are reserved for Easy and Jemima in the graduate section.  You might miss the opening remarks if a speaker at Fine Arts is long winded.  Then Mechanical Engineering will come after Aerospace, Chemical, Civil, Electrical, and Industrial Engineering.  With only Nuclear and Software slash Computer Science to follow.  It took some pleading and cajoling, but Easy will have an aisle seat if he does not show up on time to march in.  I tell you, those engineers do not have a sense of humor.  They are highly inflexible, but I got you in.  Now, you should have no problem in getting to the graduation for Rev. Joseph Jones.  I hope not.  I want to be there too, but I have a larger window.”

I said, “But Fine Arts is in the Chapel.  Then Earth and Mineral Science is in the fieldhouse.  Then Engineering is in the Performance Hall.  Each of those venues are long walks.  Walking from one to the other means we would be late anyway.  And we will have Stormie with us.  That will slow us down.”

Dr. Kildare smiled, “Who said anything about walking?  Why would the driver of the Turtle walk?  I did my pleading and cajoling with Fine Arts.  You will park the Turtle in front of the Chapel, in a nice grassy spot, like you normally would on a storm chase.  There is room for seven in the Turtle.  Easy, have your Dad ride shotgun so that he can have a portable gumdrop to flash red and blue lights.  You will have a university security escort.  The Turtle will be an example of the university’s engineering skills and knowledge.  The turtle shell shields and skirts are crudely artistic, making the Turtle look like a turtle.  Since the Turtle can hold seven, there is enough room for the two of you, Stormie, and all four parents.  Brothers, sisters, and cousins will have to walk.  Umm.  Even your Aunt Pink.”

Easy asked, “Won’t it be crowded?”

Dr. Kildare laughed, “Vehicular traffic is shutdown on graduation day.  All venues have their own parking lots accessible to streets outside the campus.  Sure, there will be pedestrian traffic, but that is what the security escort is for.  It will be slow, but better than walking.  And Stormie will not slow you down.  Oh, if Aunt Pink and her crowd come in early to the fieldhouse, we can provide parking for her buses within the no vehicle zone.  They can tailgate.  They will have Lily the Pink painted on the side of the bus, but they will not be allowed to sell anything.  If she wants to give away food and drink, she is allowed to do that, nothing alcoholic.”

I asked, “Can they bring the FHAT food truck?  It’s set up for fast food to give away.  I guess since the Meteorology and Atmospheric Science graduation is at the fieldhouse along with Rev. Joseph’s graduation that afternoon, then the Pink crowd can just park and party all day.  We’ll be the rolling side show.”

Dr. Kildare laughed, “The food truck could have the cooking staff from the south campus fixing fancy grub that food trucks do not usually fix.  I think you have something there, Stinker.”

Easy asked, “If we are going to be graduate assistants next school year, are we going to be Professor Easy and Professor Stinker?”

Dr. Kildare said, “I was not a fan of the codenames in the beginning, but there is something about the allure of the Turtle Team.  I could not think of you two as anything other than Easy and Stinker.  And remember, a lot of the freshmen and sophomores that you will have in the Turtle and in the classroom became enamored with the reality show.  They will expect Easy and Stinker.  This graduation is not the end of Easy and Stinker.  We are simply turning the page to a new beginning.”

I sighed, “I think we just heard part of the commencement speech.”

Then the actual day was upon us.  The Turtle was parked in front of the Chapel early that morning.  We sat next to the Turtle as Fine Arts professors, students, and parents started filing into the Chapel.  With not much interest in meteorology, this crowd was more interested in the lifelike turtle shell.  Occasionally, Easy would switch from Turtle Mode to Driving Mode and back just to show that the “artwork” also had utility.  Aunt Pink rode up in the scooter that she had not used in a long time.  She walked a great deal in celebration of her recovery from the poisoning that was designed to end her life.  But she had a practical reason for using the scooter.  Sparkle was in her lap and Kanok and Joon were standing on the running boards on either side.  In her saddlebags, she brought breakfast.  B.B. and Joseph said that they would meet us at the fieldhouse.  I wanted my best friend there, but B.B. was expecting a baby any day now.

Pink said, “I am so glad we got here before you had to line up with your classmates.”

Just as I finished my breakfast sandwich, I got the signal to get in line.

The speech to the graduates was brief.  As we went through the Fine Arts disciplines, they finally got around to Photography.

The head of our small department stopped to say a few words.  “We usually do this in alphabetical order, but we have a Summa Cum Laude graduate.  I had her in my freshman classes and she was a bit of a free spirit.  She only signed up for photography classes because she had been assigned to the role of storm chasing photographer during the summer prior to the fall semester that year.  I had to chide her that she needed to submit something other than pictures of clouds and storms.  That was hard to accomplish when she was already selling her photographs to national weather feeds.  Now, she already has a photography studio at Lily the Pink with experience providing wedding photographs for over one hundred weddings.  And her weather photographs have been used to illustrate three meteorological textbooks.  For our first graduate in Photography, will Jemima L Yeggs come forward?  Ladies and gentlemen, Jemima L Yeggs, summa cum laude graduate.  Thank you for being one of my students.”

I stood there in shock.  I had no idea what “Summa Cum Laude” meant.  It means “Highest Honor”, but I just took the classes and did the best I could.  My knees started to knock as I walked across the stage.  All the Fine Arts department heads congratulated me.

As Dr. Kildare had said, the entire ceremony did not take long.  When we came out, there was a security guard in a golf cart that had lights on the hood, and a weird sounding siren as it turned out.  With no vehicular traffic, except for us, the pedestrians had taken to the streets, even though the sidewalks were mostly empty.  With a soft tap on the siren, the security golf cart led the way.  We followed in the Turtle, and since we were dodging so much pedestrian traffic, Aunt Pink was able to keep up with us for the most part.

When we got to the fieldhouse for Earth and Mineral Science graduation, the geologists, geophysicists, environmental scientists, and oceanographers were already in line.  We parked on the wide sidewalk leading to the fieldhouse entrance.  We all got out and Easy deployed the shields and skirts remotely.  Dr. Ellie instructed Easy to walk in first, followed by me, and then the other graduates.  This time Stormie stayed with Mom Yeggs.  By this time, Sophie had joined the others with Emmett, Blaise, Margie, and Gigi.

Dr. Kildare talked about the fact that storm chasing had always been about collecting data to better predict violent storms, but now, the chase is cut off to help victims from the storm.  As a result, lives have been saved.  This is done without sacrificing data collection.  While Storm Chase 1 has a professional crew, devoted to data collection and modeling of the storms, Storm Chase 2 has become the Turtle, with the crew having interesting codenames.  A reality show was created, and the Storm Chasing Channel was born.

Dr. Kildare took a breath and then said, “With that in mind, would Easter and Jemima Yeggs come forward?  Or should I say the Turtle driver, Easy, and the photographer, Stinker?  Both of you are graduating summa cum laude.  Many think Easy as just the cool, never flustered driver of a storm chasing vehicle, but part of that driving skill comes from understanding the storm.  And I hear that this is Stinker’s second such honor today.”

We were given two diploma folders.  One had our name on the diploma.  The other had our codename on the diploma.  And above the applause, I heard Stormie say, “Mommy!  Daddy!”

After we left the stage, Pink went to the bus with the children.  Sophie, with Gigi on Emmett’s shoulders, and the other big kids started the trek to the Performance Hall.  We climbed into the Turtle, and we were off to the Engineering School graduation with our security golf cart leading the way.  We quickly passed Sophie and the gang, but they did not have someone who had to line up ahead of time.

Easy only got a magna cum laude honor, high honor as opposed to summa cum laude, highest honor.  It seems that all those classes that we used our SAT scores to get out of, and the courses that we tested out of…  All of that was registered as a “B”.  While Fine Arts and Earth and Mineral Sciences ignored those grades in the grade point average, Engineering counted them.  But Easy did not seem to mind.  After all, he is “Easy.”  Never mind that two patents regarding modifications to the Turtle have Easy listed as a contributor.  I think the patents give Easy more satisfaction in a job well done.  Then again, he doesn’t talk about it, never brags about it.  He is “Easy.”

With time to spare, the crowd gathered around the Turtle.  Everyone wanted to see the shields and skirts deploy.  Even without the security golf cart escort, we got back to the fieldhouse in plenty of time for a luxurious meal.  After all, the culinary arts department of the south campus was advertising.  When people asked, their reply was, “If you think this is nice, coming from a food truck, think of what we can do with a full kitchen.”

As per the instructions, the food was given away.  The cafeteria and other eateries charged their usual prices, but the food truck had a tip jar.  All the money from the tip jar went to FHAT.  The Homeless At Tracy would be eating finer cuisine this month.

While the fieldhouse had a large gathering for Easy’s and my graduation, the place was packed with people in Pink.  Our graduation had the Sunday school class in attendance, but Rev. Joseph Jones had group-therapy groups who attended also.  The graduations were being streamed live for those on shift back at Lily the Pink.  Easy and I were surprised that the baby didn’t pop out.  But within a couple of weeks, Joseph and Mary would have a child who could voice their opinion of their Daddy’s Master of Science in counseling psychology.  Joseph already had his Master of Divinity from December graduation.

As it turned out, Easy and I had three diplomas each.  Easy said that the “Easy” diploma would hang in the Turtle Bay as long as he was one of the drivers.  Joseph already had a spot on his office wall for his diploma.  After all, he would be counseling people in the office.

But as we went to the Food Truck for a celebratory snack, Dr. Kildare was eating a late lunch.

Dr. Kildare was with Mags, Mercy, and Mike.  He ushered us over.

Dr. James said, “Now it is my time to be the Sunday school teacher.  Aunt Jemima, you were so worried that the graduation ceremonies were overlapping and you would miss one of them or another.  Then, when the blocked time for graduation turned into a more clearly defined scheduled time, knowing the number of graduates at each venue, you were still worried that the logistics of getting from one venue to another would be impossible.  ‘Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”’ (Matthew 19:26).  And what did Jesus say about worrying?  Don’t do it.  It all worked out.  I can get over it when you do not trust me, but you need to trust God.”

I sighed, “But we needed help from a few angels.”

Dr. James shrugged, “No angels needed.  Just a goofy head of the Meteorological department wanted to show off an engineering marvel that is rarely seen on campus.  It’s always doing its designed purpose – chasing storms and doing so safely.  Now, if you don’t mind, we haven’t had lunch yet.”

Stormie squealed, “Book!”

Brooke and Goober walked up.  Brooke laughed, “Back to being Book again.  I want to congratulate everyone, but I need a hug from my pretend niece.”  Stormie had no problem giving Brooke a hug.

Goober asked, “And how did both of you get summa cum laude?  Did you enter any sumo wrestling matches?”

Easy, who rarely talks, provided the answer. “When you are out on storm chases all the time, when you get to the hotel at night, you don’t have any time for anything other than studying.”

Goober nodded his head toward Stormie and Brooke who were dancing and giggling.  “You weren’t studying all the time.”

Credits

Kanok had called Brooke by the name “Book” until she got the “BR” combination down.  Brooke was irritated then, but now Brooke had a different attitude about everything.

I do not see any need for more Credits.  Graduation ceremonies may vary from one university to another, mostly depending on enrollment.  My college graduation took hours with all the graduates, at least all BS degrees.  Breaking these up in smaller pieces makes the graduation ceremony less arduous.  And no, I was in a few honorary societies and received several scholastic awards, but I did not scare “magna” much less “summa.” Engineers start with difficult subjects, while those honors are based on grade point average, disregarding how many graduate level courses that it took to earn an undergraduate degree. As mentioned in the story, engineers do not have a sense of humor at times.