One of my best friends while an undergrad at Cornell reminded me that this year is our 15th class reunion.

On thinking back to that time, I get a feeling in my stomach that's like being terribly homesick. Those times appear rosy through the spectacles of the years that have passed since. I miss all of it. A lot.

But to some extent it really is a feeling of homesickness as well, since we lived in Ithaca for such a long time and I do not like where we are now nearly as much as there, even in the winter. I never attended any other reunions because Cornell had continued to be a huge part of life for me, with work and friends.

Now, looking back on 15 years, at least in my case, shows nothing much to be bragging about. No career to speak of -- never been interested in one, really, so no excuse for that -- and of course no kids. There's a huge gap of doing nothing but sitting at computer terminals for years on end, before my recent trips abroad.

My wife and pets are the best, and I am very healthy, and we have a house and jobs, so I'm not saying life is terribly sucky or anything like that. It just goes by so dang fast that 15 years seems like ages ago. And it is, and I hope to live a couple times that again. But there were so many new and exiciting things that college offered, and those kinds of things aren't coming around nearly as often as I would like.

Back then it always seemed like a paycheck was worth the trade-off for my time. Helping people use computers seemed a worthy goal, and no doubt many people benefitted from my expertise via phone, e-mail, web page, and printed publication. But there's nothing to show for it now. On the other hand, I think a whole lot of jobs probably result with nothing to show, so maybe it's not a big deal.

Well, I don't know where I'm going with this entry. Pining for the past isn't terribly good for one's soul. Perhaps I should attend the reunion to see some friends, and to visit Ithaca again. I didn't even attend my graduation, and took an extra year as an undergrad, but the class of '88 is still the one that has most of hte people I knew in college.