“You won’t believe how much it’s changed!”

That’s what people said about Durham, NC when I told them I was going back to Duke University for my 25^th reunion, not having set foot there since 1988. In some respects, they were wrong, and in some respects, they were right.

Durham is still a marginally charming collection of converted tobacco warehouses, and while the culture of the school seems to have improved, the faux Gothic magnificence of the campus defies any major attempts at alteration, which is a good thing. In any case, I drove straight from the airport to the Washington Duke Inn without having to consult a map once.

I always thought people went to college reunions primarily to see who looked better/had a better-looking spouse, compare how successful they’d become, and otherwise engage in one-upmanship, and I’m pleased to report that my cynicism wasn’t entirely without merit. (Sam, whom I happen to consider the sexiest creature alive and is 17 years younger than me elicited more than one creepy “Way to go!” about my having a much younger de facto husband.) But even more delightful was the discovery that 25 revolutions of the earth around the sun could create the unlikeliest of worlds colliding… … read more