Saturday, August 22, 2009

Amy's Graduation Weekend

After 20 months of some of the hardest work I have ever seen anyone do, Amy has come to the conclusion of her Global MBA at Thunderbird, and no one could be prouder than me.

She had been in Phoenix for the last week, finishing classes - and winding down with the rest of the class. I flew down on a flight landing mid Thursday afternoon and met up with her after finishing her last class. Later that afternoon the school had a small welcoming function for family and friends of the 3 different classes graduating tomorrow. Was an affair that I got to meet all the people who's names I had been hearing about for the last 2 years. A bunch of very relieved people.

Then party then moved to a residence of someone's friend from the class. A great get together where we watched a photo montage of trials and tribulations of the course. The students then gave their family members a certificate of appreciation for the support they had given then during their study. Things got crazier afterwards when we ended up at the Thunderbird Pub. A lot more people were letting their hair down.

Friday was Graduation Day and after breakfast in the cafeteria, Amy left for early preparations for the day, and I drove a colleagues' husband to the Marriott for the ceremony. She looked fantastic in her cap and gown and to see her walk and receive her degree was such a mixture of emotions. Elated. Relieved. Proud. Excited. But most of all, Happy for her. I was surprised that at the end of the ceremony that everyone went their own way. I supposed everyone was just so thankful that it was done, that they needed time to themselves.


The Graduate & The Proud Husband

Later that evening we drove across Phoenix to Lon's At The Hermosa Inn and had dinner with Amy's fellow graduate, and good fiend, Tom. This restaurant was fantastic - great food, good service, great company and an southwestern ambiance - even when the lights flickered out twice during a thunderstorm, the likes I had not seen in a very long time. I sense that Tom is someone Amy will keep in contact with now that school is all over - a very smart man, who was a great help to Amy throughout. After dinner we met with the group again at the Thunderbird Pub to continue the celebrations.

Saturday morning we made our way back to Vegas in the Mini - through torrential rain for most of the way. Amy made a great observation of how much prettier the desert is in Arizona than it is in Nevada. That greenery makes a world of difference. A good 5 hours later and we were back home. A quick Nanna nap in the afternoon and we were ready for the evening's festivities. We were to meet 7 others from Amy's class at Sushisamba at the Palazzo for dinner. Fun crowd and great food before we kicked on to Lavo and Tao. The night and celebrations ended for us not long after 1am. I'm pretty sure Amy had a blast over the weekend, and I'm so glad, as she deserved it.

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