Homecoming Weekend At The University Of Denver

This is homecoming weekend at the University of Denver, where I worked for 28 years as the Finance Manager for the DU Bookstore, and also where I earned an MBA. Being a DU retiree and an alumnus, I got an e-mail inviting me to the HocktoberFEST Pregame Festival before the hockey game yesterday evening between the University of Denver Pioneers and Northeastern University. Since HocktoberFEST was taking place right across the street from my condo, I decided what the hell, and reserved two tickets and two drink coupons (my sister Susan wanted to go too). Susan decided not to attend after all, and so I was forced to use her drink coupon as well as my own, but I bravely faced up to the situation and had two Melvin IPAs, which were truly excellent and brewed in Alpine, Wyoming, just outside of Jackson Hole.

There was a large crowd inside the DU Field House, as well as outside in the beer garden, and everyone was in a festive mood. The big event was, of course, the hockey game. DU won the NCAA National Championship last year, and people are excited about the current season. DU ended its football program 63 years ago, and so hockey is the big sport. When I worked at the DU Bookstore, one of the most popular t-shirts had "University of Denver Football, Undefeated Since 1961" on the front. I never bought one before we were outsourced to Follett Higher Education Group, and since Follett has no sense of humor whatsoever, I suspect I will probably never see one of those again. And sadly, the team known as the Denver Pioneers no longer has a mascot. The university determined that Boone, a Walt Disney designed cartoon pioneer, wearing a coonskin cap, was deemed not fit to be a mascot because it was not gender neutral, and many on campus are not too crazy about the word "pioneer," either. Talk about not having a sense of humor. And by the way, DU won both the Friday and Saturday night games by scores of 5-2 and are now a perfect 4-0 for the season. Go Pios!