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Boring Things

We headed up to New York today to attend my sister-in-law’s graduation ceremony—she received her MBA from the Stern School of Business at NYU. The speeches were both inspiring and disturbing when you think of the responsibility these young people will have. After all, they represent the next generation of corporate looters, and we all look to them to uphold a long and proud tradition of flagrant disregard for ethical conduct and moral values in the pursuit of personal enrichment. I can say that (facetiously, of course), not because I’m so sure no graduate will ever cause a corporate scandal, but because I was won over by the earnestness and sincerity of the faculty’s devotion to ethical and socially-responsible behavior. The day gave me some hope that these tycoons were at least taught the difference between right and wrong.

Some random notes follow.

They have a pipe band. That is so cool, although I don’t quite get the Scottish connection. The pipe band played the processional while the graduates took their seats.

Besides the many inspiring speeches, they showed a video of campus life. My favorite quote from a professor: “I’m an accountant. I’m not a boring person. I just get very excited about boring things.” I wish I’d said that. I freely admit to getting excited about boring things. Whether I’m boring or not... well, let’s move on, shall we?

I was hoping to snag a lobster roll after the ceremony, but all the places I knew of close between lunch and dinner. We headed back to an early dinner at a nice Italian restaurant across the Hudson in Hoboken. Then we headed home. The graduate and her husband are taking some well-earned time off.