UC Berkeley

Mom and dad had the intent of paying for our college education and paid for the college experience for my brothers.  Keith attended UCB (University of California, Berkeley) and Brian attending SFSU (San Francisco State University) right out of high school.  I asked my parents to hold off spending money on me until I transferred from CCSF to UCB.  That happened during the Fall Quarter 1976.

My parents went all out when it came to our college education.  In addition to tuition, they included living expenses which included a dorm room and cafeteria privileges.  I was placed in Cunningham Hall, a coed dorm.  The dorm had floors with all guys, all girls and one floor that was mixed.  I was on the all guys floor.  Outside of overnighters and summer camp with the scouts, it was my first experience living away from home.  Granted I would return home occasionally on weekends, but the freedom was new to me.

The dorms were small rooms with two beds, two desks, two closets and two chest of drawers.  I had two roommates.  Dave Goldstein was my first roommate.  We got along well for two quarters.  When the third quarter came around he received a notice that he would be on probation due to his grades.  When he told me this, I suggested changing majors.  He went with that suggestion and switched over to Psychology.  His grades improved, but he moved out to be closer with classmates within his major. 

I can't remember the name of my second roommate.  The one thing I remember was that he kept to himself and left the room vacant to allow me to study in the room for most of the night.  He also kept a bottle of Jack Daniels on his dresser and would take a shot or two before turning in.  I was fortunate to have these two roommates.

Looking back, the college dorm scene was like office life.  One would make friends and avoid others that just didn't fit in one's life.  I made friends with two sets of roommates.  There was Stan/Gary and Marty/Bob. 

Fond memories with the six of us included...

• Celebrating my 21st birthday.  It started when I found a card that was shoved under the door of my room.  Not sure if we had a meal, but I do remember a night of bowling at the Student Union.  I managed to get a turkey from one of the sets that night.

• Binge watched all three Godfather movies that was somehow seamlessly made into one long movie.  It was Godfather movie night at the Student Union.

Some memorable activities at the dorm included...

• Spending time in the common room where parties were held before meals.  There was a pinball machine, a foosball table and a pool table.  It was here that my one and only trick shot at pool was made.  My last ball was the eight ball, but it was block by an opponent's ball.  I somehow managed to strike the ball and make it jump over my opponent's ball, sinking the eight ball in the corner pocket.

•  There was a pumpkin carving contest.  I was able to carve one pumpkin, but had to leave to attend Woodbadge graduation (see Scouting section).  Came back after the ceremony only to find nearly rotting pumpkins on display in the common room.

Dorm food was not as bad as what some folks made it out to be.  Where else could one get multiple helpings and not have to do dishes.  We could also request for a bag lunch if we could not make it to a meal in time from a class.  I actually gained about ten pounds while at the dorms.

Not to downplay the classes at UCB.  I found the class I chose to be intense but felt comfortable with save one.  I knew I wouldn't be an A student, but being a Dentist looked to be a doable goal in the beginning.  I did well in the sciences with my favorite subjects being Phycology followed by Biochem.  I found myself wandering in and out of the computer labs even though a computer class was not in the curriculum.  But no matter how much time I put into studies or the countless trips to the TA and tutors, I could not grasp that one topic that would be my downfall....Statistics.

I never graduated from UCB.  I was failing Statistics even though it was a major component of my major, Genetics.  I did have options such as switching majors or transferring to another institution.  I realized I could no longer fool myself in thinking I could do math.  It was like Lowell's CP7 math class all over again.  The only class I failed at Lowell. 

My only other option was to stop, take a break and start working.  What was ironic was that my assessment test to find a suitable occupation came up with math teacher as my best bet.  My decision to call it quits came at the end of the third quarter.  I was no longer a student in 1977.