I, like you, have been through many transitions. I transitioned from an Oklahoma resident to a Kansas resident at a young age. I transitioned from a high school student to a college student at the appropriate time. I transitioned from a bachelor’s degree to a couple of graduate degrees and in the process, transitioned from a working engineer to one teaching engineering. I transitioned from a Kansas resident to a Wisconsin resident. I transitioned from pure academic to one both teaching and working in engineering. I transitioned from married to divorced and in the process transitioned to being a single parent. A recent transition was from being a home owner to living in a condominium, a necessary recognition of my age and movement instability.
But, let me talk about my transition from being a Kansas resident to becoming a Wisconsin resident in the fall of 1971. Changes were at hand wherever one looked. First was the student union at the University of Wisconsin – Madison. They served BEER in the student union. This was a first for me! Right away, this, coupled with the number of real bars and the weekly pilgrimage for Friday night fish fry (a thinly disguised time for drinking) was completely different for me. It seemed quite good.
Then, I soon encountered the annual Wisconsin deer hunt. Unlike the almost non-existent deer hunt in Kansas, this was the real thing. Many people moving the night before the season opener. Deer drives organized by large parties of people. When not on a deer drive, sitting quietly and hoping a deer would appear in your sights. Then there was the conviviality of food, beer and conversation as one enjoyed deer camp! Deer camp was my first introduction to rutabaga!
Well, about the time I encountered my first Wisconsin deer hunt, I also encountered my first Wisconsin winter. Dorothy, we are no longer in Kansas. Wow – deep snow, cold wind, slick driving, long nights, gray days, and the necessity to get new winter clothes for everyone. Wow – who would think that in the month of January the thermometer might never top freezing! This seemed not real when one was still within the confines of the United States. (I did eventually adapt and even went camping at Devil’s Lake State Park in January with my older son one winter. We did fine, but slept on pine boughs to stay off the snow.)
The Wisconsin transition was also a significant change in my university studies. Prior to moving to Wisconsin, all of my university academic time had been shared with other things that required significant time. As an undergraduate at the University of Kansas, I was on the varsity football team, which paid for my education. As a graduate student at Wichita State University, I had first worked for Boeing during my graduate education, then worked as an instructor at Wichita State in the latter part of my graduate work. But at Wisconsin, I was blessed with an NSF Science Faculty Fellowship that paid my entire cost of school and provided a monthly amount that almost paid the bills. So, it was wonderful, all I did was go to class and study. It seemed strange at first, but I took heavy loads (the money was only for a single year) and so I was plenty busy. Fortunately, when that first year ended, I had enough classroom hours to satisfy my degree requirements and needed only to figure out how to support a two-year project to write and defend my thesis. Fortunately, and with good fortune, I was able to piece together some consulting and teaching to successfully complete the two years and graduate. An important milestone for me.
Another notable observation on the transition from Kansas to Wisconsin. Wisconsin was in the throes of the end of its anti-war activism associated with the Vietnam War. There were many demonstrations, gatherings, etc. I remember the police used to congregate in cars in a parking area not far from my school office and I would often see them in their cars as I headed for home in the evening. The side windows had all been replaced with heavy screening. Fortunately, the anti-war activities had been winding down on campus before my arrival (the Sterling Hall bombing August 24, 1970, started the decline of the anti-war activity at UW Madison) and it never seriously interfered with my education.
The transition has been good for me and I have remained a Wisconsin resident since my arrival in the fall of 1971. I presume my next transition will be to Forest Hill cemetery, right here in Madison, Wisconsin.
