Matt’s MIT adventure
Friday, June 1

Matt’s Day in Boston dawned rainy, but our spirits were sunny. We thanked Mom and Dad for their hospitality, and we were on our way to our next great adventure…that is until we hit some backed up traffic. When we arrived in Cambridge, there were no parking spaces to be found. I drove around and around in circles, when I finally saw a parking lot with an MIT sign on it. I hooted with happiness as the joyful parking lot attendant handed us a map to find our way through the streets of Cambridge. I felt a huge sense of accomplishment.

As we approached the campus to begin our tour, we all took in the grandeur of the setting. It felt very old and a little intimidating to be honest. When our tour guide came, we got started walking around the campus. Although we didn’t get a chance to see the dorm rooms, we did hear a lot about their exceptional programs and the highly competitive application process. They only accept 11 – 13% of the applicants who apply, so it is a very selective pool. Matt loved it. He further fell in love with it when we walked in to the Hacking “museum.” This part of one of the buildings paid tribute to MIT’s long tradition of pranking. It was amazing to learn of the pranks that highly intelligent engineering students can conceive. Matt was very impressed with the athletic facilities as well. SOLD!

Check it out and see for yourself what all of the excitement is about. http://web.mit.edu/

After a quick lunch and shopping trip at the bookstore (we had to resist the urge to buy Mr. Engel a tee shirt that had a glow in the dark periodic table), we headed to Worcester to see Worcester Polytech, sister-in-law Tracey’s alma mater. Although I had visited the campus when Tracey was a student there, the beauty of setting struck me during this visit. We got there early enough to sneak into an information session. I loved the emphasis of service and project based learning at WPI. Here is the WPI link! http://www.wpi.edu/

I wanted to go, and although it was a great experience to compare and contrast their other college visits, the boys were ready to head to Cousins Davis and Payton’s house for a little r and r, and they did just that! Between home run derbies in the back yard while hitting 90 mph curve balls or ping pong tournaments in the basement, they had a chance to reflect on their college visits. Saturday morning had us at Miss P’s soccer games, and the Evil Pickles were victorious 2 out of 3 times. Go Pickles! Mom and Dad Fallon came over in the afternoon for a cook out as did friends Bill, Michelle and their daughter Mary. Of course the Red Sox were playing, so Dad had a chance to put his feet up and watch the game.

Technology- The technology of the Kindle was discussed throughout the weekend. These are amazing, and although I had heard of them, I had never seen them in action. The unit is amazing. My sister-in-law Lynn’s almost looked like a day planner, but when she opened the cover, it revealed a screen where she could download books from her Amazon account. Wow! Literature at the press of a button. I can’t help but think of the educational applications. Lynn said that they are getting ready to come out with a college textbookish version. Wow! The more I discover about technology the more I realize that I have to learn.