a good encounter

Last Saturday Big J and I were out on a "date" and we had a fabulous meal (this is more of a side note to the story). After dinner we walked through the downtown mall to the Mud House for a cup of coffee. As we started to go in I noticed a few people sitting on the bench outside, made eye contact with one of the guys and, seconds later, realized that I knew him. Big J and I went in, then while he was ordering, I went back outside to say hello.

The student was one I had worked with during an internship a couple years ago and I had not seen him for nearly two years. We caught up and talked about what he was doing. I mentioned that we might see each other again because he would fit into the profile of students I am interviewing for my dissertation. His friend asked about the topic and when I told him his eyes lit up and he asked several questions, ending with a request for a copy of my proposal. How flattered am I?

More importantly, both men expressed how important the topic was to them personally and how it addressed issues that they had been thinking about. Wow! I have been really concerned that student might not think about SES and identity until long after graduation. But I am more hopeful now that there will be some data out there.