[I previously wrote this for LinkedIn but I’m posting it here as well.]
In my Senior year of high school, I’d gotten all my acceptances from every other school I’d applied to – all nice fat packets of literature – but nothing from UCLA. I was in San Diego coming off a concert performance & my parents drove to pick me up with the goal of touring the campuses of UCSD, UCI & UCSB.
As we headed to UCSD, I asked, “Did we hear from UCLA?” The car got quiet & my Mom said, “Yes” & handed me a thin envelope, then saying. “I’m sorry, son,” knowing UCLA was my #1.
I was on a high from the concert still, removing my suit & I said, “It’s okay Mom,” and I sat in the backseat with the envelope for a minute. Then I opened it & my eyes were a little teary & only saw one typewritten word on the page:
“Congratulations!”
And just like the Bruin Bound videos, I yelled, “I got in! OMG, I got in!” The next few minutes could only be described as chaos in the family station wagon as we tried to figure out what to do. Next thing we know, we’re hightailing it up the I-5 to Westwood stopping only for food & a payphone call to UCLA trying to arrange an impromptu campus tour to learn about the potato tree & where Mr Janss was buried.
So my 1st interaction w/ UCLA was getting punked by Admissions. I mean, sending a LETTER of congratulations? DUDE.
Posted by kurtsh 
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