I think you are conflating some things

by Domer99, John Wesley Powell's Expedition Island, Wednesday, October 12, 2016, 12:18 (3079 days ago) @ Mike (bart)
edited by Domer99, Wednesday, October 12, 2016, 12:21

The whole "what tho the odds" isn't exactly the same thing as the "special" nature some folks cling to. There may be some nostalgic overlap but I don't equate the 2 when I think of why the school was "special" to me.

And I guess that's part of why I take exception to this line:

I also think that's more of a "The 'Ol Alma Mater" point that's transferable to any number of university experiences.

There's certainly college nostalgia associated with probably nearly every university but it doesn't generally translate the same way as ND did for me. My wife went to a B1G school, still keeps in touch with close college friends, will root for that school if they are doing well, but has no special affinity for the place and has little desire to go back and visit. Simply put, college was a period for her that stopped when she graduated.

I am incredibly thankful for Notre Dame for a lot of reasons I believe to be somewhat unique. It put me in touch with the best friends I still maintain. It provided a spiritual platform that wasn't as present in my life and was something that I got to share with these great friends. It allowed me to challenge myself beyond limits I thought were possible. It had opportunities that are associated with other 'typical' college experiences like sporting camaraderie.

I left my home not knowing a single soul at the school and left with more family than I can count. That's not to say that can't happen elsewhere. It does. But the closeness and affiliation I observe by many other friends I know from other Midwestern schools isn't nearly as strong. And I don't think that's by accident, in fact I think it's rather common. But I don't many other schools combine and blend the academic, social, competitive, and spiritual part of college the way Notre Dame does. You can find schools that have greater features than ND, but not many who bring it all together.

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Complete thread:

Buckle up! - Chris, 2016-10-11, 09:40
- Also a great exchange about Kizer - Brendan, 2016-10-11, 10:38
  - I love this. Good to see he still has a sense of humor - Turtlecrack, 2016-10-11, 10:48
  - I think banter is with The Observer's student reporter, too. - PMan, 2016-10-11, 10:40
    - She's new with Indy Star. Just looks like a student. - KA123, 2016-10-11, 15:56
      - Thanks. - PMan, 2016-10-11, 21:44
    - And some more humor at the end - Brendan, 2016-10-11, 10:46
- The full quote, as usual, has a different tone - Brendan, 2016-10-11, 10:29
- Honestly, I dont have time for those fans. - River, 2016-10-11, 09:54
  - The focus on yelling is just people trying to find - Turtlecrack, 2016-10-11, 10:45
  - Let Kelly be Kelly - Greg, 2016-10-11, 09:58
- his whole presser has been a mea culpa - Jay, 2016-10-11, 09:46
  - That "day one" comment: - Brendan, 2016-10-11, 10:45
    - We have a complete dearth of senior leadership - CK08, 2016-10-11, 10:51
      - ND's 2016 team experience - Mark, 2016-10-11, 11:52
        
        I don't know about comparing to past teams - Jeremy (WeIsND), 2016-10-11, 12:16
        
        I believe Smythe has a fifth year - CW (Rakes), 2016-10-11, 12:18
        
        Looks like that's right - Jeremy (WeIsND), 2016-10-11, 12:20
  - From an interested fan/alum perspective... - PMan, 2016-10-11, 09:52
    - the character assassination is what I don't get - Jay, 2016-10-11, 10:09
      - I'm just reading this thread now.... - MTIrish, 2016-10-12, 13:35
      - Keep in mind that parts of our fan base - Bill, 2016-10-12, 07:13
      - I understand it. - Buffalo, 2016-10-12, 05:51
        
        I actually can't understand Declan Sullivan as an excuse. - KGB, 2016-10-12, 06:19
        
        That whole saga is disappointing - Domer99, 2016-10-12, 12:25
        
        Exactly. - KGB, 2016-10-12, 13:55
        
        for some, the character assassination predates his hiring - Jay, 2016-10-12, 06:58
        
        And it's not really about him - Greg, 2016-10-12, 07:56
        
        There's of course the 'ND Football Ego Brigade' - Mike (bart), 2016-10-12, 07:43
        
        I've always been fascinated by the paradox - Jeremy (WeIsND), 2016-10-12, 08:44
        
        Eh, people do that about their country, their church - Flann, 2016-10-12, 10:04
        
        I certainly get that - Jeremy (WeIsND), 2016-10-12, 10:16
        
        Like the complaints about the administration's "greed". - KGB, 2016-10-12, 09:11
        
        I think there's a little bit of a twist with technology - Domer99, 2016-10-12, 12:00
        
        Reminds me of an Al Franken quote. - Kevin, 2016-10-12, 09:24
        
        Quick poll: do you love ND? - Mike (bart), 2016-10-12, 09:32
        
        I love Notre Dame like a girlfriend. - Kevin, 2016-10-12, 09:46
        
        do you have these riffs in a library in your brain - Mike (bart), 2016-10-12, 09:50
        
        The latter. - Kevin, 2016-10-12, 09:54
        
        +/- of the digital era - Mike (bart), 2016-10-12, 10:01
        
        That's a really complicated question - Greg, 2016-10-12, 09:46
        
        so, bear with me on an idea here re: ND as "special" - Mike (bart), 2016-10-12, 09:57
        
        I think it's special - Coach Gillespie, 2016-10-12, 13:07
        
        That's pretty well said and I agree. - Domer99, 2016-10-12, 14:21
        
        yeah, but you were "somebody" - Mike (bart), 2016-10-12, 13:28
        
        So you're telling me - Coach Gillespie, 2016-10-12, 13:42
        
        The magic thing is kind of self-perpetuating at this point, - LT, 2016-10-12, 12:24
        
        I think your third paragraph gets to it exactly - Mike (bart), 2016-10-12, 12:38
        
        I think you are conflating some things - Domer99, 2016-10-12, 12:18
        
        Mostly just a football fan now. The lack of humility and - Buck Mulligan, 2016-10-12, 12:05
        
        for my part - Jay, 2016-10-12, 11:54
        
        I have no problem with that distinction - Greg, 2016-10-12, 10:11
        
        I don't have much of an opinion about either thing - Mike (bart), 2016-10-12, 09:18
        
        Maybe there's a difference - Buffalo, 2016-10-12, 06:45
        
        some experience in industrial safety - Jay, 2016-10-12, 07:19
        
        a bit more - Jay, 2016-10-12, 07:28
        
        I agree that those are some of the reasons given - Jay, 2016-10-12, 06:09
      - There's been an element that's hated him from the start - Coach Gillespie, 2016-10-11, 11:31
        
        If you assume the very worst about Kelly as a person... - BillyGoat, 2016-10-12, 06:46
        
        Ill admit - Mark, 2016-10-11, 16:06
        
        Good stuff - Greg, 2016-10-11, 18:47
        
        There's a bunch of really good football players on this team - Jeremy (WeIsND), 2016-10-11, 19:48
        
        Good point, and I could see that point of view from JS. - Greg, 2016-10-12, 07:56
        
        Some people apparently want to go to prom with their coach. - KGB, 2016-10-11, 12:21
        
        Agreed, and I don't need a mea culpa from Kelly - HCE, 2016-10-11, 12:57
        
        He has a fine reputation in town. Nobody has a bad thing to - Buck Mulligan, 2016-10-11, 12:18
        
        Some day, I want to work for 7/11's marketing department - Coach Gillespie, 2016-10-11, 12:56
        
        I am not familiar with the Davie story--care to elaborate? - Jim (OFD), 2016-10-12, 06:32
        
        I don't eat at 7/11. But I would, once, if you did that. - Greg, 2016-10-11, 13:01
      - It's human nature and applies beyond sports - Flann, 2016-10-11, 10:37
        
        Especially these days - Jack, 2016-10-11, 11:28
        
        He smells like sulfur - Bill, 2016-10-11, 19:42
        
        good quote - Jay, 2016-10-11, 10:55
      - The more you demonize him, the easier it is to fire him - Domer99, 2016-10-11, 10:37
      - Contrast that to Faust - Jeff (BGS), 2016-10-11, 10:36
      - In MT's defense - jcocktoaston, 2016-10-11, 10:28
        
        it's all good - Jay, 2016-10-11, 10:30
        
        To qoute one of you gents from a blog past - jcocktoaston, 2016-10-11, 10:41
      - Agreed. - PMan, 2016-10-11, 10:20
        
        I don't think it has any real impact either - Jay, 2016-10-11, 10:29
      - For the media at large, it's clickbait - Brendan, 2016-10-11, 10:20
      - Brian Kelly burned my steak last night - Greg, 2016-10-11, 10:16
  - It's easy and steers the narrative. - Chris, 2016-10-11, 09:51
- And while hunting for presser updates...found this. - Chris, 2016-10-11, 09:43
  - I like that kid more every day - Brendan, 2016-10-11, 10:22

the Polo Grounds

I think you are conflating some things