1992

It’s great when a classmate writes this column for me, even inadvertently, and this time I have Raj Shah to thank. He posted in our class of 1992 Facebook group: “Woke up this new year after having my same recurring dream of being a Dartmouth freshman. I look 45 but no one seems to notice. Have a paper due in a class I didn’t know I was taking and my hallmates are from all different phases of life. I am incredibly content until two minutes before waking up when I realize it’s a dream. Since this was not a tequila-induced dream, I assume a lot of ’92s have this or a similar dream, right?” As it turns out, many of us do!

Nicole Clausing: “My Dartmouth anxiety dreams are often about my Hinman Box [HB], for some reason. In my dreams I realize it’s been months since I checked it, and when I do go there I can’t remember my combination. I do have dreams about the paper or test I’m unprepared for, but those usually take place in high school. (And yeah, I’m always middle-aged in the dream, too, and no one, even me, seems to think that’s weird.)”

Melissa Rich: “Oh my, I regularly have the HB mail dream as well!” Rachel Muszala Ocken: “I always dream that I realize it’s the week before finals and I completely forgot about going to one of my classes— can’t even find the room to sweet-talk the prof.”

Gretchen McNeely: “In mine I have to take a math class because it was inadvertently left off my transcript and so I technically didn’t graduate. After that exam I walk into the Hopkins Center and have to perform with the Glee Club using a libretto I’ve never seen and music I’ve never heard. Sometimes I am naked.” Stephanie Westnedge: “Mine are more about getting in literally. I arrive at Dartmouth and make my way to the dorm and find out I have to go to residential services to get my key. And there is my high school valedictorian (who went to Notre Dame) and makes me do all this extra stuff while giving keys to other people.”

Tony Moody: “To the extent I do, it’s inevitably about being unprepared for a class or forgetting a class entirely and then realizing it as everyone is leaving the building!” Winnie Huang: “The only Dartmouth dream I ever have, I oversleep and miss a final exam. Given we graduated a long time ago, that’s just sad. Hah hah.” Lisabeth Sewell: “I do have a recurring Dartmouth dream about not being able to figure out which HB is mine in the Hop. It’s a crazy, panicky stress dream!”

I’ve re-posted these with permission, and here’s mine: A recurring dream that I live in Reed Hall. I have a very fancy living room with a chandelier and a view of the Hop and the Green.

Our latest newsletters include a summary of the special April Fool’s Day edition of our annual mini-reunion, a recap of our March Madness bracket and more; you can find them on the ’92 website (dartmouth92.org).

All the recent camaraderie makes the loss of a classmate even more difficult to report. Benjamin Crawford died February 3 in Falls Church, Virginia. He is survived by his wife, Stephanie Luongo, and three children. If you’d like to contribute remembrances of Ben to our website’s “In Memoriam” section, email news@dartmouth92.org (stories and photos are welcome).

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