I may be Fuchsia…

I’m nearly done with my MBA. I’ve earned the M and the B and have three classes left to take, if I survive this semester, which is not off to a good start. I’m floundering due to the fact that I’m overwhelmed (story of my life) from doing a big expansion and marketing project in addition to managing and running the everyday programs and their details. I also refuse to spend my entire weekend studying; I would like to enjoy what’s left of my youth.

But truly my problem might be that this semester I’m in class without my MBA BFF, tear :’ (
I got so lucky to meet her first semester, we planned and celebrated our engagements and weddings together and have pushed each other through the program, sustained by coffee samples and desserts from The Happy Place. Being able to write notes to her (yes, I still write notes in class) and share snacks and carpool and study together makes it bearable.

“What are you going to do with the MBA?” is the question I am most often asked. Well, it began as a fall back plan, still is, though it has helped me be a better business owner. “That’s great,” says my father, “it’s not often you learn stuff in school you can actually apply to work.” He would know being in the group of “PhD dropouts”, he completed all the coursework but the dissertation would do nothing for his career. I happen to have several friends on the PhD track, all of whom threaten to quit at least once a semester. Once my friend applied for a job that was seeking, “PhD or PhD dropouts a plus”.

Oh, graduate school. Too bad no cares if you have almost an MBA.

My brother went to business school too, and he managed to meet all kinds of cool kids with even cooler parents with second homes in Aspen and open invitations to join them at the Indy 500.



He obliviously had quite a different experience than me.



I love to discuss classes with him and he loves to remind me how serious and conservative business school is.

He had me convinced I was the most vibrant thing in the place. Classmates don’t often know what to do with me, “Children’s theatre...” their voices drop off, they don’t really have a response.

But, this week, I got a splash of color, a bald guy with two hoop earrings, sporting a fleece vest, open to reveal a shirt that reads, “Shalom M-F-er”. Kid you not. The best part was he was the elected speaker of our group and had to stand up in front of the class shirt and all. I would have zipped my vest shut - - he did not.

I texted my brother immediately, who responded, “What kind of a school are they running?”

This gentleman happens to be the father of a 17-month-old and as I get to know him better I find he curses like a sailor when working on linear programming. Maybe I’m not the most colorful thing in the MBA program. I may be fuchsia, but this guy is chartreuse.