he wore khakis and a blue button-down

The student center was strangely quiet.  Usually, the place was bustling with activity as it was the central gathering spot on campus.  It housed the bookstore, clubs met there and/or had booths set up for their various causes, there was a large snack bar and deli, and several tables took up a large space.  It was like a big college campus food court.

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The fall semester was coming to a close and a lot of students had already left for winter break.  But there were a few people mingling around including myself.  I guess I was studying or taking a break from studying.  I know I was NOT checking my email or browsing the internet because neither of those things existed at the time.

It was December of 1989.  I was enjoying having another semester completed.  And then...

HE walked in.

I noticed him right away.  Since it was not crowded, anyone walking around was easily noticed.  I just sat there.  I sat there and I watched him.  What would HE do?  What would I do?  What would the others in the place do?  Should I do something??

Since I didn't know what, if anything, I should do, I did nothing.  Just continued to watch him and the others and see if anything happened.  He looked so normal, yet I knew he wasn't.  Still, no one else seemed to notice him at all.

I watched.  This is what took place:

• He walked down the walkway toward the snack place
• He walked into the snack place
• He selected a piece of their heavenly banana nut bread (that I typically could not afford)
• He took his banana nut bread to the cashier
• The cashier rang up his purchase
• He paid 
• The cashier took the money and made change
• He left, heading out the way he'd come in, carrying his banana nut bread with him

It was riveting.

Yet none of the others present said or did anything to acknowledge it.  Not even that cashier.

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And I was left all, "Hey, that was...", "He was...", "That's the guy that...", "It was him..."
because, it was him

It was Thomas Cech.  He's a professor at CU Boulder where I was attending college (Go BUFFS!).  He's a professor of Chemistry, but more importantly, he had just been awarded the freaking Nobel Prize for Chemistry.

It was in all the papers (back when people read papers), and certainly, it was published all over campus.

But he walked in and out of that student center like he was anyone else.  No one batted an eye.





So I sat there thinking, "Well, at least I know who he is" and that maybe I should've said something in acknowledgement.  As I sat there pondering, another distinguished member of campus walked in.

HE was surrounded by a sort of entourage.  And as he walked through the place, others in there shouted acknowledgements to HIM.  Everyone, it seemed, wanted to be HIS friend.

It was Eric Bieniemy, star running back of the football team.

I found it interesting.  Everyone knew the football star.  No one seemed to know the chemistry star.

Maybe Dr. Cech should've had Ralphie lead his entrances.  Then maybe people would cheer!

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Linking up this week with Mama Kat for the prompt

1. Share a college memory.