As one anonymous poster from my High School snidely remarked: I seem to have run screaming from my past. Its a gross oversimplification, but on one point it is accurate: I have no Alma Mater.

BYU keeps trying to get me to call them to "update my information." Since the only thing's I've ever got from them are a magazine full of sappy Mormon stories and mass mailings, I don't have a burning urge to call them back. I can see my phone number being sold to every pyramid scheme in Utah County.

I must admit a bit of envy at people who decorate their cubicles with school colors and get all excited about the "big game." Besides not being a big cheerleader type (too much like being in a cult), I don't have an Alma Mater I respect in any way (BYU was and is all about censorship, I just can't support that).

So when the trainer said "now that triathlon season is over, you need to do the Dawg Dash!" I was a bit thrown. The event is in support of the University of Washington (the Huskies or "Dawgs") and involves either a 5 or 10k run and you are encouraged to bring your dog to run with you! I wondered if they would take a BYU alum. I wondered if I could handle being around a bunch of people in school colors.

The event was a lot of fun. I made good time (33 min) on the 5k, considering how many hills they have. I was more than a minute faster than the average time and have been sore for three days (always a good sign). The next day I wore the (very nice) event shirt to work to show my support for my co-worker's Alma Mater.

I don't think I'm ready to adopt a new Alma Mater and I'm still not a cheerleader type (competitive though? yes!) but I am kinda wistful for an institution that I could respect and like enough to call my own.