Chris Krpan Draper
Hello Domies, Has it really been 50 years? What?
It has been so good to hear all of the stories! I jumped in late to the Dome narrative… I transferred from USF to Davis and re-connected with my high school friend, Paula Houy, who was an Aggie. She wanted to know if I was interested in a summer job that would lead to alternative housing and be her roommate. Heck yay! What an adventure. Most of you were friends already, so I was a bit out of place, but you all were so welcoming. And I learned skills that summer! Ok, so sanding the foam off the domes in the core wasn’t the greatest of jobs. I have a pic somewhere, but can’t find it. Shoot. I’m glad Cal OSHA didn’t see that pic! But I moved on to Dan’s group wiring the core units. Loved it. And remind me when we meet to tell you my favorite joke about surgeons discussing whom they love to operate on most-electricians are way up there-their organs are all color coded: white, black and green.
I loved our dome. Yellow. And Paula did a beautiful kitchen wall with paper art. Such an artist. I do remember the winter of mud. I rode my bike to class with 2 inches of ca
ked mud on my boots. It honestly was fun helping Dan in those trenches! Needless to say, prissy people in dietetics classes, or the profs, were not amused when I dropped mud in class. Ok, fine.
Can I tell you about our breakfast club with Peggy and Joan? Wow, we cooked it up. And I remember all of the darling doggies too- Kiva, Fluffy Sorkin and Charlie and Maryann’s lovely…was it a poodle? Name? Was it Moose? Or Moushka? Not surprised Charlie got a job in the state department- or did I get that wrong.
Anyway, I met a guy named Bill Draper- a shout out to you, Clay Brandow! You and he had met in a class… farm implements 101? Only in Davis. Or was it tractor driving 101.
Bill says it was Ag Practices 49. So, there was to be a dance party down the road at Cactus Corners. Clay invited Bill and our dome occupants. What a blast. The huge speaker, appropriately named, The Claw, was blasting out the toons. We danced our asses off and probably lost hearing. Turns out, Bill and I were in Biochem 101. He got and A and I got a B. I should have studied more. So….Love. And I moved out of the Domes to a group house Bill lived in on A street. They affectionately called it Putah House. So, I lost you guys a bit.
Bill moved to DC. I got a job as a lab tech at Campbell’s Soup in Sacramento; then after many letters….I mean real letters with hand drawn illustrations via USPS, we decided to get married in 1974 in DC. Actually, we got married by a JOP at the old US post office. Down the road it became a Trump Hotel-UGH! Our witnesses were the judge’s secretaries and they smoked cigs during the ceremony. What? I had to laugh.
I will truncate. From there, back to UCD for Bill’s PhD, then Logan, Utah (loved the backpacking- Wasatch, Wind Rivers, Uintas, Canadian Rockies…so awesome). Couldn’t take the culture and back to Cali- UCB and meet many lovely friends. Then U of Minnesota. We could only tolerate 3 winters-when we got there, people told us “We have 2 seasons- Winter and Winter is coming”. They were right! So back to Bay Area. In meantime, I completed nursing school at the U of M and started a career. I loved it. I worked from 1986 to 2020 in Rehab. We squeezed in a walk up Mt Whitney when I was 50 with my Sis, Bill and my son, Jack, who was 10. I highly recommend that walk! So beautiful. Truly. Now, I just walk around the hood. Argghhh. I do NOT want to start an organ recital about aches and pains. I just want to celebrate what we all did, and have now during life. Ok… I did complain. Love to all, and see you soon.
— Chris Krpan Draper
