Though I admit, I had some mild envy for schools like Northwestern (deep purple) and U of C (maroon) who chose to also have a colorful robe itself (Utah's robe is black, as are most schools'). The colorful robes are very dramatic. But unless I go get another Ph.D., a black robe is what I get. And y'know, another Ph.D. is not so high on my list of things-to-do anytime soon. :-)
I made it through convocation, but was very tired afterward. Came home by 1 and collapsed for an hour. Dealt with some school-related e-mails and phone calls. Had tea with a friend who's having a tough time; hope we cheered her up some, but I'm afraid Kev and I are both so sick that we were somewhat slow and dull in conversation. We tried. Hopefully she'll forgive us.
Afterwards, spent the rest of the day trying to catch up on e-mail while lying in front of the tv. Not as restful as actually napping, but there's too much piled up e-mail for me to ignore at this point.
But now it's late, and I can justify sleeping. Good night.
Of ourse, you could get an honorary doctorate from some place with cool robes. The rule is: Your most recent degree, honorary or earned, determines your academic garb.
I really hope you feel better soon.
Hey, I just found out yesterday that they *charge* you for those honorary degrees. A colleague of mine at Roosevelt, who has had a stellar professional career in dance, got offered an honorary BA from his home town college — but they wanted him to pay $6000 for it! He laughed and laughed…
That depends on the school and the circumstances. I think an honorary doctorate is almost automatic for any commencement speaker, for example. I cannot imagine one being charged for that.