CVCA has student-adult groups it calls “Connections.” The idea is to match up a group of eight to twelve students with an adult so that all students have a faculty or staff member to whom they can talk. I have a Connections group of eight senior guys, and they are a pretty fantastic group of students to be around. I like to arrange off-campus events once in awhile, so last week I proposed we go out to eat. The group suggested the nearby Royal Buffet, a Chinese buffet restaurant, and that sounded like a great idea. Since people can show up staggered, buffets and other casual eateries are best for these sorts of get-togethers.

Last Monday was the day set for the food fest, and we had a pretty good time. It was me and three of my eight guys, but that was enough people to feel like a real outing, and still small enough that we could all still talk (when we were not eating). One of the guys, Nate, had never been to the Royal Buffet before, and he gave it a huge thumbs-up. We were only there for about an hour, but I had a good time and the other guys seemed happy too. There was certainly plenty of good food to go around.