A Telegram from Princeton

In my senior year at South Salem High School in Salem, Oregon, I applied for admission to Princeton, Amherst, and Dartmouth. Dartmouth said “no,” and Princeton and Amherst put me on their wait lists. Then Amherst told me they weren’t taking any more students from their wait list. Several weeks later, I was sitting in Spanish class, when I was told to go to the counselor’s office because she had a copy of a telegram addressed to me which stated “PLEASED TO INFORM YOU OF ADMISSION TO PRINCETON.  STOP.  LETTER TO FOLLOW.  STOP.”