We Finally Got Together

A freind's Facebook Post 

We Finally Got Together

State College, PA

September 13, 2013

My friend's post:  Well, the wonderful Bridget E Kelly and I were FINALLY able to get together yesterday, after not seeing each other for over 21 years!! We both felt that neither of us had changed--not sure if that is a good thing or not. My very brave husband Kevin Wickline, who definitely demonstrated his sense of humor and tolerance of tomfoolery, drove us up to State College, where Bridget and I tried our best to reminisce about, and relive some, old times. During our Master's Program in 1980-81. And then from 1985-88? We made stops to Zeno's and the Rathskellar. Some minor changes over the years. Unfortunately, The Phyrst Bottle Shop is no longer in existence. And many a memory was made there! And just so you know, Bridget, there is now a credible witness to all that transpired last evening, so you can no longer make stuff up about how it all went down!!! All in all, it was a fantastically fun time with one of the coolest people I have ever known. And so glad it's not just "Somebody That I Used To Know." Somebody that I STILL know.

• Active

  Bridget E Kelly

  it was GREATTTTTTTTTTTT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! to see you again.
• Jeams Jn Louis

  A understanding friend is all everyone should have to get better the long of the life.
• Active

  Bridget E Kelly

  Bobbie you should be friends with Jeams Jn Louis

Goodbye Rathskellar

Goodbye Rathskellar

1933-2018

My Favorite Bar in State College, PA

It's my favorite basement car.

The first bar I snuck in to in State College.

I went there when I was 19 and my sister was 18.

I drank hundreds of Rolling Rock cases of beer here.

Someone bought it and is going to put a high end bar in there.  I hate that guy.

My Parents Paid A Lot of Tuition Money

My Parents Paid A Lot of Tuition Money
Philadelphia, PA
From 1966 to 1995

1950- My parents married on December 29

And then the kids followed;

1952- Kathy
1954- Jimmy
1955- me
1956- Sharon
1957- Chris
1959- Tricia
1970- Brian

And then the school tuitions followed.  My parents sent us to private high schools and then paid for our undergraduate education. Here is just a small sample of the tuitions at these times:

1969-
   high school tuitions- Kathy, Jim, Sharon and me

1970
  college tuition- Kathy
  high school tuition- Jimmy, Sharon and me

1973
   college tuition- Kathy, Jim and me
   high school tuition- Sharon, Chris and Tricia
   pre-school tuition- Brian

1975
    college tuition- Jim, Sharon, Chris, and me
    high school tuition- Tricia
    pre-school tuition- Brian

1980
    college- Tricia
    private grade school- Brian

When he finally paid his last tuition bill, my father probably wrote 70 checks.  That's a lot of money.  I am forever grateful to my parents for this sacrifice.

PENN STATE

WE ARE …… PENN STATE

1975-1987

• ·      PSU
• ·      Blue and White
• ·      Joe Paterno
• ·      State College, PA: a large college town
• ·      Zeno’s- one of my favorite bars in the world
• ·      Rathskeller- another one of my favorite bars
• ·      Football Games
• ·      Friends and acquaintances who challenged my parochial thinking
• ·      Twelve years and three degrees- BS, Med, DEd
• ·      The Mall- a pathetic place to shop
• ·      Sharon, Patricia, Bill, Glenn, Deirdre, Heather, William, Chris- family members who also went to PSU
• ·      Gentle Thursday
• ·      Cases of Rolling Rock beer
• ·      JB and Sherry playing at the bars
• ·      Arts’ Festival in July.
• ·      College Avenue- always alive with people
• ·      Sticky buns at Ye Olde College Diner @ 3AM on a Saturday morning
• ·      The creamery- the best ice cream in the world
• ·      Beaver Stadium- holds 110,000 people and the parking lot holds another 30,000 people.  It really gets crowded on football weekends.
• ·      Taking naps at the HUB
• ·      Sometimes skipping classes to take a nap at the HUB
• ·      Allen Street shops
• ·      Oldies on Thursday night at the Shandy Gaff
• ·      The Phyrst Family sing-alongs
• ·      Free beers at the fraternities; some times this was still too large a price to pay as those frat boys could be very obnoxious
• ·      Phi Psi 500 race- a beer race to raise money for an organization of some sort.  I didn’t care what we were raising money for; I just liked to be this race.
• ·      Blue and White game in the spring
• ·      Watching football games at the bars on a Saturday afternoon
• ·      Café 210- sitting outside and drinking French 75s
• ·      The long ride from State College to home (Philly)
• ·      Parking lot 80: the student parking lot, light years away from campus
• ·      Leet Hall- North campus
• ·      Terrible, terrible cafeteria food- mock chicken
• ·      The Lion’s Den (HUB)- I worked there six hours a week, which was just enough to supplement my beer fund.
• ·      Weekend movies at the Forum
• ·      Dr. Sun apartments- despicable living conditions
• ·      My first apartment: an old blue monster of a house that was falling apart at the seams
• ·      Random checks from my father to cover some of my expenses.  Most of this money went to beer consumption.
• ·      Shared a big, old redbrick house with five guys and an Irish setter.  The dog liked to wear denim cut-off shorts
• ·      Lots and lots of snowy, cold, long winters. Some years it seemed as if spring was never going to come.
• ·      Students from all over the state and all over the world
• ·      90,000 students strong
• ·      Spring break trips to the Mardi Gras and Key West.  Both trips beat me up. They were wilder than me.
• ·      A strong art series.  I’ve seen most of the major ballet companies from around the world.
• ·      “We don’t know the goddamn words”: the students’ version of the Alma Mater
• ·      Nittany Mountain
• ·      Blue Band
• ·      A great library
• ·      A beautiful campus; I love walking around that campus
• ·      A place that always feels like home.
• ·      Running from class at 4:55, trying to make the 5:00PM deadline to order half price drinks at the Lion’s Den.
• ·      Driving on 322 N and seeing nothing but farm after farm.  Then suddenly, off in the distance, the campus appears.
• ·      Happy Valley
• ·      FTK- Dance Marathon- The largest student run fundraiser in the country.  All proceeds go to the Four Diamond Foundation, which supports children with cancer.  I am proud of PSU.
• ·      Beautiful mountain vistas
• ·      A slow, gentle pace of life
• ·      Boalsburg, a sweet little town that offers an alternative to this large college town
• ·      Lots and lots of student activities but I dint take advantage of these opportunities much to my regret later on in life.
• ·      A place that transformed me from a person with no confidence to someone who could take on the world.  THANK YOU PENN STATE!!!!
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