Today was the first day I felt the stirrings of the new school year, something that I greet every time with the exact same mixed feelings I had as a second grader. It reminded me of this “back to school” letter from the summer of 1984 that I’ve long admired for its unbridled optimism and unintentional comedy:
They did not, it may surprise you to learn, win Beer-Bike that spring.
Bonus: I’m pretty sure that’s not a toilet.
For a moment I thought it was some cryptic message about the lights in the bathroom.
Talk about a surprise related to damages! If I am not mistaken, the first damage deposits were required in 1957-58, the first year the “new” college system buildings were habitable for the entire school year. I had a room in Wiess (not a new building), and at the end of the year, my roomie and I were assessed damages for scuffling the wall with our feet under our study desks. Otherwise, no damage at all. We were appalled. I did not live on campus after that, so I don’t know if those unreasonable damages continued to be assessed. (I did not move off campus because of that incident.)
I believe that is a sign pointing the way to the restroom. The use of the word “toilet” seems unusual. Usually we would say “restroom” or “bathroom.”
Do you ever send photos of materials like this to the alumni mentioned in them? I wonder if they’d be able to provide even more anecdotes or materials (e.g. it’s funny to see how Beer Bike turned out, but how did the rest of that year go?)
I usually don’t but my readers often do send them to people they recognize. I get a lot of material that way.