Sunday Night Distraction

Sunday night, eight pm. You should be productive because another busy week of classes and assignments lies ahead. On the other hand, you've spent most of your day working on projects and you could really use some distraction. To pull you out of your misery, a friend, in my case Hanna, calls and suggests going to a bar. We tend to decide on the Sunday classic: the Phyrst. As we start walking down towards college, the same question arises every time: Where is the Phyrst exactly? It's on Beaver so far so good but where there? Well, once and for all, it's between Pugh and Allen.

When you open the massive oak door you look down a stairwell whose walls are full of picture collages with one main theme: green. It is a collection of St. Patrick's Day pictures dating as far back as the 90's. They are quite entertaining while you wait for the queue to move down the old wooden steps. Once past the register, you have the bar with its great selection of draft beers and mixed drinks to your right. On Sunday nights, it's half off the house from 10 pm to midnight. After you’ve gotten your drink of choice (mine would be a pitcher of Guinness), find one of the rough, wooden picnic-style tables. Once you’re seating, take some time to take in the unique style of the Phyrst. Look up and you see that the along the beams of the ceiling there are metal beer mugs covering each and everyone of them. Even though you’re underground, the Phyrst has colorful, church-style, backlit windows along one side of the room, which creates the illusion that you’re actually above ground and the light from the street shines in.

The Phyrst also offers live music performances almost everyday of the week. One of my favorite State College bands, Lowjack, plays here on Sunday nights. There are two pool tables available in the corner behind the stairs, but they are very hard to come by if you’re not there fairly early. However, during Penn State football games, I can highly recommend watching the game with friends at the Phyrst in between pre- and postgame tailgating and playing a relaxed game of pool in the meantime. Overall, the Phyrst is one of my favorite bars in State College and if you like a pub atmosphere with live music and wonderful specials, this will be one of your favorites as well.

Thirsty Thursday...

In the wilderness of State College nightlife there are two big wateringholes to consider on a Thursday night. One is the Mezzanine on East College Ave between McLanahan’s and Jimmy John’s. The other is Indigo on West College next to the Corner Room. I never liked ‘the Mezz’ but I am guilty of ending up at Indigo one way or the other on most Thursday nights.

I’m sure most students have their personal definition of Thirsty Thursday but for me it has always been Indigo 10 to 12: Two Dollar shots, long islands, Red Bull and Vodka and three dollar barcadi drinks. If you’re smart (or poor) you try to be there by 9:55 to beat cover because after ten its three to get in. You walk down the long blue carpeted stairs (which most times I don’t remember ascending later) and come to the register. If it’s after ten you will get the wonderful Indigo stamp that won’t come of for days to come ensuring that everyone knows where you were last night when you show up for class Friday afternoon, all haggard (Yeah, as soon as you turn 21, don’t schedule a class for friday morning…). Anyway, when you walk in, never check your coat because it will take forever to get back when you desperately want to leave. Just walk over to the tables and find a chair to pile up everyones stuff. Nothing has ever been stolen from me or any of my friends.

Once you have gotten your first round of drinks (personal favorite are the RBV’s), be sure to look out for young Donald Trump on the dance floor. A little after ten this energetic fellow will give his performance of the night – for lack of a better term - break dancing almost all by himself. Now last week, he was accompanied by a smoking hot but also visibly intoxicated girl who had decided to basically dry hump the floor. The night was off to a good start and while not as visible as these two, Indigo provides a wide array of goofy, interesting or simply good people. So good that even my hipster friend Karl, whom you would never expect to see there, will occasionally find his way down the blue carpeted stairs. He actually went last week and yesterday because he came to realize the ‘dating’ opportunities that lie within the diverse population of Indigo. If you want to find someone to talk to, even in the winter, go smoke a cigarette outisde on the churchbenches by the AC vent. You get a wrist band before you head out and when you want to come back in you better have your ID on you. Also another reason why not to check your coat, you will freeze. My friend Hanna never quite got that concept… Respectable women in next to nothing may ask you for a part of your clothing. Someone will definitely bum a cigarette of off you. While these are both inconveniences to you, they will never fail to start a conversation, and it’s up to you what you make of it.