Here's to the sunny slopes of long ago.

This is from college. Dave and I. I attended Illinois State University in Normal, Illinois from '91-'97 and again in the summer of '99.
Hey!! I got the damn degree!
The date on the picture is obvious as is the locale. We would come here everyday.
Sometimes wasting the entire day there.
Skipping our classes and holding long conversations on all manner of topics.
For a short period I worked there. So did The Wife.
It was the social center of our daytime lives. Our Peach Pit if you will.

My favorite days were when I had money to pay bills. I'd go, order a bacon cheeseburger, (which bore my name for a period, The wife's name hung on the fruit cups) fries and a large coke. When I say large I mean I could accidentally drown in it. I'd grab a seat, buy the Chicago Tribune and write my checks waiting for the food. The post office was right across the street. With a walk of accomplishment after dropping the bills in the mail, I'd sit, eat and read.
First, I'd go through the Sports section, then Royko, then Kass. I'd read through the front page, finishing off with the funnies in Tempo.
By this time, if I hadn't been already, a friend would sit and join me. This group could easily swell to a dozen of us. Points would be argued. Tales would be told. Plans constructed.
Giant soda's refilled.

It didn't amount to much besides good times.