Wickeds, continuing with our theme of hangouts and hideaways what was that place you hung out in during your early twenties? Noisy bar? Smoky coffeehouse? Fraternity/sorority? Describe it for us. (I’m not even going to ask about shenanigans for this one.)
Edith/Maddie: I stuck around near my college town (Irvine, California) for another year after graduation. Around the corner from the apartment I shared with friends in Costa Mesa was the Bull and Bush, a British pub. We would go over over in the evening for a pint, a plate of mash and bangers, and a few games of darts. It wasn’t particularly smoky, everybody was friendly, and we could walk home. What’s not to like? (And yes, the shenanigans, of which there were many, shall remain unnamed…)
Julie: I went to Boston University, and there were two hangouts. One was in the space my theater group had. Boston University Stage Troupe had an entire garage for many years, which was fab. Then we got moved up Commonwealth Ave to a still great space. I spent hours there, or in the theater during tech. I spent many other hours in the Dugout, the college bar. Many, many hours drinking Miller, smoking, and laughing.
Liz: I went to school in Salem, Mass. and I spent a lot of time in the coffee shop across the street from campus (no surprise there). But also, I spent a lot of time in town at all the woo-woo bookstores and other witchy shops – that was always my jam. I loved all the things – crystals, incense, oracle cards, spiritual self-help books, and all the Laurie Cabot-vibe stuff that was so prevalent in Salem.
Jessie: I am a huge plant fan, in my twenties and today so I spent a lot of time hanging around in greenhouses and garden centers. I also spent a lot of time in my own gardens, adding plants and cultivating those already in place.
Sherry: I went to college in the small town of Kirksville, Missouri–the same college my parents attended and where they met. If I wasn’t at the Sig Tau house I was at The Tap Room. The Tap Room was in the basement of this creepy old hotel. You went in through cracked cement stairs outside the hotel–think the of the steps to the TV show Cheers only scary. It reeked of old beer and smoke. The tables were carved with initials and an old shuffleboard table sat against one wall. We had a LOT of fun. But my favorite story comes from my parents. It was a particularly hot summer in Kirksville. Mom worked in an office with no air conditioning. Dad went to The Tap Room to “study” because it was one of the few places in town with air conditioning.
Barb: I went to college in Philadelphia. Pennsylvania was a 21 state, even in an era when most surrounding states had lowered the drinking age to 18. That definitely affected where my college hangout was. A bunch of my friends worked and hung out at a coffee house in the basement of one of the older dorms. I spent way too much time there playing bridge and pinochle and listening and singing along to songs played on the guitar, along with regular Wickeds reader Vida Antolin-Jenkins. I have many happy memories.
Readers: Tell us where you hung out in your late teens/early twenties.