From: Jackson, Jeffrey
Sent: Wednesday, October 23, 2002 4:31 PM
Subject: Tulane Reunion holdouts
Well, as far as I can tell, no one I know is going to the reunion
being held this week. I thought that I would like to at least
memorialize it with a simple email.
I had a thought that perhaps each of us could forward it to all the
grads we know from '92, and perhaps each share a memory and email it
on to the others. Say what you will about the place, but I have
nothing but good memories. Here is one of mine:
14 years ago: We first set foot in Bruff commons. Remember those fit
& trim lunch ladies? I dont either. I remember huge women with few
teeth asking "may I therve you?" The wonder of calico skillet. The
genius of the captain crunch dispenser. The roast beef with huge
veins in it. They were so caring that they didnt put leavening agents
in the cake all year round, just so that certain students could eat
them on passover.
The good news was that this was where we met friends and talked and
shared good news and bad. Some of us as upperclassmen actually went
back every so often, just to reminisce, and when we had coupons
(or copies of coupons)
It all began with Bruff.
==============================================
From:
TTheisen Sent: Wednesday, October 23, 2002 9:40 PM
Subject: Tulane memories
jeff, what a great idea!
here are some of my most vivid Tulane memories:
-- getting classes off for Mardi Gras
-- wading through thigh-high water on campus after thunderstorms
-- fuzzy caterppillars everywhere in the spring
-- cafe au lait and beignets at 4 a.m.
-- movies at McAlister Hall and, when I worked there, climbing the
steep ladder up to the projection room with movie boxes that weighed
3 tons each
-- dance classes in an ancient Newcomb classroom with the huge
windows open on nice days, looking out at the tops of the oaks
swaying in the breeze
-- writing movie reviews for the Hullaballo with the pretentiousness
only a 21-year-old can muster
-- free TGIF concerts aand beer (before it was banned) on the quad
-- meeting people at the ATM
-- taking the Freret Jet bus through scary neighborhoods to the
Quarter
-- Brian and I throwing cups of water on each other and cracking up
on the quad
-- hanging out at the levee with go-cups
-- riding bikes with Karen in the pouring rain in Audubon Park
-- frat boys sunning themselves in lawn chairs on the median of
Broadway every Friday afternoon
let's keep passing this list along and include everyone in all the
e-mails.
parry, I'm passing this on to you, too, cause I thought you would
enjoy.
tiffini
http://infinitefetish.blogspot.com ===================================================================
Jennifer Miller wrote:
What fun, I'll play too -
The way the food at Bruff got way better for parents' weekend and
right before Thanksgiving
Going to Audubon Zoo almost every day, and getting to go in before
it opened when the animals were active
Dancing at Club Bedrock, Jax Brewery, and all those other places
that were so cool at the time
Dance classes at Newcomb, and also yoga at Reilly with Betsy, the
yoga lady
Really great professors, with only a couple exceptions.
Owning 30 t-shirts so I could go for a month without doing laundry
Camellia Grill's french fry omelet, with fries on the side
Shopping runs to The Real Superstore, and the nut with the big David
Duke billboard in his yard next door
====================================================
From: Jeffrey Lowry
Sent: Thursday, October 24, 2002 11:55 AM
Subject: Re: Tulane memories
Camellia Grill was the best.
Remember Eamon Kelly? His unfortunate nickname (and variations
thereof) will haunt me for the rest of my life: Screamin' Eamon,
the Steamin' Semen Demon.
There was the hurricane scare (does anyone remember the name of the
hurricane? I think it was '88) that sent Tulanians to the liquor
store. While the rest of the city was panicking, the Green Wavers
were lined up around the block to buy alcohol. It was important
to meet life-threatening natural disasters in a state of intoxicated
idiocy.
I remember swimming (literally) in the Quad after the rain.
I remember being on the WTUL emergency call list (when regular DJs
wouldn't or couldn't do their shows). In violation of FCC
regulations, "certain students" brought in a bottle of Kahlua (I
can't even imagine drinking Kahlua straight now) and did a show of
Elvis sightings and random music.
The WTUL staff was so haughty in their alternativeness that the mere
thought of mainstream America made them shudder. One time,
this bi-gendered DJ with snaky orange hair had to transition his show
to two frat guys on the emergency call list who wanted to do a Led
Zeppelin show. Orange Snake (Wo)Man was appalled.
I remember collecting two-dozen different anti-date rape posters in
Monroe Hall. From the Women's Studies postings, you'd have thought
that every male student at Tulane was about to drug and rape someone
- but thank God those posters put a stop to it!
Famous Last Words at Mardi Gras: "Four people can sleep in my Monroe
Hall single!" "I'm not going to get all crazy about those stupid
plastic beads and shit." "Let's just WALK to Canal Street."
================================================================
---
TTheisen wrote:
how about the other famous last words during Mardi Gras: "Let's meet
at Carrollton and Canal."
====================================================================
From: Jon
Sent: Saturday, October 26, 2002 12:59 PM
Subject: RE: Tulane memories
OK folks, here goes a more hedonistic perspective...
and I think my Tulane GPA probably can vouch for that
as well (vs. say, one Mr Lowry).
Camelia Grill -- certainly good and I truly enjoy
their chocolate pecan pie. And I get a kick out of
the traditional double-horseshoe breakfast counter.
But how about the Hummingbird Grill downtown? Nothing
like a good greasy 3 a.m. breakfast after a night out
in the Quarter.
WTUL -- ahh, the joy of a 2-6 a.m. radio show. And
yes, I seem to recall a certain early-evening Mardi
Gras broadcast that commenced after an afternoon on
the quad, a brief 'break' in Der Rathskellar (now
*there's* something to appreciate -- not just a bar ON
campus, but one in which you could use your meal-plan
dollars) that centered upon Elvis sightings being
'reported' from around the city. FCC indeed. The pizza
delivery guy that called in seemed to appreciate the
insanity, and we were more than happy to feed the
frenzy.
Tulane cinema -- I miss it to this day. $1 -$2 for
admission to a recently released movie, and who could
forget the cheap snax: at one time $1 could get your
choice of candy, popcorn, AND a soda. Try that at
your local movie house now. And who's brilliant idea
was it to put college students in charge of a weekly,
unaccountable cash-flow of several thousand dollars?
Friday concerts on the quad, and WTUL Marathon in the
spring. Dash Rip Rock playing one of the local dives
(Jimmy's, Rendon (before it got nice), or God forbid
Tipitina's). And I'm not talkin' the sell-out Tip's
downtown catering to drunken tourists. I'm talkin'
the 'real' Tip's catering to drunken locals and
college students up on Napolean. The Radiators -- of
course -- more 'respectable' for a New Orleans band...
Other 'brief' snapshots:
Ms. Mae's -- and being horrified when they raised
their prices from $1 for a longneck to $1.25, and
mixed drinks from $.75 to a dollar. But they still
kept 2 for 1 Wednesdays.
Busses down to Tulane football games in the 'Dome.
The return of men's basketball and being able to pack
Fogelman Arena (AND the fact that we got free
tickets).
$5 all-you-can drink nights at the Boot (which then
took on an ominous double-meaning).
Planning your evening around bars and 'when they got
busy' (i.e. Fat Harry's after 1 a.m., The Boot or
Metro early in the evening, the Maple Street combo for
general madness any weekend -- or even during the
week, the St. Charles Tavern for late night food
before heading to somewhere else -- like Ms. Mae's,
before going home to sleep for two hours before
class). And of course, my favorite -- Le Bon Temps,
as it was conviently out of the 'normal' college crowd
F&M Patio Bar scene.
Monroe Dorm balconies -- especially when coupled with
water balloon launcher and/or bottle-rockets. Other
good balcony memories -- Friday afternoons, after
class, catching the sun and being able to watch
intramural games on the quad while having a beverage.
I recall at least one impromptu party beginning this
way, as people just wndered out as they returned from
classes, often having stopped by K&B for weekend
supplies. That's what I get for leaving my door open.
But then, I think that's also how I met Dora and Tiff
(leaving the door open).
Fire alarms in the middle of the night. Especially
fun the semester I had a broken leg and had to hobble
down (and up) 12 flights.
Oysters on the half-shell. I still can't eat them
without thinking of Tulane. Especially popular at
Cooter Brown's or Le Bon Temps.
Another 'delicacy' I have a hard time finding
elsewhere -- cheese fries. And how about the first
time you tried crawfish?
Winn-Dixie, and feeling raped every time I had to shop
there (on Carrollton) because they hiked their prices.
Hanging out on the levee with go-cups? How 'bout a
keg in the trunk of Jon's car, supplemented with
Popeye's and Daiquiri's? OK -- the keg was only one
Mardi Gras, but Daiquiri's and Popeye's was recurrent.
Card games. Endless games of hearts and spades,
though hearts became the game of choice. Generally
played when everyone had papers to write and/or exams
the next day, often with people rotating in and out of
the scene.
Waiting for the streetcar and *really* having to go to
the bathroom.
The Adams Street apartment (or insert your own
apartment stories here), and Tiff switching reasons to
attend partway through the semester. The continual
battle to get people to do their dishes, clean up, and
not eat 'your' food (thus the permanent black marker).
Getting kicked out of a Bourbon Street strip club
(courtesy of one Jon Cochrane), only to go next door
and have an interesting conversation with an alleged
UNO math major.
While in the Quarter -- how about Hand Grenades at
Tropical Isle? They also had a good 'band' that
played Eagles, Buffet, and the like. The Goldmine(?)
-- for some reason I tended to meet west-bank girls
there...
Pool -- always out playing pool. Mainly because it
served as a reason to be out, drinking beer, checking
everyone out. But lots and lots of pool.
Planning the week around bar specials. This worked
out nicely, as Sundays became the night to do all my
homework. Until Le Bon Temps started giving away an
hour of free draft between 9 and 1 on Sundays (always
rotating what hour it would be...). Of course, the
redhead from Loyola that had a habit of showing up
certainly didn't discourage my attendance.
As I said -- a bit hedonistic. But isn't that what
New Orleans was all about?
Now that I've done this for an hour instead of working
on my dissertation (see how the ghosts of N'Awlins
debauchery haunt me?), I shall go...
Jon
===================================================
From: "Jackson, Jeffrey"
Found your email in a Lycos search. Thought you'd enjoy. Enjoy.
Please pass on to anyone you can think of.
Jeff
==========================================================
From: sherri nuti
I remember that short-lived episode in the Rat, when they thought it
would be more "personal" (and easier to understand the mush-mouthed
people using a bad PA) to call people's names instead of numbers.
("Fautty-tree!!") Except they didn't count on girls saying their name
was Credenza, or people just making things up. Once this guy I knew
used "Sharmiquia" or something like that, and the cook tried about
three times to pronounce it, before shouting "You know who you are!
Come get your damn burger!"
Jeff and Steve: How are you!?!? I've been in Houston now for three
years!
===================================================================
Stan Rodgers
Wow, Tulane memories... For everything I DO remember, there are at
least twenty things I CAN'T remember mainly because my best friend at
the time was a generous drug dealer. Gotta love that company
discount...
Hmmm... Some of my earliest memories of Tulane were of having a BIG
crush on Elena but never actually doing anything about it. I also
remember one Shannon Geiss (now Slap as in Ted Slap... scary) being
really mean to me and my crushing extremely fragile emotional
constitution at every opportunity. Oh yeah, can't forget that freak
bag Laura Wisdom, her white trash ways and Bon Jovi aesthetic
pursuing me even though she scared me AND she was dating
one of my fraternity brothers. By the way, I should point out that I
shudder every time think about or mention the fact that I was ever in
a fraternity... just for the record. Oh well hindsight is 20/20.
Other memories:
Moving out of my room with Dennis Cahill and moving in to Butler Hall
with Howard Frank. That was probably the most fun I had with a
college roommate. Tall-boy bowling up and down the hall until the
cans burst! Stealing all of the rechargeable batteries out of the
EXIT signs and getting the entire floor fined for doing so. Pee-
pucks! $1.00 Mickey's wide-mouths at the Metro! GROWLER
NIGHT!!!!!!! Having my virginity stolen from me by Trish
The Dish Goodowens. Dating Elena's roommate Arkansas Cindie (sp) for
approximately one week before realizing that we just weren't a "good
fit" for each other. By the way, I never once made any carnal
advances toward her and I guess it pissed her off! Friday afternoon
balcony parties over Freret avenue. Dino's pizza (small ground beef
and onion for $5).
Meeting Jenn Herzog, dating her for two and a half years then having
her break my heart worse than anybody had before or since and
subsequently ruining my senior year. God smote her though. I saw
her at a friend's wedidng last year and she looked like death wormed
over (giggles).
Actually graduating in 4 years WITHOUT one single summer session (too
friggin' hot). Pre-formal dinners at Arnaud's in the French
Quarter. The drive-thru at the uptown Daiquiris. Cheese Fries at
the Boot. Seeing Fishbone on the quad for TGIF. Dash Rip Rock (I
still listen to them) at Jimmy's. Charging A LOT of beer and
cigarettes to my parents at the bookstore and the Rat. Jeremy
Slotchiver desperately trying to find his own identity throughout our
undergraduate careers bless his heart.
Participating in the extremely supportive treatment of Dave Manuel by
threatening to not initiate into the fraternity along with our pledge
class because they didn't want to initiate him. Then... subsequently
participating in the extremely poor and exclusionary treatment of
David by helping to blacball him a few months later. This all, of
course was a product of my being fickle and two faced and trying to
fit in. Having done a lot of growing up over the years, I have come
to realize just what a shitty thing that was to do and how terrible
it must have made Dave feel. I humbly apologize to you here and now
Dave and I still regret my decision! I hope you forgive me but I
understand if you do not. It was a terrible thing to do.
Missing a lot of the people that I met as a freshman because they
either transferred away from Tulane (Erika) or our lives simply
parted ways (Elena & Dave).
I am really glad to be back in touch with you all and I have many
more fond memories of my time spent with you. Far too many to list
here. Pleas keep in touch and let me know how your lives are
unfolding.
Dave, just so you know, I live in Minnesota now and have been here
since the end of '94. I have been married for a little over a year
now to a wonderful woman that still puts up with my vulgar
sensibilities even after 5 years of knowing one another. I am in a
band called Seconds Before (www.secondsbefore.com) and we play out as
much as possible. I am a web Crystal Reports developer for a small
medical manufacturing company in St. Paul. We have a pure bred
Ocicat named Ramses living with us and making our lives interesting.
Anyway, I think I have taken up enough of your time!
Peace!
Stan Rodgers
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