Last night Flogging Molly, with help from opener Scythian, showed Penn State the true meaning of St. Patrick’s Day: being Irish, drunk, and pissed-off.


Things got off to a late start, after an overtime set-up, but Scythian quickly got the crowd dancing. Their set, while short, was solid, mixing celtic rock, creole, and an inventive medley of rap covers. The highlight may have been hearing Biz Markie’s “Just a Friend” played on accordion. This was not the band’s first show at Penn State, and I hope it’s not their last. It’d be great to hear them play a longer set.


The show really got underway once Flogging Molly took the stage. Read on for more details and lots of pictures!

At least that’s the message I got from Dean Brady’s recent blog post. In a similar move to Dean Wormley, Dean Christian Brady of the Schreyer Honors College is urging students to be responsible this weekend. In a post on the SHC website, while not explicitly asking students not to participate, he says:

I do not want to be infantilizing by stating the obvious: you are all adults (even if many of you are not yet of the legal drinking age) and you are free to make your own decisions regarding how you spend your weekends. It is certainly my hope that whatever your activities you remain safe and would bring no disrepute to yourself or to our institution.

As UPUA quoted in their advertisement in the Collegian today, “may no act of our’s bring shame.” I think this is a good thing to keep in mind this weekend.

In an effort to treat next Saturday “like any other Saturday”, State College’s tavern association has decided to maintain normal hours this Saturday and not hold any special promotions for State Patty’s Day.


This is a big change from last year, when I can remember seeing students lined up outside the Phyrst by noon. McLanahan’s has also removed State Patty’s Day merchandise from the shelves after they were asked to by borough leaders. Scott Lucchesi, owner of the Phyrst, seemed to think think this was the wrong approach to the problem.

There was hardly a dry eye in the crowd as this year’s Family Hour drew to a close. The entire stadium sang along to Alabama’s “Angels Among Us” as people on the floor and in the stands joined arms and swayed together.


Family Hour is what THON is all about. It is a chance for the families helped by the Four Diamonds Fund and THON to share their gratitude. Families shared their stories; stories with happy and bittersweet endings.


Read on about my experience on the floor during Family Hour.

PR Captains Anna Sofio and Lenny Smith say this year’s THON has been busier than ever.


Even if you have access to a coveted pass for the final 4 hours of THON, you will have to arrive early if you want to use it. The floor is expected to reach capacity by 9 or 10 a.m., before the official close of the pass line at 12 p.m. The floor has been at capacity several times throughout the weekend, more often than ever before, according to the captains.

What would a dance marathon be without music? To keep dancers going through the weekend, THON plays what might be one of the most epic party playlists of all time. Between DJ Larry Moore, live bands, and even some Rock Band, the music rarely lets up throughout the weekend.


Spending most of the weekend in the BJC, I’ve heard a lot of music. Read on for my top 10 songs of THON so far (in no particular order).

While visiting the floor of THON, I was introduced to Carter, a dancer for Phi Gamma Delta/Whiplash Dance Team. Dancing for the second year in the row, he seems to know the ropes and had some great things to say about the dancing experience and what THON really means to him.


Read on to see what I discovered…

It takes a lot of people to put on THON. There are 14 different committees of student volunteers who make sure the event runs smoothly, everyone stays safe and everyone has a good time. They wear color coded shirts to make identification easier. Read on for a guide to what committee goes with which color.

Though it is officially only 6 hours into THON, this first day has been a full one. I arrived at the Bryce Jordan Center around 4 p.m., shortly before the teams and their dancers arrived. I’ve yet to start feeling the effects of sleep deprivation, but I’m sure to be by my next update.


Read on for a rundown of day one at THON!

Hannah Woytowicz of Springfield THON was nice enough to give us a few moments of her time and answer a few of our questions.


1. How are you involved with THON?

I am the Social Chair for Springfield THON.


2. What is your team doing this weekend?

We’re going to be standing as long as we can with as many people as we can to support our dancers.


Read on to find out more…

Though dancers weren’t arriving until 4:30 p.m., students started lining up outside the BJC as early as 1 p.m. for THON.


Carly Littlehale of Gamma Phi Beta showed up early with her sisters to secure the best location in the stands, and were the third organization to get in line. Considering their spot right next to the floor, the extra wait time was worth it. The Gamma Phi Beta/Acacia team, as most teams have, scheduled shifts to make sure they reserve their spot. At least a few members of their 250 person team will be here all weekend.

Though I haven’t seen him since his days on Degrassi: The Next Generation, Aubrey Graham, better known as the rapper Drake, will be coming to Penn State April 9 as part of the 5th Annual Campus Consciousness Tour.


The tour is being billed as “eco-friendly”. This means that tour buses will be using biofuels, recycling will be promoted at shows, and artists will use reusable water bottles instead of otherwise ubiquitous disposable plastic bottles. The tour itself is an effort of Reverb, a non-profit that has “greened” the tours of acts such as Dave Matthews Band, John Legend, and Phish.


Whatever your opinions are about Drake (or openers K-OS and Francis and the Lights), I think the concept of a “green” tour is a good way to promote environmentally friendly practices.


If you want to learn more about Reverb and the work they do, you can check out their site here.

Our local Congressional representative, Scott Conklin, has begun circulating nomination petitions for a Lt. Governor run later this year.


Conklin, a Democrat, has been the representative of Pennsylvania’s 77th district, which includes State College, since 2006. During his term, Conklin has been a strong supporter of PHEAA, a Pennsylvania organization that helps students with their pursuit of higher education. He has also helped Penn State secure grants and supported our basketball team when they were doing better than they are now.


With the primary election coming up May 18, he only has a few months to prepare. Even if he runs for Lt. Governor, he will still be allowed to run for re-election in his house seat, so he’s not taking a big risk. Conklin’s main motivation for running is to help reform PA’s constitution. Considering how abysmal the state’s budget process has been in the past few years, this might not be a bad idea.

Do you like tub time, hot machines? If so, Hot Tub Time Machine may be the movie for you. The College 9 Theater is hosting an advance screening of the new film tomorrow at 7:30.


The movie tells the classic tale about four friends who get into a hot tub time machine and are transported back to the 80s. If that isn’t enough, the movie stars John Cusack (the Say Anything guy), Rob Corddry (the Daily Show correspondent who looks like Champ from Anchorman), Craig Robinson (Darryl from The Office) and Clark Duke (the non-greek star of Greek). I can’t really say anything else about the movie except it will either be awesome or awesomely terrible.


To get tickets, email nittanyscreenings@yahoo.com, though there’s a two per person limit.

Whatever your opinions on the freshman handbook, a timeline was confirmed last night with a printing date of May 1st. UPUA’s Handbook Committee met to discuss their plans for the book, which will most likely be called “The S Book”. At the meeting was Ben Bronstein ‘61, who edited the 1960 and 1961 editions of the book. He will be serving in an advising capacity, helping guide the handbook’s revival.


According to Bronstein, the book was an integral part of a students freshman experience in previous years. There were several examples of past handbooks at the meeting, all of which fit the description of “a keepsake to last beyond your years at Penn State”. While they may not be able to have the books leather bound as they were in 1937, with the proper design,the book may be more than a toss-able handout.


There has been much argument about whether the book should be print or digital, but there has been little discussion of its content. More on what sections may be in the handbook after the jump.