Capturing a Day at Penn State

A few weeks ago, the social media gurus at Penn State announced a project to document a day at Penn State:

"Starting at 7:32 a.m. EDT (sunrise) on Oct. 23, we will begin showcasing 24 hours in the life of Penn State. Use the hashtag #PSU24 on Twitter, Instagram, Vine, and Facebook to share what you're doing and help us tell the story and excitement of a day in the Penn State experience."

Of course, I couldn't resist participating! I obtained two degrees at Penn State, one as a traditional-age student in the 1980s, and one as a returning adult student in the 1990s. And I've been a Penn State employee for a long time too: I was hired first as a work/study student in May of 1985, then as a full-time employee in September of 1986. So, as you might guess, I pretty much bleed blue and white. And yes, many of the photos that appear in my Blip journal were taken at or around Penn State.

Thursday morning found me riding the bus to campus, and I hopped off the bus near East Park Ave., with the intention of taking as many pictures of campus as possible in the time I had available before and between my morning commitments. I had worn a decent pair of walking shoes, with plans for a very speedy hike around campus.

My adventures took me to the Arboretum (of course), to the Katz law school building, to the Berkey Creamery (where I tried a new flavor - autumn delight - for breakfast, and did indeed find it delightful), to the Huck life sciences building, to the HUB, inside Old Main to view the restored frescoes, to the alumni center and the duck pond, to the engineering study room in Hammond, all the way down to College Ave. and back up again, and finally (on the bus over to the building where my office is located, off campus), past our famous stadium and the city of tents set up by the students in preparation for Saturday night's Ohio State football game.

The foliage colors on campus are still just grand, and while it wasn't by any means a sunny morning, it was pleasant to be out. I took about 700 photos in my travels, and burned through both batteries I had with me. In looking back at the pictures, I see a beautiful campus with a whole bunch of people on it, doing their thing, walking, biking, jogging, taking classes, teaching, doing research, eating, socializing, having fun, and doing all of the things it takes to keep a campus of this size running. In the blush of autumn colors, some of the scenes look pretty idyllic: college beautiful, the way you always dreamed it would be.

This photo is one of my favorites from the set. I was standing with Schwab Auditorium behind me and the main mall below the Libraries to my left. The charming little red building in this photo is Old Botany Building, and the golden leaves are lighting up the scene.

You can see a row of those old-fashioned lamp posts that I adore, plus a little bench that I've photographed often but seldom sat on. (As is the case with most benches, I must admit.) The blue fencing in the background encircles the Burrowes building renovation project which is to continue for quite a while. The building has been gutted and big holes dug out front like we've got a huge mole problem. Construction is always going on, somewhere on campus.

If you are interested, you can enjoy more photos from the social media event #PSU24 here.

The soundtrack: Toby Keith and the Beach Boys, Be True to Your School.