Two things from my past, that will soon cease to be

Within the next two weeks, two things from my past will officially never make it into my future. One is being done for good reasons, the other because of greed.

1.) During my four months spent living in London, I would occasionally ride one of the famous Routemaster double decker buses. But tomorrow, because of inaccessibility to the handicapped, most of these buses will be retired. While I understand the reasoning behind the retirement, I do not understand why these buses have to all be retired. There are a number of bus lines that run in London that did not use that type of bus anyway. And since they were such a huge trademark of the city, it will definitely be a sad day in London. I am glad that I was able to ride the buses, while happily looking over the streets of London before they were put away.

2.) And speaking of sad days: In less than two short weeks, The Stone Balloon, a Newark, Delaware staple will be gone. And what will be put in its place? Pricey condos. Great way to make Main Street suburban. Grrrr.
Why is the Stone Balloon so special? In it's 30 plus year history, the Balloon has been host to annual Homecoming celebrations, a venue for bands to play, a place to hold charity events, and most importantly home to Thursday Mug Nights. These plastic mugs that could be bought at the Balloon for $10, would get you $1 beers, and $2 mixed drinks every Thursday nights. On top of that, there was also almost always a band, which were usually pretty good.

I loved how every Thursday night, Main Street, and the surrounding vicinity would be littered with students walking around with their mugs. I loved how at mug nights, you would run into a friend you hadn't seen in a long time. I loved how the bands would play covers, which are always great when you're drunk. I loved how Thursday's were all about "Are you going to Mug Night tonight?" While I would not go every week (usually about once a month), Mug Night's were always guaranteed to be a good time.

There has been rumors for years that the Balloon was going to be turned into condos, but it is finally true. Last year, the night of graduation, there was a "Senior Sendoff." As I stood there with my beloved mug, and my beloved friends, I got a bit misty eyed. I had just graduated, and this was one of my last nights at University of Delaware, and my last Mug Night ever. As the drunken seniors sang their last "Piano Man", I wrapped my arms around my friends trying to savor the last moments of college and of the Stone Balloon.

Thank you Stone Balloon for providing me with so many great memories. This article also sums up pretty well exactly what Newark is losing.