Fun in the Summer Sun Communications 001 students find ways to keep in touch, in shape and in tune this summer Spending a Spectacular Summer in Erie hv Mike Nies staff writer Witli April coniine to an end. and summer vacation almost here you may he wondering how you are go ing to spend all of your free time. If you plan on staying in Erie for the summer, keeping those few precious summer days filled with fun ami your evening's action packed might seem like an insurmountable task. Those beautiful summer day s that turn into glorious nights of partying until the sun comes up are a sparse commodity in the great city of “Dreary Firie" I know you're not go ing to want to waste your long awaited summer vacation sleeping in until noon and sitting in front of the idiot box all day So I have a few suggestions to help you make your summer one that for years to come will keep you and your friends saying. “Remember the sum mer of 2000 when we...” One unique thing that Erie has to offer is Presque Isle. So take advan- Hot Deals on Summer Health Club Memberships by Matt Baser staff writer American Fitness 1596 W, 38th Street 866-8818 3 months for $75, no initiation fee. Free weights, cardio machines, hammer strength and cybex ma chines, and the “best prices in Erie” for weightlifting supple ments, according to Mike, the owner. Family First Fitness Center 8155 Oliver Road 866-5425 3 months for $139, no initiation fee. Free weights, cardio machines, nautilus, rock climbing, tread mills, hammer strength. Aerobics and spinning classes. Personal Too much music to cram into one article If you're like me, you can set at least some of your memories to music like a personal soundtrack. When I think hack to certain events, I often remember the songs that were popular at the time, different songs that caught my attention, and especially songs that 1 heard performed live. From county fairs to sold-out stadium shows, concerts are usually a high light of summer vacation. With spring here, the summer concert scene is picking up steam, and no matter what your taste, budget, or location, there’s a show out there awaiting your arrival (and ticket sale). The local line up is about to turn the sparks of sporadic performances into a blazing hot sum mer season...hopefully our PA summer will prove to be the same! Check out what’s happening in just the next few weeks alone: (Please note: Many acts will be playing numerous concerts in the area. In such cases, only one show has been listed.) Buzz Poets: April 22, Gateway Clipper, Pittsburgh, PA Bruce Springsteen/E St. Bund: April 25. Mellon Arena, Pittsburgh, PA Oasis: April 25, A J Palumbo Center, Pittsburgh, PA Arthur: April 25, Benedum, Pittsburgh, PA Our Lady Peace: April 26, Gannon Univ., Erie, PA Veruca Salt: May 6, Club Laga, Pittsburgh, PA Clarks: May 6. Ohio Northern Univ., Pittsburgh, PA Violinist Andres C’ardenes: May 6, Heinz. Hall, Pittsburgh, PA Mad Professor: May 6, Carnegie Mellon Univ., Pittsburgh, PA Craig Karges: May 6, Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh. PA Train: May 9, Metropol, Pittsburgh, PA The Gas Giants: May 9. Metropol. Pittsburgh. PA Quiet Riot: May 10, Banana Joe’s, Pittsburgh, PA UFO: May 11. Stambaugh Auditorium, Youngstown, OH Reba McFntire: May 12, Starlake Amp, Burgetlstown, PA Live: May 14. Warner Theatre, Erie, PA Vertical Horizon: Sunday, May 14. Metropol, Pittsburgh, PA Jerry the Iceman Butler: May 16, Benedum Center, Pittsburgh, PA This truly is only the tip of the concert iceberg for the immediate area. Many very popular and very talented (one does not imply the other...) per formers and artists w ill be making their rounds this summer, and huge events from X-Fest to Oz.z.fest are sure to be a smash. Keep your eyes open to the music scene for more information, and visit websites that keep you up dated, such as htip://guide.yahoo.com/tg/metros.html?majorcat=Music and http://www.theconcertweb.com/pu.html 1 suggest you take a chance by going to some unfamiliar concerts as well. You may just stumble across something you really enjoy, and catch a brand new group on their w ay to superstardom. Remember, they all started some where. tage of this beautiful natural resource and all the many things it has to offer. There is a 14-mile long trail that loops around it. The island is great for roller blading, bike riding, running and viewing some very unique wildlife habitats that can be found no where else in the Presque Isle also has 6 1/2 miles of sand v beaches, so whet h e r you're look ing for a quiet place to relax and catch some rays, or a livelier place to scope for beach babes or guys you can find it at Presque Isle. Beach 6 has sand volleyball nets, and Bundy Beach (beach 10) has the best aero batic kite tlying this side of the lake. training available. Nautilus Fitness and Raquet Club 2312 W. 15th Street 459-3033 www.nautilusfitness.com 3 months for $139, no initiation fee. Flee one-day memberships to those considering joining. Free weights cardio machines, nau tilus and hammer strength machines pool, sauna, track, and racquetball courts. Aerobics and aquatics classes and personal training available. Pennbriar Athletic Club 190 and Route 97, behind Days Inn 825-8111 May 1 - August 31 for $134 (indi vidual), no initiation fee. May 1 - August 31 for $139 (family - husband, wife, children under 21), no hv Leanne Acklin staff writer Are you ready tor more? On Presque Isle, the tun doesn't stop when the sun goes down. Surah's Campground is located at the base of Presque Isle, and you can gel a beachfront camping spot for less than the cost of 2 tickets to ;t across from Waldanteer Park is Peninsula Drive- In, one of the last drive-in theaters left in the country. Just thinking about it brings memo ries Hooding back to me. I only tiope that it isn't torn down this summer to initiation fee. Free weights, cardio machines, nau tilus and cybex machines, track, in door pool, and outdoor wave pool. Use of the tennis and racquetbali courts is extra. Aerobics and spinning classes and personal training available. Willie Blank’s Learning and Fitness Center 2169 W. 12th Street 454-0975 Per month unlimited use, $45, no ini tiation fee. 26 classes held each week, members may attend as many as they like. Facilities include free weights and nautilus machines. Eastside YMCA 2101 Nagle Road 899-9622 Downtown YMCA 31 W. JOth Street New friends and old: staying in touch this summer by Kristin (Jrudowski stall Writer As the end of the semester ap proaches, students have more on their minds than final exams and boxing belongings. Saying good-bye to the friends you spend basically every waking second with can get messy, and it’s all going to go down in less than a month. Experienced students know' the dif ficulty, or perhaps the relict, of leav ing friends they are surrounded by on a day to day basis. First-year students, on the other hand, must prepare to weep and wallow in grief and self-pity on ac count of the heartfelt separations that will occur during the first weekend of May. So how will Behrend students deal with the empti ness that will follow their return to home? And what about ad justing to friends from high school who have been absent from much of their lives the past eight months? Emily Wyman (Psy, 02) met her best friends in her dorm. Perry Hall, within her first week of school at Behrend. “I had my best friends from high school, but be cause I was living with these girls, we became so much closer than I was make way for some new pile of crap that this city doesn't need. Waldameer Water Park is another great little place to escape the hot and sultry days Erie summers have a ten dency to bring. If you golf, Erie County has ;t few excellent public golf courses: Crab Apple Ridge, on Route 19 going toward Waterford; Gospel Hill on Steimer Rd.. right across from the Gospel Hill Cemetery on Station Road; Elk Valley, on Van Camp Rd. of Route 98. running through Girard from Erie to Meadville; and by far the most beautiful public course within 100 miles of here, the Upper Course at Peek'll Peak. movie Tinseltown. Be I i e v e me, in the riaht corn- will be a niuht to re- in e m her. Right at the top of the hill This is only a short list of the many wonderful summer activities Erie has to offer. I have lived in Erie for a long time, so believe me when 1 say this. Although Erie winters start far too early, downright suck while they're here, and never seem to end, the sum - mer is a whole hell of a lot better. Anybody who has lived in Erie for a while will testify to that. 452-3261 Glenwood Park YMCA 3727 Cherry Street 868-0867 County YMCA 12285 YMCA Drive (Edlnboro) 734-5700 At Eastside YMCA, Behrend stu dents with valid ID receive $20.97 monthly membership w ith no ini tiation fee (normally $80). Mem bership Is valid at all four Erie area YMCAs. Facilities include indoor and out door pools. **This, by no means, lists every thing that each facility has to of fer. Before you consider joining any health club, visit the facility and ask for a tour. Most will be happy to oblige.** with my group from home. These girls see me laugh, cry; they are with me on my good days and my bad days," Wyman commented. “We're all go ing to be busy this summer, but we are planning to visit each others’ hometowns and meet in Erie a lew times too. Many students feel optimistic about the duration of their new-found friendships, but some are more con cerned with re-establishing their high school friendships back home. Question of the Season What are you looking forward TO DOING THIS SUMMER? “I'm travelling to France for vacation and then working in Colorado for the rest of the summer.” Molly Means, 02, Biology “I’m going to Wildwood N.J., then Philadelpia. And I’m planning on go ing to Hershey Park for the Red Hot Chilli Peppers and Foo Fighters. I’m also going to see Dave Matthews Band in Pittsburgh.” Jeff Senita, 02, Computer Science “Heading to Indiana and visiting fam ily, and then I’m going to be working on the farm at PSU main campus.” Scott Coon, 02, Animal Sciences “I’m going to stay in Erie and work at the Erie Sports Store. I’m also going to run a lot.” Mark Suroviec, 06, Psychology “I’m going to work and spend time at my camp in Franklin and work out a lot.” Jay Davids, 06, Accounting r x w Lauren Eisenhuth, (MET, 02) will be busy this summer becoming reac quainted with friends from high school. “I’m not worried about los ing the friendships I have made this year. We’re all going to go home and be with our other friends, but no one will forget about each other.” Experienced students have been able to find a balance between rejoin ing high school cliques and maintain ing the new friendships established through college. Adam Skrzypek PHOTO BY KRISTIN GRUDOWSKI I ppp v (BUS, 06) now lives in Erie during the summer to work and keep in touch with friends he has met at Behrend. "A lot of my friends stay in the area over the summer, and those who don’t stay around come and visit," said Skrzypek. "As you get older, you see less and less of your high school friends. The friends that you still sec after you’ve been in school for a few years are people who will be with you the rest of your life.” First-year students have no reason to fret. There are a number of ways to keep in touch with and visit new friends, and re-establishing high school friendships can’t exactly be classi fied as an excruciating task. The childhood song: “Make new friends, and keep the old. One is silver and the other's gold," makes this situation sound so simple, but it really isn’t. To make the process a little easier on yourself, re- member you can e mail or phone your friends as often as you deem necessary. You could have your friends visit your town or venture to their’s. If transportation is a problem, jump on the Greyhound. Although the differences in at mosphere and in friends may not seem common at first, you will adjust just as stu dents before you have.