I spent the second-to-last night of June at The O Patio & Pub with my friends roasting marshmallows in the fire pit.
Yes, we smuggled marshmallows, graham crackers, chocolate, and sticks into a campus bar so we could celebrate it by making s'mores. It was simply a goodbye to a place that I've been living just a street over from.
There's something special about campus bars. They're different on every campus, so each one comes with its own story and personality. Ohio State has a large and diverse campus, and the bars around it are just as different from one another.
The O was one of those places that you could go to chill and still run into a bunch of your friends. Everyone knew where and what it was. On Fridays, it would be packed with students in jerseys and it's last days were no different. Like any bar around campus, it was one of a kind.
Unfortunately, like other bars that have graced Ohio State, it's being torn down to make way for more "upscale" scenery such as luxury apartments, hotels, shops, and yes, a fountain. In other words, our campus culture is being taken away to make High Street prettier for people who don't even go here. Seeing The O without its benches outside is a bitter reminder that if I come back to visit in 20 years, most of what I know now may not be around.
So here's a cheers to The O and any other fallen bar for the memories and moments that can't be torn down.