Like a hurricane of green beer and a.m. drinking, State Patty’s Day has once again come and gone.
The fake holiday and its young, senseless traditions led to more than 400 police reports and countless Saturday afternoon hangovers.
The inaugural year of State Patty’s Day was my sophomore year at Penn State. I wasn’t opposed to the holiday — the Irish heritage in me longed for a St. Patrick’s Day celebration with my peers, but spring break was doing its best to keep up apart — but it did seem a little silly.
I could understand it though. The University of Scranton, the go-to location for education in the Casey clan, is famous for its Parade Day, the fourth largest St. Patrick’s Day parade in the nation. It’s typically held a week before the real holiday, and the students are always around for it.
Parade Day is just like State Patty’s Day in theory — they both celebrate St. Patrick’s Day at a more convenient time — but it is accepted as much more of a family event, while State Patty’s Day is a event for families to avoid.
Drinking takes place at Scranton’s Parade Day, as one would imagine, but it doesn’t get nearly the reaction that State Patty’s does here in Happy Valley. That’s because the focus is not on drinking; it’s on celebrating.
Ask the students: Many will tell you Parade Day is a day-long party at which bar open at 7 a.m. and house parties’ doors open earlier.
Ask the residents: Many will tell you Parade Day is a day-long party with one of the best parades you’ll ever see.
Here in State College, State Patty’s is going strong, and I don’t believe it’s going anywhere anytime soon. The school and the town cannot aggressively try to shut it down. this will encourage the students to stand up for what they believe in (even if it is a dangerous, alcohol-induced coma) and party harder.
If the town wants to shut down State Patty’s, there’s a rather simple, two-part plan of attack:
1) Get the bars on your side. This is starting to happened this year, as some town watering holes closed their doors and their cash registers for the event. Keeping the bars closed before the sun is all the way up doesn’t kill the party spirit for everyone, but it does for those who find drinking at dawn entertaining.
2) Make it uncool. If Penn State and State College embrace State Patty’s Day with celebrations of their own (that will likely not include drinking before changing out of the pajamas), then the student population will likely protest by not participating.
State Patty’s Day is popular not just because it’s another reason to celebrate (in a place so dreary they call it Happy Valley), but because it’s seen as an indie, student-run holiday. And there are few things the students dislike more than ‘The Man’ taking credit for their work.
It’s not foolproof; I provide no guarantee. What I can promise is that as long as the town and gown continue to preach about how wrong and dangerous the holiday is, the students will find it more appealing.
Ready your parade attire, State College.
