Fire in the sky

Fireworks lit up the sky just after 9:15 tonight. The fireworks, set to music by the University Orchestra, have been an annual tradition since the University's 250th anniversary in 1996. The Santore Brothers of Garden State Fireworks choreographed the display. And the party continues ...


-- Chan Sethi '07, Editor-in-chief. Photo by Jonathan Williams '05, Princetonian photography editor emeritus.

The Great (and Muddy) Class of 2006

I'm covered in mud -- and I couldn't be happier. Just before 5 p.m. this afternoon, I joined my fellow Class of 2006 members at the tail end of the P-Rade, where we joyfully passed through the Bloomberg Arch and sloshed through the Poe Field mud in our first act as alums. But I'm getting ahead of myself ...

Along with the rest of the Class of 2006, my Saturday began with free Taco Bell in the U-Store courtyard just after noon. After about half an hour of enjoying Biblical Deluge No. 4, the skies finally cleared (sort of), and my classmates and I gathered on the Blair Arch steps for the senior class picture.

That important business taken care of, we were led down Elm Drive to our staging area for the P-Rade (with a brief detour to fill our beer jackets with beers and margaritas). Our next four hours were properly locomotive-filled, both given and received. Many of the older alum classes kindly stopped to chat with us and congratulate us. Actually, most of the alums (especially the older gentleman) really only seemed interested in chatting with one of the eight or so '06ers I was standing with -- the lone female in our group. Somehow, I don't think it was a coincidence.

As the classes passing us by got younger, they also got wilder (and we got drunker). The exploits of one friend -- we'll call him "S" -- were epic: He chugged Jack from a handle with two gentlemen from the early '90s, briefly wore an empty Miller Lite case as a hat, and finally received a giant kiss on the cheek from a lovely woman from the late '90s. Needless to say, he had a big smile on his face the entire afternoon.

Eventually, it was our turn to join in, and so we burst through the restraining rope onto Elm Drive, chanting "Ohhhhh-six, Oh-six-oh-six-oh-six, Ohhhh-six, Ohhhh-Six" all the way. I distinctly remember waving a half-drank beer can above my head as a rushed past my parents, who were watching from the sidelines, presumably thrilled that this what they were getting for the $160k.

From there, it was through Bloomberg and onto Poe Field. Frankly, I have no idea what was going on at this point -- it took all my effort not to face-plant in the mud. I ended up covered in brown goup nonetheless, but like I said, right now, I couldn't care less.

-- David Baumgarten '06, Managing Editor emeritus

P-Rading down the years

A colonially-dressed man in a horse-drawn carriage, a firetruck tooting a melody on an organ and thousands of old men in bright funny clothes. What kind of circus is this? The reunions P-Rade is undoubtably deserving of the moniker "greatest show on earth," and it is a sight to behold. Brimming with pride for their alma mater, hordes of Princetonians mingle in reunion in wide bands around the central artery of campus, Elm Drive, through which the grand parade progresses.

Hearing sporadic cheers for particularly vibrant classes, it's clear there is inevitably a direct correlation between the brightness of an orange jacket and the width of the smile upon the bearer's face. As the classes walk past your field of vision they seem to grow younger against the passing of the years, beginning with that lone fellow from the Class of 1925 and reaching the climax with the 2006 grads, old men returning to their youth. After continual bursts of rain throughout much the day, the skies finally parted, the sun shone down and a rain-soaked Princeton campus reveled.

Also, an update for Princeton sports fans, we've just heard that the men's heavyweights, ranked No. 1 all season, fell to Cal by a slight margin at IRA nationals today, ending a dominant season just shy of a gold medal. A web update on the main page will follow soon.

-- Tyler Woulfe '07, Princetonian executive editor

Photo Journal: Part 2 (P-Rade!)

The sun wasn't exactly shining, but it also wasn't raining -- not that rain could have ruined an event like the P-Rade!

(Click on photos for larger image)

Pre-P-Rade:

Class of 1925:

The oldest returning alum in the P-rade carries the Class of 1923 cane, which is topped by a silver tiger.

Class of 1941:

Class of 1942:

Class of 1947:



Guest appearance:

Class of 1952:

Class of 1956:









Class of 1957:

Class of 1961:


Class of 1966:

Class of 1971:

And on the sidelines ...




Down on Poe Field:


Cheers!
-- Katherine Anderson '08, Princetonian associate editor for photography, with several photos contributed by Alice Easton '09, Princetonian staff writer.

Don't rain on my P-Rade

Tortorous heat may, for now, be a thing of the past, but one headache has been replaced with another: the rain. Accumulations up to one inch are predicted and visiting Tigers aren't likely to expect relief before the late evening. Photos from the P-Rade, or what was left of it, soon ...

-- Chan Sethi '07, Editor-in-chief. Photo by Ross Liemer '08, Princetonian senior writer

Photo Journal, Part 1 (Class Photos)

In sunnier, dryer weather, this post would be "Photo Journal, Part 18." Unfortunately though, cameras don't dry off as well as people do, so while I've been wading through puddles like everyone else, the cameras have escaped (so far) a weekend of rainy fun. Much to my surprise, however, when I woke up this morning, I heard not rain or thunder, but the drums & fifes of the class of '76. (Thanks folks!) So, with all the early morning photo enthusiasm I could muster, my camera and I made our way over to the U-Store courtyard just in time to see the senior Class, en masse, arrive for Taco Bell.


And minutes later, the class of '61 timed their arrival for their class picture to coincide with the day's first downpour.


The class of '06 seemed to have better luck with the weather, since the downpour turned into a drizzle as they took their place on the steps of Blair Arch ...


... and smiled for the camera ...







If I'm not mistaken, I can see some sunlight, which means that we'll have more photos after the P-Rade!

Cheers,
-- Katherine Anderson '08, Princetonian associate editor for photography

This P-Rade is G-Reat

Rain rain go away? Nope, not happening. But I’ll tell you what is: the P-Rade. Bring your parkas, bring your ponchos, we’re 1 hour, 37 minutes away from a flurry of Princeton tradition.

Your hard-working ‘Prince’ news board woke up bright and early today, shoving their bed-warming companions/salty snacks aside to go take part in some of the preparations. Specifically, we pulled a long shift decorating golf carts with a headache-inducing array of bright orange streamers and ribbons, so that the men of the Old Guard could ride in style down Elm Drive.

With flourishes that ‘X’ and the gang at West Coast Customs would salivate over, we transformed the otherwise dull fleet of carts into that rarely seen grouping, a streak of tigers (yep, that’s the real term for it, feel free to look it up). And believe you me, there’s nothing like waking up at the ungodly hour of 8:00 a.m. after a night at the Fifth to hear someone shouting “I need some of those orange stars for this Class of ’36 six-seater.”

Now that the rides are looking sufficiently fly (alas, we have no pictures), maybe the rain will start to clear, so we’re heading over to marvel at that remarkable demonstration of Princetonians aging with class, the P-Rade. The rain may stop, the orange and black may run, but this tradition will never end. Check back for us in 2077, we’ll be riding in the flyest hover-cart around.

-- Tyler Woulfe '07 and Todd Ebe '07, Princetonian executive editors for sports