Always the most dreaded trip of the year. Why? Because you have to drive to the home of Missouri University on I-70. I’d rather eat glass than drive on this outdated, underfunded, truck-clogged interstate. You would think Missouri could come up with enough money to fund I-70 improvements by taxing the endless porn stops and fireworks stores along the way.
If you take the time to go into downtown Columbia, you’ll find the city has a downtown that isn’t all that much different than Lawrence’s with plenty of quaint shops, watering holes and eateries.
Venture south of downtown on Walnut Street and you’ll run into the MU campus. If you’re hungry or thirsty, stop at The Old Heidelberg across the street from the Journalism School.
If you’ve walked that far, you might as well re-cross the street, walk into Francis Quadrangle and check out the Columns, the signature spot on the Mizzou campus.
But don’t look for The Shack or The IV. Those storied student hangouts of long ago are history. Also, don’t look for any KU items in the MU Bookstore, unless its a stuffed Jayhawk hanging on a stick.
Guilty Pleasure: Driving by Read Hall and remembering the days or yore when I helped edit The Maneater, the student newspaper.
