Penn State University - La Vie Yearbook (University Park, PA)

Page 18 text:

A s soon as the weather warms up, students grab their towels and swimsuits and gather at Old Main lawn. 14 Tanning Tom lone: D uring those long winter months, students can still get to a tropical beach in State College. Students flock to tanning booths to get an early start on a great tan.

Page 17 text:

skeptical child tests the con- struction and comfort of a craftsman's chair. Tracy Kaiser Tracy Kelur areful selection of every bead in C sures an attractive finished appearance. E specially popular with children, I e balloon twister demon- strates his imagination. Tracy Keller Arts Festival 13

Page 19 text:

I h Tom Jones I :13 could ask for a more perfect male: :Ejgf day, especially these two I . bunch of gigs the rays amidst a T aking time out to be together, couples often spend the after- noon in the sun. he temperature was I 560. Melting piles of dirty snow decorated the quad. The tropical aroma of coconut oil floated through the chilly air. What's this? Men with frisbees and wom- en in bikinis? Stepping bare- foot through slush? The Ritu- al. The Sunbathing Ritual, that is. In early spring and late summer, when classes were beginning to either wind up or rev up, many students put academics on hold-for a few hours or a few days-to pur- sue or maintain the Bronzed Body. Some even paid to lie on a plastic, coffin-like tan- ning bed for the Ultimate Bronze. The Suntanning Associa- tion for Education estimated that there were 10,000 tanning salons in the nation land about a half dozen in State Collegel and that almost two million people paid an aver- age of $6 per session. The new tanning beds utilized equip- ment that significantly re- duced ultraviolet-B rays, which cause sunburn more easily, and gave out more safe ultraviolet-A rays; these safer rays, which, al- though they diminished or eliminated sunburn, penetrat- ed more layers of skin. Judi Fennell isru Spanish- IBusinessl, spent time and money at a tanning salon. My friends and I spent all that money in Ft. Lauderdale over Spring Break, and we didn't want to lose our tans. But if we hadn't gotten a spe- cial deal, I wouldn't have done it. It can get pretty expensive. It's fast, though, and I figured that after only ten 20-minute sessions I wasn't in any great danger. I wouldn't do it for an extended period of time. Fennell was a devoted sun- worshipper. I have no qualms about blowing off classes to lie out, she said. I may as well blow them off while the sun is shining, which is usually at the begin- ning of fall or the end of spring; it's more convenient to skip classes then, than in the middle of a semester. Men enjoyed catching the rays, too. For quite interesting reasons . . . Tom Mosora Git, HR 8t IMI said, I do make a concerted effort to get a tan in the summer. It gives you a more healthy look. I'm not at- tracted to really pale girls, and they probably feel the same way about us. Having a tan gives people the idea that you spend time outdoors, maybe doing athletic-type things- whether you do or not! I used to think tanning sa- lons were a waste of money, he continued, but now I think if I had some extra money I'd do it. Probably just in the winter. I'd rather get a natural tan, but you can't lie out in the snow. Tanning beds seem to be safer. I'm sure I could handle 20 min- utes in a bed of lightbulbs, considering I've laid outside to fry for hours at a time. Be- sides, if I got my tan artificial- ly, I wouldn't need a case of Solarcaine every weekend! And so it went. Some stu- dents thought The Ritual was nonsensical. Some found it a necessary part of Happy Val- ley life. But there was always one burning question all over campus on a sunny day: Ex- cuse me, could you pass the Coppertone? E Article - Shari Celb Layout - John Walker Tanning 15