Pittsburg State University - Kanza Yearbook (Pittsburg, KS)

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pure black feline friend, Sam. I didn't really find Sam, he found me ' Powell said. I went to the front door one morning because I thought I heard something on the porch and there he was climbing on the screen door. He was only about two months old. He's been a lot of company when no one else is around and he's a lot of fun. He's pretty laid back and mellow but he's real affectionate for a cat. You can also tell when his mood changes by the way he acts. When he's mad he whips his tail real fast ' he said. Sam also acts as an alarm clock and Powell said he has his own way of wak- ing him up in the morning. My bedroom door is usually always open just a crack and Sam will put his claws under the door and bang it back and forth until 1 come and open it ' he said. I didn't really find Sam, he found me. Powell said that having a cat is not a big expense even when you have some unusual vet bills. I was messing around with a fly and some fishing line for my rod one day and Sam ran through the line and got hooked, so I had to spend about $40 to get him out of that one, but for what you get in return from an animal, they're worth the expense ' Powell said. Anna Golob, Pittsburg senior, like Shively, also owns a parakeet, Gripper. Even though Gripper stays in his cage most of the time, Golob said he still proves to be amusing. He gets real excited in the morning and will just fly around in his cage and squawk until I get up and take the cover off of his cage ' she said. Whenever he gets hyper, he'll grap the top wires of his cage with his beak and just hang there ana swing back and forth. Even though most college students wouldn't go as far as to say that their pets are their best friends, most agree that they come pretty close,—by jacque Porter BY PLAYING A game of keep away, Rick Wrightswam, Westwood sophomore, enjoys the fail weather and Lance, owned by Robert McCrary, Overland Park junior, gets his daily exercise, —photo by Mike Pruett Pets o p Living

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A man's best friends Loyal friends aren't always people After a long day of classes and hard work, students are usually ready for a relaxing atmosphere free of the every- day routine of college responsibility. For some, it means having a beer with a few friends, catching a movie or just watching some television, but for others it means spending a little time with some very special and loyal companions—their pets. Keith Shively, Girard junior, doesn't own your average, run-of-the-mill dog or cat. Instead, he has three cockatils, two parakeets and a 40-gallon aquarium which houses everything from black knives and angelfish to glass cats. Cockatils are small parrots which measure about nine inches in heighth and have cowlick-like head feathers that are usually gray or all white in color. Shively has two albino cockatils and one gray with a white stripe down its back and they all have bright yellow head feathers. The smaller cockatils are supposed to be the easiest to get to talk, but they haven't yet, so I'm still trying. I have a record that I play to help them along a little bit, but so far I haven't had much luck, he said. Shively keeps his birds in cages in his bathroom and bedroom and also has a real tree in his living room for them to sit in when he turns them loose in the house. My aquarium is also in the living room. They prove to be good conversa- tion pieces when people come over and I get a lot of comments about them, he said. J have all the basic equipment needed for the upkeep of the aquarium so I only have to clean it about once a month and the birds are really no problem. I only spend about $10 a month, on the average, for pet food, he said. Burl Powell, Granby, Mo., senior, finds not only companionship but some rather comical entertainment in his PARAKEETS ARE GOOD for people who cannot keep cats or dogs in their apartments. They are relatively easy to take care of and can be taught to talk.—photo by Jo Black 24

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All in a day's work Marriage, family and college prove to be big load H I I t's hard at times because you can't be out running around a lot. You have to learn how to proportion your time so you can study, work and still be with your family ' said Danny Davenport, Farlington senior. Davenport and his wife Cindy, with seven and a half month-old son Patrick are just one of several couples at Pitt- sburg State University who go to school, work and are already raising a family. Married students with children are not uncommon at colleges and univer- sities across the country. They go to school and work like other students, but in addition to the routine of college life, they experience the problems and satisfactions of being married and rais- ing a family. I go to classes during the day, then I work from 5:30 p.m. - 2:00 a.m. everyday, Davenport said. Cindy and I are both going to school and she's teaching aerobics so we're pretty busy. It's difficult, but it's not impossible. Rock Davied, Pittsburg sophomore, and his wife Aline are another married couple at PSU. They live with their son Junior in the East Campus Apartments. There's definitely a strain, but sometimes I give Aline presents if I can. I do it to let her know I still love her even if I'm not around a lot, Davied said. It's really hard, but we get by, Aline said. With me working though, I don't get to see Rock at lunch anymore BEING A FULL-TIME student, husband and lather takes a lot of time for Rock Davied, Pittsburg junior. Daviedrs wife Aline occupies her time as a full-time housewife. — photo by jo Black HAVING A FAMILY and being a student require a balance between studying and her son Patrick Ryan for Cindy Davenport, Pittsburg graduate student. Daven- port's husband, Dan, also works and goes to school full- time. —photo by Jo Black and I miss that. Another such couple is Allen and Bridget Krenz who live in a mobile home outside of Pittsburg with two and a half year-old son Brandon. Allen works at an on-campus job while at- tending school and his wife works full » I ✓ Marriage, Family and College Living