As a college student, there was one week early in the semester that I looked forward to. The reason wasn’t because of the first home football game, welcome back activities, or the start of the intramural season. Rather, it was a much more low key and nerdy reason.

During the second or third week of classes at the University of Montana, a company would set up shop in the University Center (campus gathering place). This particular outfit would place tables all around the first floor of the facility and cover them with posters. The posters themselves were actually encased in large plastic coverings. The coverings were binded together in a way that let you flip through them like a book. Each “book” (for lack of a better term) contained posters that college students wouldn’t think twice about taping up on the wall of their dorm room or frat house.

We are talking movie covers, album covers, musicians, super models, quotes, iconic photos, cartoons, symbols, landscapes, and more. Because the selection was so vast and diverse and because it took place inside a prominent campus building, the annual poster sale was a big event. Droves of students would descend on the books, flipping through the pages to find the perfect poster. It was extremely busy and you often had to wait for other students to clear out before you were able to step up to a table and look for yourself.

I specifically remember hanging up TWO posters in my room:
1. The infamous image of Muhammad Ali gesturing over a knocked out Sonny Liston.
2. The Uncle Sam “I Want You” artwork.

This was the exact same poster I had up in my room as a college student.

Obviously for how much I say I enjoyed the poster sale I didn’t really back it up with my wallet. True, I didn’t cover my room in posters. But I still looked forward to the event simply because I entertained myself simply by browsing the selection. It was nostalgic and a great way to pass time between classes.

Why such a random memory on this Wednesday night? Well, this week at Coastal Carolina University there is a poster sale. The bookstore on campus is sponsoring the event and it reminds me of the one I used to enjoy several years back. As I watched students browse through the posters, which are stored in plastic coverings just like at Montana, I saw myself. If I asked you to tell me the one poster you had tacked up on your wall as a college student, what would you say? Don’t Blink.