Students at Ithaca College, past and present, can tell you that this town does things with a certain style.

Take the untimely demise of the King of Pop, Michael Jackson (the deviant among you might suggest his death untimely because it happened 20 years too late -- don't be impolite). Did fans weep while clutching funeral bouquets and citing various spiritual tomes?

Fool, don't waste my time. This is I-Town -- we had a party!

Part of the Ithaca experience is making your own fun. The dude was strange beyond words, but his beats remain solid, and in any case part of living in close quarters as one does in a college town is making the best out of every situation. Can't study every minute of the day -- gotta make time to dance, yo.

Near as we can figure it kicked off in front of Viva Taqueria around 6 p.m. By 10:30 or so the crowd was easily 100+, shakin' their bodies down to the proverbial ground in the middle of the State Street construction site. Then it moved down the Commons in front of Korova, where the thirsty moved inside and the rest just kept dancing out front.

That's right, not one but TWO spontaneous MJ parties happening right next to each other. Off the hook.

I shot video, but the thing about phones is no matter how fancy they get, they're still mostly for talking to people who aren't there. If you turn it way up, you can hear "Don't Stop til You Get Enough" rockin' the Commons.

Original Video

For something far more visually rich (if obviously lacking in spontaneity) check out what IC alum Mark Romanak '81 did for Mike's "Scream" video (our boy won a Grammy for it, in fact).

I have absolutely no idea why anyone would go to school anywhere else. This place has it all.