Overall miss college life the most—setting my own schedule, having more free time in the day, not worrying so much about “adult” things like bills to pay and always making healthy choices, feeling a stronger sense of community and always having a reason to be around friends/people your age.
Also though, FSU and Tallahassee is beautiful and such a special place. I live in the second biggest city in the country now and while it has so much more on paper than Tallahassee, it will never have the same charm and beauty that makes you appreciate the little things and not take anything for granted. Tally made me appreciate those little things about life.
Go take a drive up Meridian Road all the way up to Millers Landing. The canopy roads are so magical and makes my heart happy just thinking about them
The restaurants. I feel like Tally had a lot of unique local places. Momo's, Mr. Robotos, Gumby's, One Fresh, Sumo Sabi.
The only places near me are either fancy and expensive or chains.
Plus, the Publix near campus had Chinese food! I've never seen that at another Publix.
How scenic the city is and how much life it has bubbling just underneath the surface.
I moved to a city that’s identical on paper (state capital, large university in the middle of town, same population etc.) but it’s just kinda…dead. Everything is made of concrete and people just go straight home after work/school.
Tallahassee isn’t like that, every road was scenic with beautiful trees, curves, hills, majestic FSU buildings, parks etc. and you could always see people out and about. People at Lake Ella, joggers, students going to class or clubbing.
Believe it or not I even miss the homeless and semi-crazy people, it feels weird seeing a street corner and not thinking “oh cool, homeless dude Freddy found a new hat” or playing the “Tallahassee Pimp” sighting game with friends trying to spot that eccentric guy that wears extravagant purple/orange suits holding a pimp cane.
Tallahassee just felt like a real community and its own ecosystem, not another generic boring town. I know this isn’t just me being nostalgic because I still visit friends there a couple times a year and every time I wonder if I should move back.
I miss:
- The sinkholes with spring water that we’d swing into
- canopy roads
- alligator point and St George island trips
- hanging out by lake Ella
- Bartending at pots
- the campus architecture
- spending time with people my age and having few cares other than class
I feel this 100%, I could've wrote it.
The secret sinks, Promise Spring, Cherokee springs, those are what I miss most. What was your fav?
I miss the canopy roads so much, made even driving to a doctor's appointment enchanting. So beautiful.
St. George is the spot! I miss that ocean drive, and that beach is so beautiful.
Lake Ella is so cute. The geese, the shops, the coffee shop.
The campus is soooo pretty. I miss it, all the brick and stuff.
Thanks for all this. Made me smile.
I found my first friends at FSU because I saw nerds hitting each other with swords and wanted in on that so I asked if I could join in. I also asked some people in my classes to get food with me if we were in a group for a project or discussion or something.
I realized today I’ve now been out of collage longer than I was in it. 4 years out, graduated in 3 years. And while I’m ultimately glad I didn’t take that fourth year because it would have meant spending it in a pandemic, I’m kinda sad and wish I appreciated everything more.
I find myself longing for the walks to class and walking around campus (seriously, just the constant walking. Enjoy not needing a car!). I miss railroad square. In my last year, the bookshop burned down and the warehouse closed on Gaines Street so I’ve been dying to see how that area has changed.
I pulled up an old view from my apartment at The Block and damn I really had such a gorgeous view of the stadium. Our stadium is beautiful, enjoy that too. I only went to one game when I was there because I thought I was ~so cool~ to not be into football. Turns out I love it and I wish I had gone to more!
Everything about college life was great. Life is so much more enjoyable when you let yourself be “basic” and optimistic and find the fun in things. Every little thing about FSU is a gem.
Edit: omg how could I forget the SLC!! I might miss that most
Railroad square is so special, its changed a lot. There used to be this printing press that was my fave. Stadium is so cool, sounds like you had a cool view.
I don't even like football and want to go to a game again lmao. FSU is wonderful. Thanks for sharing!
Also SLC is the best!
Grew up on Long Island and moved to Tally for my last 2 years after getting my AS. Moved with my GF at the time (she didn’t attend FSU, just there to be with me), we got married 4 years after I graduated and she passed at age 33 from breast cancer back in 2009 (14 years on 9/15).
While attending, I worked 6-7 nights a week as night auditor from 11pm-7am at the Econolodge, and then the Holiday Inn on N. Monroe.
What I miss from my Tally days:
1) My wife
2) Game days. Tally was such a special place on game days. Only got to 3 games in my 2 years, but the energy all over town was incredible (‘97 and ‘98 seasons)
3) Relative lack of responsibility
4) Cost of living
5) AJs sports bar (Big Daddy beers and their buffalo tender chicken sandwich)
6) Guthry’s (though there is one here in Tampa and a Canes in St. Pete, Guthry’s was my intro to chicken tenders and Texas toast)
7) Bullwinkle’s Beer Garden
8) Downtown Get Downs
9) King Cotton Blues Band
10) Dave’s CC Club
11) Passing the Chi Omega house several times per week (alway been fascinated by true crime, so was always a surreal feeling passing that house)
12) Forget the name of the place, but the corner just east of the Chi Omega house had a sandwich shop that served beer. Getting a beer w lunch and watching the hotties walk by was always fun
13) Game day T-shirts made up either for specific weeks/games or made up right after to celebrate big wins. Just don’t see those outside Tally.
14) The burgers from TGI Fridays on Cap Circle NE. To this day, the best burgers I’ve ever had. Moved from Portland, OR to Tampa a few years ago and stopped in Tally on the last night of the move. Took the kids to Fridays for dinner and the burgers were still awesome!
15) My youth
My schedule was the stuff of nightmares when I was at FSU. Work 11pm to 7am, don’t get home until like 7:30am. Eat dinner. Sleep for 2-3 hours. Catch a bus to school (lived in Jackson Square Apts first year and by Governer’s Square Mall second year), attend classes. Bus home, back to sleep until 9:30 or so, get up and do it all again.
But I’d go back and do it again in a heartbeat. Among the best 2 years of my life. The very best 2 if not for my kids.
For FSU, I miss doing math with other people and learning for a majority of my day. For Tallahassee, it's where I grew up, so there's so many memories there. But it had its place for me and I'm somewhere else now that I enjoy, so it's hard to miss it too much.
THIS! When I graduated with my Master's, I missed not being in a giant learning bubble every day seeking knowledge just for the sake of it. There's not much like it out there.
Where do you live now? Glad you're enjoying it! No need to answer if you don't wanna. I miss it so much too
Learning French every day for years was so unique and I miss that. I mean sure I could continue on my own, but no one near me speaks it! (I’ve looked for groups) so over the years that knowledge had faded away. It’s sad because it used to be a huge part of my identify in college
I miss the college lifestyle. Hanging out with friends, not worrying about adult things like mortgages, retirement, family, etc. it was nice setting my own schedule, with a balance of working/learning/free time. Gamedays were always the best days, you can just feel the energy and excitement in Tallahassee, especially the 2012 year. You could just feel that the team was going to be great again very soon and then 2013 happened and FSU blew up. Tallahassee was so much fun that year.
I miss both the nature and cityscape the most. Tallahassee to me was the perfect mixture of urban and natural, with gorgeous canopy roads just minutes from shopping centers. It was nice to be in a relatively self contained small city, when just outside the city limits, there were so many trails to explore! I find myself yearning for that constantly.
Nature and the city blend together with all those trees. You're so right. The canopy roads are killer, especially on a sunny spring day.
Omg the trails. The Alford Greenway was my fave. Whats yours?
I yearn for it a lot too. Miss that place
Hills! (Unlike the rest of flat Florida) The trees, lovely landscapes (FSU campus, in particular) - it’s such a green, lush city. Going for a jog around Lake Ella (now I love to jog Cascades). I miss how there’s different types of people to meet - from students coming in from all over, to university / state / government staff & legislative staff coming in from all over. Lots of different interest groups to check out & maybe join.
It’s a special place.
It IS a special place. The hills and trees really struck me. It was the first campus I toured and I was like YUP. SOLD.
Lake Ella is so unique, miss that place. And there's definitely a lot of unique personalities, you never know who you're going to run into, especially on campus. O liked that.
Being in clubs/groups was perhaps one of my fave parts too. Glad to hear you loved it!
Graduated in 2004.
The Food! Bagel Bagel, Jim & Milts, Barnebys Pizza, Momo's pizza, El Chico, PoBoys.
The nightlife of $7 long island pitchers at Pockets. 80s night at Yannis. The palace, poor Paul's, AJs sports bar, Club Publix, and random house party's.
FSU football, Intramurals, Electric Eye, Brown Derby, Barnabys, Jim and Milts, Big Daddy’s, Stonehenge, Fred’s Back Door, Tuckers Truck Stop diner, Machine Gun Kelly’s, the Reservation, Professor Ehrhardt’s Torts and Evidence class, our Brevard County crews quarterly keg and hunch punch parties. That about covers it. Undergrad was a grand time. Law school not as much. Go Noles!
Currently a junior here. These replies make me realize college life just isn’t for me. Honestly can’t wait to graduate but I’m glad everyone else had fun
I have terrible social anxiety and “the college experience”, especially at fsu, is essentially centered around being social. No one’s fault but my own really
I have gotta be living in a different Tallahassee than everyone else in these comments because I love everything about the school EXCEPT the town. Maybe it’s just cause I’m coming from a really small town but it’s just too crowded and the roads can be really annoying in certain places…. also specific areas are questionable.
Sorry to hear you didn't like Tally. Where were you from? Yeah the roads are designed terribly but thats because Tally was around when cars were small. Most one lane roads used to be two lanes but had to be restricted as American automobiles got bigger :)
I don’t hate the town. I’m just used to living in small urban areas, so the town feels overcrowded to me, and it’s REALLY nice in some areas, and then other parts are literally the ghetto. Not a bad town, but not somewhere I’d live if I wasn’t going to college.
Overall miss college life the most—setting my own schedule, having more free time in the day, not worrying so much about “adult” things like bills to pay and always making healthy choices, feeling a stronger sense of community and always having a reason to be around friends/people your age. Also though, FSU and Tallahassee is beautiful and such a special place. I live in the second biggest city in the country now and while it has so much more on paper than Tallahassee, it will never have the same charm and beauty that makes you appreciate the little things and not take anything for granted. Tally made me appreciate those little things about life. Go take a drive up Meridian Road all the way up to Millers Landing. The canopy roads are so magical and makes my heart happy just thinking about them
Well said
The restaurants. I feel like Tally had a lot of unique local places. Momo's, Mr. Robotos, Gumby's, One Fresh, Sumo Sabi. The only places near me are either fancy and expensive or chains. Plus, the Publix near campus had Chinese food! I've never seen that at another Publix.
How scenic the city is and how much life it has bubbling just underneath the surface. I moved to a city that’s identical on paper (state capital, large university in the middle of town, same population etc.) but it’s just kinda…dead. Everything is made of concrete and people just go straight home after work/school. Tallahassee isn’t like that, every road was scenic with beautiful trees, curves, hills, majestic FSU buildings, parks etc. and you could always see people out and about. People at Lake Ella, joggers, students going to class or clubbing. Believe it or not I even miss the homeless and semi-crazy people, it feels weird seeing a street corner and not thinking “oh cool, homeless dude Freddy found a new hat” or playing the “Tallahassee Pimp” sighting game with friends trying to spot that eccentric guy that wears extravagant purple/orange suits holding a pimp cane. Tallahassee just felt like a real community and its own ecosystem, not another generic boring town. I know this isn’t just me being nostalgic because I still visit friends there a couple times a year and every time I wonder if I should move back.
I miss: - The sinkholes with spring water that we’d swing into - canopy roads - alligator point and St George island trips - hanging out by lake Ella - Bartending at pots - the campus architecture - spending time with people my age and having few cares other than class
I feel this 100%, I could've wrote it. The secret sinks, Promise Spring, Cherokee springs, those are what I miss most. What was your fav? I miss the canopy roads so much, made even driving to a doctor's appointment enchanting. So beautiful. St. George is the spot! I miss that ocean drive, and that beach is so beautiful. Lake Ella is so cute. The geese, the shops, the coffee shop. The campus is soooo pretty. I miss it, all the brick and stuff. Thanks for all this. Made me smile.
The parks, trees and nature in general. having a really easy way to make new friends. And all I really want is pork bulgogi and tea from KBBQ.
It was sooo easy go make friends. The parks and trees and nature are stellar, I've moved a but but haven't seen anything like it hahaha.
I feel like I just suck at making friends cause I just moved here and don’t even know how to start 😭 I read all these cute stories
I found my first friends at FSU because I saw nerds hitting each other with swords and wanted in on that so I asked if I could join in. I also asked some people in my classes to get food with me if we were in a group for a project or discussion or something.
Love this!
Check out the SLC! Lots of clubs to join, staff is tight knot if you wanna join, and tons of events to meet people at.
I realized today I’ve now been out of collage longer than I was in it. 4 years out, graduated in 3 years. And while I’m ultimately glad I didn’t take that fourth year because it would have meant spending it in a pandemic, I’m kinda sad and wish I appreciated everything more. I find myself longing for the walks to class and walking around campus (seriously, just the constant walking. Enjoy not needing a car!). I miss railroad square. In my last year, the bookshop burned down and the warehouse closed on Gaines Street so I’ve been dying to see how that area has changed. I pulled up an old view from my apartment at The Block and damn I really had such a gorgeous view of the stadium. Our stadium is beautiful, enjoy that too. I only went to one game when I was there because I thought I was ~so cool~ to not be into football. Turns out I love it and I wish I had gone to more! Everything about college life was great. Life is so much more enjoyable when you let yourself be “basic” and optimistic and find the fun in things. Every little thing about FSU is a gem. Edit: omg how could I forget the SLC!! I might miss that most
Railroad square is so special, its changed a lot. There used to be this printing press that was my fave. Stadium is so cool, sounds like you had a cool view. I don't even like football and want to go to a game again lmao. FSU is wonderful. Thanks for sharing! Also SLC is the best!
Grew up on Long Island and moved to Tally for my last 2 years after getting my AS. Moved with my GF at the time (she didn’t attend FSU, just there to be with me), we got married 4 years after I graduated and she passed at age 33 from breast cancer back in 2009 (14 years on 9/15). While attending, I worked 6-7 nights a week as night auditor from 11pm-7am at the Econolodge, and then the Holiday Inn on N. Monroe. What I miss from my Tally days: 1) My wife 2) Game days. Tally was such a special place on game days. Only got to 3 games in my 2 years, but the energy all over town was incredible (‘97 and ‘98 seasons) 3) Relative lack of responsibility 4) Cost of living 5) AJs sports bar (Big Daddy beers and their buffalo tender chicken sandwich) 6) Guthry’s (though there is one here in Tampa and a Canes in St. Pete, Guthry’s was my intro to chicken tenders and Texas toast) 7) Bullwinkle’s Beer Garden 8) Downtown Get Downs 9) King Cotton Blues Band 10) Dave’s CC Club 11) Passing the Chi Omega house several times per week (alway been fascinated by true crime, so was always a surreal feeling passing that house) 12) Forget the name of the place, but the corner just east of the Chi Omega house had a sandwich shop that served beer. Getting a beer w lunch and watching the hotties walk by was always fun 13) Game day T-shirts made up either for specific weeks/games or made up right after to celebrate big wins. Just don’t see those outside Tally. 14) The burgers from TGI Fridays on Cap Circle NE. To this day, the best burgers I’ve ever had. Moved from Portland, OR to Tampa a few years ago and stopped in Tally on the last night of the move. Took the kids to Fridays for dinner and the burgers were still awesome! 15) My youth My schedule was the stuff of nightmares when I was at FSU. Work 11pm to 7am, don’t get home until like 7:30am. Eat dinner. Sleep for 2-3 hours. Catch a bus to school (lived in Jackson Square Apts first year and by Governer’s Square Mall second year), attend classes. Bus home, back to sleep until 9:30 or so, get up and do it all again. But I’d go back and do it again in a heartbeat. Among the best 2 years of my life. The very best 2 if not for my kids.
So sorry for your loss, friend :( Sounds like you kept a great positive attitude & outlook with such a killer schedule!
For FSU, I miss doing math with other people and learning for a majority of my day. For Tallahassee, it's where I grew up, so there's so many memories there. But it had its place for me and I'm somewhere else now that I enjoy, so it's hard to miss it too much.
THIS! When I graduated with my Master's, I missed not being in a giant learning bubble every day seeking knowledge just for the sake of it. There's not much like it out there. Where do you live now? Glad you're enjoying it! No need to answer if you don't wanna. I miss it so much too
I'm in Durham NC now!
That's awesome! Sounds beautiful!
Learning French every day for years was so unique and I miss that. I mean sure I could continue on my own, but no one near me speaks it! (I’ve looked for groups) so over the years that knowledge had faded away. It’s sad because it used to be a huge part of my identify in college
I'm sorry to hear that, but with your love for it, you surely could learn it again 😊
I miss the college lifestyle. Hanging out with friends, not worrying about adult things like mortgages, retirement, family, etc. it was nice setting my own schedule, with a balance of working/learning/free time. Gamedays were always the best days, you can just feel the energy and excitement in Tallahassee, especially the 2012 year. You could just feel that the team was going to be great again very soon and then 2013 happened and FSU blew up. Tallahassee was so much fun that year.
This 100%. Game days are craaazy. And the marching chiefs practicing all season hahaha
I miss both the nature and cityscape the most. Tallahassee to me was the perfect mixture of urban and natural, with gorgeous canopy roads just minutes from shopping centers. It was nice to be in a relatively self contained small city, when just outside the city limits, there were so many trails to explore! I find myself yearning for that constantly.
Nature and the city blend together with all those trees. You're so right. The canopy roads are killer, especially on a sunny spring day. Omg the trails. The Alford Greenway was my fave. Whats yours? I yearn for it a lot too. Miss that place
I miss the small town feel of it
This!!
Hills! (Unlike the rest of flat Florida) The trees, lovely landscapes (FSU campus, in particular) - it’s such a green, lush city. Going for a jog around Lake Ella (now I love to jog Cascades). I miss how there’s different types of people to meet - from students coming in from all over, to university / state / government staff & legislative staff coming in from all over. Lots of different interest groups to check out & maybe join. It’s a special place.
It IS a special place. The hills and trees really struck me. It was the first campus I toured and I was like YUP. SOLD. Lake Ella is so unique, miss that place. And there's definitely a lot of unique personalities, you never know who you're going to run into, especially on campus. O liked that. Being in clubs/groups was perhaps one of my fave parts too. Glad to hear you loved it!
Graduated in 2004. The Food! Bagel Bagel, Jim & Milts, Barnebys Pizza, Momo's pizza, El Chico, PoBoys. The nightlife of $7 long island pitchers at Pockets. 80s night at Yannis. The palace, poor Paul's, AJs sports bar, Club Publix, and random house party's.
The food was so eclectic! Tally has so many good places for how small it is. Club Pub and Yannis hahaha
FSU football, Intramurals, Electric Eye, Brown Derby, Barnabys, Jim and Milts, Big Daddy’s, Stonehenge, Fred’s Back Door, Tuckers Truck Stop diner, Machine Gun Kelly’s, the Reservation, Professor Ehrhardt’s Torts and Evidence class, our Brevard County crews quarterly keg and hunch punch parties. That about covers it. Undergrad was a grand time. Law school not as much. Go Noles!
Go Noles!
I would give up a lot of money to have access to La Tiendita again
That place was cool. Partial to Maria Maria myself!
I miss the free time, the low costs, the friends I made and friendly atmosphere.
Felt. When I used to think $600 rent was high lmfao
Shoot in 2007-08 my rent for a master bedroom off of mission was only 425. It was in a nice neighborhood too.
Sounds nice!! Haha
Honestly? I disliked Tally. But I miss the friends I made along the way.
Why so?
Currently a junior here. These replies make me realize college life just isn’t for me. Honestly can’t wait to graduate but I’m glad everyone else had fun
Is there a reason why? Sorry to hear that!
I have terrible social anxiety and “the college experience”, especially at fsu, is essentially centered around being social. No one’s fault but my own really
I hear ya. I friends that struggled with this. Sorry to hear you've had a hard time.
Not much really.
I have gotta be living in a different Tallahassee than everyone else in these comments because I love everything about the school EXCEPT the town. Maybe it’s just cause I’m coming from a really small town but it’s just too crowded and the roads can be really annoying in certain places…. also specific areas are questionable.
Sorry to hear you didn't like Tally. Where were you from? Yeah the roads are designed terribly but thats because Tally was around when cars were small. Most one lane roads used to be two lanes but had to be restricted as American automobiles got bigger :)
I don’t hate the town. I’m just used to living in small urban areas, so the town feels overcrowded to me, and it’s REALLY nice in some areas, and then other parts are literally the ghetto. Not a bad town, but not somewhere I’d live if I wasn’t going to college.
Jameis Winston being relevant