Iowa State: Chris Gabel and the 30 Person Kwik Shop Trip

It was the Spring of ’87, the last semester of my sophomore year. I was living in 310-B with Chris Libby across from Tuyen Co and Max Dirks. I spent quite a bit of time that year with Chris Gabel (we’d be roommates the following year) except for the time he was spending with his girlfriend–if my memory has it correct, her name was Bobbi Jo Beaubein. Chris’s roommate was named Jon–he was an adult architectural student and former Army guy (he didn’t quite fit in with the weirdos on our floor–he just liked that we were usually quiet and Westgate was near the Architecture building).

So anyways, there was one night that Chris and Bobbi wanted some privacy and closed the door to Chris’s room (John was at his studio in the Arch building). Being the caring, sensitive people we were, about ten minutes later, we had a plan–I think it was me and Libby who came up with it…Ron Silverio may have been involved–and if not, he was a willing conspirator a few moments later. I went up to the door and knocked, being as innocent as possible. I probably asked if he had seen one of the other guys we shot pool with, something like that.

And then a few minutes later, Libby went up and knocked–and then asked if Gabel had seen me anywhere…again, all innocent. A few minutes later, Ron went up asking if Gabel wanted to play pool. You can see how this is helping Chris and his private time with Bobbi. Pretty soon, he stopped answering the knocks.

Did that stop us?

If you’ve read any/all of my other Foster/Iowa State posts, you know the answer to that–OF COURSE NOT.

Everyone in Westgate had Kwik Shop cups–it was two blocks away and $0.49 for 47 ounces (of liquid pleasure) refills so everyone had a KS cup. Being obnoxious, Ron, me, and Libby took our cups and put them against the wall of the room next to the door, trying to listen in to whatever was going on in the room. Because the rooms were part of suites, people walking past could see what we were doing–so one of us would go out to the hall and explain. Of course that meant they then came back and put a cup against the wall–and soon we had more people than wall space, so people were putting cups against the room wall separating the room from the main hall. We probably had 12-13 guys doing this. Someone out in the hall whispered, “What do we do if he opens the door?”

Chris Libby immediately flipped his cup upright in his hand and loudly said “Kwik Shop? Anyone for Kwik Ship?” with a big goody smile. That brought a ton of laughter–and we were all out in the hall by that point…can’t laugh like that and get caught!! It was enough that Gabel opened the door for a brief moment then slammed it shut without saying anything.

I don’t remember if any of us wound up going down to KS or not. I don’t even know if any of us heard anything through the wall–I just remember all the stifled laughs from all of us. It’s one of the few instances from college where I think a photo of us and the cups against the door and the walls would be hilarious even now, ~40 years later.

Chris and Bobbi broke up before spring was over. We had no part in that–I note that for posterity.