today i saw in my twitter feed that the st. cloud downtown perkins was closing.

it’s the end of an era.

the killer perkins was a late-night hangout for a few years; every time branden rolled through st cloud, which was almost every sunday night, he and lisa and i would meet at the killer p for some apps and convo. and definitely a show.

one time there was a fight out in the parking lot. a guy had a gun in the back of his pickup (think hunting fun). the cops were called, then a small fire broke out in the cab of his truck. branden rushed out to yell at him “dude your cab’s on fire!” then rushed back to watch through the window with everyone else. the cops didn’t believe there was a gun until we told them exactly where it was.

saw a fight break out in the middle of the smoking section (OMG remember smoking sections?!?), and a girl had her shirt ripped off and her piercing yanked out in a delicate area (ouch!).

for my final paper in my journalism II class, i wrote 10 pages on the regulars at killer perkins – what they were like, the conversations, etc. i remember the note on the paper saying that the prof didn’t think this would work but was fascinated and gave me an A. here’s the paper for those who want to read it! finalfeature

there were times when i was invited to go to killer perkins but had to scrape together change to just get a side salad. i wrote them more than a few checks with money that wouldn’t be in my account for a couple days (remember checkblanks??)

i met so many people there – it was a landmark. if i needed to meet someone in st. cloud, all i’d need to say is “you know where downtown perkins is?” and boom. plan made.

and not only was it a college kid afterhours hangout; it was a place for many of st cloud’s homeless to sit overnight in a warm space. the 24-hour restaurant is no longer and i hope those people have a place to be on chilly nights.

so farewell, killer perkins. i leave you with a haiku:

wow killer perkins
hey dude with the gun! fire! cops!
dinner and a show