Wednesday, September 5, 2007
As per usual, classes are hitting the ground running and students are realizing what is ahead of them. Add/drop is soon coming to a close, and most students come to grips with what their classes actually entail, and what they’ve gotten themselves into. In accordance with these lugubrious realizations, the student collective finds within each of themselves the need to provide outlets for the stress and otherwise downing academic obligations otherwise known as the ‘long haul.’ I’m referring to parties: themed, impromptu or otherwise ridiculous.
At these sorts of gatherings, everyone’s out for a good time, and a lot of items fly usually. Last weekend, I chose to sit on a small table and minutes later it broke. Never mind the emotional body image issues that followed. When party fouls happen, and they do, elements of the party are disturbed.
Being the culprit in this situation, I instinctively sought to deflect the immediate and unwanted attention laid upon me by yelling a general cigarette request. Other strategies I may or may not have employed included evacuating the area. This course of action may seem cold, heartless or inconsiderate. If this isn’t familiar to you, I will say that I was merely providing the way for an easier cleanup (or whatever needs to be done) by leaving the area. Why wallow in the buzz-kill?
For the host, an incident of this nature is like a horrible climax. In the back of everyone’s mind, from the onset of throwing a party, is the possibility of something breaking, someone camping out by the toilet (admittedly I’ve gotten comfy several times) or something spilling.
More often than not, however, fouls occur on the small scale. Always is that point in the night where I spill something on myself. My friends and I have coined our inevitable clumsiness “spill time,” and there is little need for explanation. When I’m around others, though, I usually silently dismiss it or share a quick giggle with whichever stranger is near.
Come to think of it, it is precisely in sharing those times of spillage that I’ve come to meet a lot of people I still know today. They knew what I was talking about, or at least they said they did, and that stain on my shirt is actually an icebreaker, not a cape cod.
So alongside the temporary disruption, confusion and uncertainty, you have something that is maybe just what the party needed, or similarly, a definitive point for its winding down. Something is probably damaged, but I have this funny feeling it won’t stop anything going on next week. The small plastic table was appraised at five dollars. I owe him a beer, and maybe, some time with the dustpan.
Muselmann is a Tulsa, Okla., junior in journalism.
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Muselmann: Don’t let a problem ruin a party
Ok... So breaking things at parties is alright, as long as you aren't weird about it. Got it. Thanks for the 300+ word tip on something I could say in a sentence.
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