A Universal College Party (Dress to Get Lei’d)
The hardest thing about college isn't the massive amounts of homework, or trying to juggle a job with a full load of classes, and its definitely not convincing your professor that your computer died and you couldn't print out the twenty-five pages on civil war. The hardest thing about college is choosing what to wear to a party, who to attend the party with, and afterwards, who to go home with.
In college, Thursday night is the start of the weekend. It's the start of procrastination, laziness, drunkenness, and mere stupidly. Now don't get me wrong, there are the occasional students who chose not to partake in such events. However, where would college be without your stereotypical frat party?
Megan, a typical partygoer, begins her Thursday night in her apartment with the rest of her so-called 'click.' Earlier that week her and her friends spent countless hours chatting in between class about what to wear for Thursday night. See the thing is, you can't have a party without a theme. Especially if you can get scantly clad girls to attend the party, hence why the theme on this particular night is Dress to Get Lei'd. Now you can take it however you like. Of course the frat throwing the party made flyers with Hawaiian leis, coconuts, and tiki torches decorating the bright green paper, but we all know their intentions.
Back in Megan's apartment the girls are dressed in their most revealing lingerie, with lots of lace, bows, and thigh high stockings. Each girl has chosen to reveal one of her best assets. Megan's outfit of course stands out from the rest of the group. The turquoise laced nighty, hugs tightly to her body, slightly exposing her black satin bra underneath. Her blonde hair hangs long down her back, and she walks around her small apartment in her black heels and a gin and tonic in her hand. It's not the most glamorous drink, but then again its college.
This scene is what we typically call, a pre-party. The idea is to meet at the designated place and toss back a couple of drinks prior to heading to the party. For Megan and her group this also includes doing hair and makeup, discussing the available guys that will be in attendance, and watching the newest episode of The Bachelor. But on the other side of campus Adam and his friends have a different meaning to the word pre-party. For them it's just like any other night of drinking beer and playing video games.
Adam, a member of the fraternity who's party will occur later that evening, is dressed in a coconut bra, board shorts and a grass skirt on top. This is not the ideal outfit for a guy, but that's the point. In his case he wants to stand out from the rest of the crowd, going for the comical, but check out my abs, look.
The trick to themed parties is to wear what you normally wouldn't wear, and wear it however you want. Like I mentioned before it's a chance to wear as little as nothing and get away with it. Now that our pre-partiers are dressed and tipsy and its getting close to midnight, (never attend a party before eleven), its time to call the on-campus shuttle and head over to frat row.
The always dirty frat house appears to be looking its cleanest. The inside is decorated with Hawaiian cutouts of hula dancers, volcanoes, and pineapples. The affordable DJ in the corner is covered with leis as he spins the latest, trendy, music. On the dance floor the students grind their bodies back and forth as they dance closely for an uncontrollable amount of time. And as the disco ball on the ceiling spins around reflecting silver squares on their intoxicated faces, there is a large percentage of the group standing on the cold wall watching the movement on the dance floor.
The backyard is surround by tiki torches (unlit), and a massive line forms behind the bar, as everyone pushes to get a beer before the keg is tapped. The crowd is diversely dressed in Hawaiian outfits, lingerie, pajamas, and anything else they considered appropriate for the theme. The smell of stale beer, cigarette smoke, sweat, and guys with too much cologne fills the air, as the music gets louder and louder by the minute. At times the party seems like a sixth grade dance with boys on one side and girls on another. But as the night progresses and the alcohol begins to move through their blood, the pack of single partygoers begin to entwine.
As Megan makes her way into the party, first doing a lap to see who is there, and then picking the prime location. For her it's near the keg, as the majority of people standing in line are from the male species. And that's when she notices Adam. How could she miss him in his coconut bra, and that hard rock stomach? Of course Megan had to get a second opinion, and the hunt was on.
Meanwhile, Adam had been playing hostess, going back and forth making sure the music was bumping and the beer was flowing. As he spotted Megan and her friend he strolled over and offered both girls a beer. They accepted knowing very well that they wouldn't dare put the cheap, carb infested liquid into their bodies. And so Adam and Megan began to talk, both complimenting each other on their outfits, and the rest was history.
The party continued late into the early morning, as the partygoers began to slowly make their way back to their dorm rooms, with their friends, or a possible match for the evening. By 3am the frat house was deserted, crate paper now decorated the floor, empty red cups were scattered throughout the grass, an unclaimed sarong was draped over a lamp and a drunken sole slept peacefully on the couch, too drunk to walk home.
And so like all Thursday nights the party must come to an end. But it was another success, another perfect theme. On Friday and Saturday the parties will continue again, more themes, more hook-ups, and more messy houses to clean. But if anything is to be learned from this frat party, it is to always choose a theme that is compatible with your guest. Make it universal so they can chose what to wear and still fit in with the theme. Not only will your guest be happy, but it will also increase their chances of finding that special someone!
